Family Law Blog

Troops’ Parental Rights to Child Custody

By Denver Divorce Lawyer on June 23, 2010

Going through a divorce in Colorado can be a stressful experience, but it does not have to deprive you of your right to custody of your children. However, troops and military service members alike are finding that their rights to custody as a parent may be in jeopardy. According to a Stars and Stripes article, lawmakers are examining potential amendments to improve legislation to better protect servicemembers’ parental rights to child custody.

When servicemembers are involved in Colorado child custody disputes, one of the biggest issues is deployment-related absences. Mothers and fathers who are active-duty servicemembers are asking for protection against breaks in parental care related to military service harming their chances of obtaining custody. Based on the article, approximately 142,000 servicemembers have primary custody of their children.
While several lawmakers advocate the adoption of a uniform statute to be implemented nationwide, statutes are pending in 14 other states and 33 states have enacted military child custody laws, Colorado included.

A bill advocating more detailed information regarding custody rights in the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act – a federal law that gives troops special legal privileges not provided to civilians – has been noted to have bipartisan support and has been included in the annual defense authorization act by the House Armed Services Committee. The provision also forbids state courts from permanently modifying custody orders during a parent’s deployment and would require pre-deployment custody to be given back except in cases where doing so is not best for the children involved.

The “allocation of decision-making responsibility” and the “allocation of parental responsibility” characterize child custody matters in Colorado. The legal matters surrounding these cases are some of the most complex in family law, making finding a qualified and dedicated Denver child custody attorney all the more important. At Kaplan Law, LLC, our skilled Colorado family law attorneys have extensive experience in child custody and visitation. Call us today at 1-877-527-5206 for more information on how we can help.