A child custody order is an order issued by a court that determines who a child will live with and who will make decisions on the child’s behalf. There are several factors that a court in Florida would consider when making a child custody determination, and one of those factors is whether there is a history of domestic violence.
How does domestic violence affect child custody orders?
Usually, a child custody order is based on the best interests of the child. Therefore, if a court finds that there is a history of domestic violence, the court will likely give child custody to the parent who does not have a history of domestic violence. This is because the court wants to protect the child from getting exposed to violence.
One of the things the family law court would look at is whether there has been a criminal conviction for domestic violence. If there has been a conviction, that would weigh heavily in the child custody determination. However, even if there hasn’t been a conviction, the court can still consider evidence of domestic violence when making a child custody determination. It may consider other factors, such as whether there have been restraining orders or whether there is a history of violence between the parents.
How should you prepare yourself for a child custody hearing?
If you have a history of domestic violence, it is important to prepare yourself to discuss that history with the court. You should be prepared to explain what happened and why it won’t happen again. It’s also important to be prepared to discuss the impact that domestic violence has had on your child. The court may want to know how you have been working to protect your child from violence and how you have been working to address the impact of violence. If you are the victim of domestic violence, you should also get prepared to discuss that with the court. The court will want to know what happened and how it has affected you and your child.
Whatever you do, don’t try to hide evidence of domestic violence from the court. That will only make it more difficult for you to get the child custody arrangement that you want.