Another factor that is going to make a difference in your custody case is, “How much work-related travel do you have?” This is becoming more and more of an issue as jobs become more and more global.
There’re so many more of us now that have jobs where we’re not tethered to our desks. We have the ability to work remotely, and sometimes we’re forced to work remotely, and we’re forced to travel a lot.
If you’re traveling 3 weeks out of the month, then there’s no way that the Judge is going to order a 50/50 custody schedule – because you simply can’t do that. The Judge isn’t going to order that you have custodial time when we know that you’re going to be gone. That’s going to result in somebody else having the children during the time that’s been court ordered as your time.
If you are someone who travels a lot and you’re concerned about this being a big issue in your case, make sure that you give the Judge all of the facts about your business travel. Is there flexibility? Do you have the ability to tell your employer, “No?” Do you have the ability to request a set schedule?
If you have some flexibility with your travel schedule, you want to make sure that you explain that to the Judge. Keep in mind the Judge is going to do what they think is a realistic schedule. They’re going to think about what is workable, what can this person actually do in terms of custody? That’s going to be the guiding factor.
