Visitation

Visitation refers to the manner in which parents will share time with their children.  Many parents mutually agree how they want to spend time with the children, and most final Orders will say that “visitation shall occur as the parents mutually agree, but failing mutual agreement….” they will follow a specified Order.

Often, the specified Order is the legislatively created “Standard Possession Order.”  The Standard Possession Order is designed to apply to a child three years of age or older. For a child less than three, the Court will render an Order that is “appropriate under the circumstances” (a vague standard), and will render a prospective Order that takes effect on the child’s third birthday (presumably, the Standard Possession Order).

Some parents find the Standard Possession Order unworkable for their family, and they create a customized schedule that takes into consideration the ages of the children, the parents’ travel and/or work schedules, the children’s activities, and the distance between households.