Child Custody Attorney in Bartlesville, OK

What Is Child Custody in Oklahoma?

If you have custody of a child, you have the authority to decide where the child lives. You may make decisions for the child’s life, such as where the child goes to school, the child’s medical care, and the child’s religious upbringing. 

Two types of custody that exist in Oklahoma are sole custody and joint custody. Typically, when one parent has sole custody (also called full custody), that parent has the exclusive right to make decisions involving the child’s upbringing. If both parents have joint custody, both parents have equal rights to make decisions for the child. For more information on the difference between sole custody and joint custody, click here.

When a court awards custody (whether sole or joint), the court will typically set a visitation schedule, which determines when each parent will have time with the child.

Who May Seek Child Custody?

The types of people who may need a child custody lawyer include:

• Parents who are divorcing. 
  If parents obtain a divorce, the court must make provisions for custody of the children. If you are going through a divorce and you have children, it’s a good idea to use the services of an experienced custody/visitation attorney.

• Parents who were never married, but have a child together. 
  In Oklahoma, if a child is born to parents who are not married, the mother has custody until a court rules otherwise. A court case, involving parents who were never married, is called a paternity case. The rules for determining custody in a paternity case are the same as those in a divorce case. Either the father or the mother may file a paternity case, and the Court may grant custody to either the father, or mother, or joint custody to both parents. The father and the mother have the same rights, and there is no preference for either parent. When the paternity case ends, the judge will sign a decree of paternity; this decree will specify which parent has custody; the decree will also provide for visitation and child support. For more information on paternity cases, click here.

• Parents who already have a divorce decree or paternity decree, and need something changed.
  If you were divorced previously, or have had a paternity decree entered before, and you want changes made to custody, visitation, or child support, you may file a motion to modify. In a motion to modify, a child custody attorney will ask the judge to change provisions in custody, visitation or child support. In the case of Gibbons v. Gibbons, the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled that a judge should grant a motion to modify if there has been “a permanent, substantial and material change of conditions which directly affect the best interests of the minor child, and (b) that, as a result of such change in conditions, the minor child would be substantially better off, with respect to its temporal and its mental and moral welfare, if the requested change in custody be ordered.” A court may also grant a motion to modify if there is newly discovered evidence, which was unknown at the time the original decree was signed.

• Grandparents who want custody or visitation with a grandchild.
  Another case, in which you may need the services of a family/custody lawyer, is the grandparental custody or visitation case. Oklahoma law provides that a grandparent may only have custody or visitation with a child if there is a showing of parental unfitness. State law does not list all of the criteria that can be considered in deciding whether a parent is unfit. In my blog post here, I’ve included a list of common reasons that courts have used to determine that a parent is unfit. Typically, these cases involve situations where a child is being abused, a parent has been convicted of domestic abuse or sex crimes, or a parent is abusing alcohol or drugs.
  
  If your grandchildren are being abused, don’t take it lightly. Do whatever you can to protect your grandchildren.