Your children are the most important thing in a parent’s life, and it is common to lash out at anything that potentially harms their child or prevents a parent from seeing their child or spending time with their child. In this case, that thing is a custody hearing. Below are some common mistakes that parents make during custody battles that can harm their chances of receiving a desirable outcome in court.

Using Social Media to Complain About the Other Parent

As tempting as it may be, using social media to publicly badmouth the other parent, that parent’s lawyer, or a judge handling the case is a recipe for disaster. Not only will it unnecessarily anger all parties target, which may in fact by your short-term goal, but it will harm your reputation, making you seem vindictive, irrational, or a bad role model.

Losing Your Temper in Court

A judge wants to place a child with a responsible parent in a stable home with a calm environment. Outbursts in court prove to the judge that you are not that person and your home is not that place.

Adhering to a parenting plan is crucial for the wellbeing of your child. When the other parent decides to violate that plan by dropping off your child late or refusing to return your child to you, it becomes necessary to take legal action. Children need structure for proper development and growth, and violating a parenting plan is not only unfair to you, but denying your child this crucial structure is downright harmful.

How Violating the Parenting Plan Increases Hostility and Distrust Between Divorced Parents

There are many reasons why separated or divorced parents hold onto their anger or cannot forgive each other. One study found that social network disapproval toward the other parent (friends disapprove of the other parent) increases co-parenting conflict. Other contributing factors to continued hostility after the divorce or separation is in the past, like “trash talking” the other parent in front of the children, often include infidelity during the relationship and continued poor communication after the marriage or relationship has terminated.

However, one of the greatest sources of conflict between divorced or separated parents is caused when one, or both, parents violate the parenting plan. Dropping the children off late or refusing to make compromises are examples of how a parent may try to gain leverage or assert their authority over the other parent. This comes at a great cost to the children, who inevitably suffer emotional trauma at the expense of being in the middle of a game of tug-of-war between their parents. It is essential to take legal action when you believe the other parent is violating the terms of the parenting agreement.