Does a Standard Possession Order apply to children under the age of three?
Generally, in most cases, a visiting parent will be awarded a standard possession order as to their child whenever it comes to visitation. However, when that child is under the age of three, a court must order a possession order that accommodates a child of that age and they take into consideration additional factors. The factors include the age of the child, how they're bonded to each parent, the ability of each parent to take in the responsibility of the child, of the child rearing, whether the child has siblings that will partake in that, and how far the parents live from one another. And also another factor would be the needs the medical, behavioral needs of the child. So the court takes into consideration these factors and molds a possession order that is typically focused on giving the visiting parents more frequent time at a shorter duration to maintain that bond, and the ultimate goal is to work up to a standard possession order by the time that child is three years old.
By
Diggs & Sadler
