When you have children, the idea of getting a divorce can be exponentially terrifying. How will your kids react? How will this change impact their mental health? What can you as a parent do to help guide them through this chapter of your lives?

These are all important questions that you may not get the answers to right away. Let’s discuss the first step: breaking the news of your Long Island divorce to your children. Here’s what you should know and where to get the legal help you need to protect your family’s best interests.

Child support orders in New York are created to remain effective and unchanged from the court order until the supported child becomes legally emancipated or reaches the age of 21, whichever comes first. However, most divorced parents experience a change in their finances or the material needs of their child before the child support order before the end of its effective life. When this happens, one or both of the child’s parents may believe that the child support may need to increase or decrease from the original court order.

Here are several reasons Long Island courts will refuse to modify a child support order and what you can do to improve the chances your Child Support Modification case will be successful.

Divorce often puts families into financial and emotional upheaval. Even after all the financial and custody issues are settled, divorced couples with children are often dismayed to discover that they are not free to up and move if they have shared custody of their children with their ex. This can be devastating when trying to put the pieces of your life together and perhaps a new job opportunity opens up in a different city or state.

Parents who are divorced or separated are frequently frustrated to hear that they cannot just leave the city or even the state with their children. A planned “relocation” is what New York law refers to when one of the child’s parents wishes to relocate. 

If you and your child’s other parent can’t agree on where you should live, you’ll have to go through a court process that ends with a judge’s decision to approve or deny the change. Here’s what to understand about Long Island relocation laws and how to get legal help regardless of which side of the situation you’re on. 

Although it is normally preferred that parents split custody, there are several circumstances in which family courts may give sole custody to only one parent. Furthermore, judges are not allowed to express any bias toward either parent, so if you can demonstrate that you are the superior parent and/or your child is in danger when with their other parent, you may be able to acquire permanent full custody.

Nevertheless, if the child’s mother also intends to fight for sole custody, you need to prepare yourself for a difficult child custody dispute. Here’s what you should know about full custody for fathers on Long Island and how to get the help of an experienced family lawyer when you need it most.