What is a parenting plan?

Washington law requires a parenting plan in any proceeding for annulment, legal separation or marital dissolution where minor children are involved. The terms "child custody" and "visitation" are no longer used in Washington dissolution law.

In developing a parenting plan, the court takes into consideration specific parenting functions and each parent's ability to:

• Maintain a loving, stable, consistent and nurturing relationship with the child.
• Attend to the daily needs of the child, including feeding, clothing, physical care and grooming, supervision, health care, day care, and other needs as indicated by circumstances.
• Attend to adequate education, including remedial and other essential education that serves the best interests of the child.
• Assist the child to develop and maintain appropriate interpersonal relationships.
• Exercise good judgment regarding the child's welfare.
• Provide for financial support of the child.

When these issues have been thoughtfully determined, you will need to work on the parenting plan's major elements which include decision-making authority and the residential schedule.

Decision-making Authority. The Parenting Act requires parents to specify who may make major decisions about the child's care. Specific areas of concern are education, health care and religious upbringing; other items may also be specified.

Decisions about these issues may be made by both parents or divided between them, or the parents may arrange, or the court may decide, that only one of them will make these decisions.

A court uses various factors in deciding whether both parents should share decision-making, or if only one of them should have this authority. These factors include how much the parents have participated in past decisions about their children, whether they can cooperate with one another in decision-making, and how far they live from one another.

Even though some major decisions may be designated to only one parent, it is important to remember that each parent may make decisions about day-to-day care and control of the child while that child is living with that parent. In an emergency, either parent may make decisions regarding their child's health or safety.

Residential Schedule. Parents will be asked to propose a living arrangement showing the amount of time each child will spend with each parent. Along with school days and weekends, this schedule considers occasions such as holidays, birthdays of family members and vacations. Transportation arrangements will also be considered. The court will look for a residential schedule that maintains the most loving and stable relationship between each parent and child. It will favor giving the greatest amount of time to the parent who has been more involved in caring for the child's daily needs, and whose relationship with the child is more stable and stronger.

The court also considers other factors, such as:

• The agreements parents have arrived at regarding the residential schedule.
• How well each parent has performed his or her parenting functions in the past, and their ability to do so in the future.
• The child's relationships with brothers, sisters and other adults in his or her life.
• How involved the child has become in his or her environment, including school and other activities.
• The wishes of the child (if old enough to express those wishes).

Although the court may permit a 50/50 residential schedule, such moving will be considered only under certain conditions including:

• If there has been a great deal of cooperation between parents in the past.
• If there is reasonable geographic proximity.
• If the arrangement serves the best interest of the child.

In all cases, however, the children will live and spend time with each parent as designated by the plan, unless there exist restrictions which may result in a parent's contact being limited.

Restrictions which may limit contact with the child(ren)

While the law tries to have both parents involved in the parenting of their children, there are circumstances when a parent's involvement can be limited by the court.

Restrictions on a parent's involvement with a child may be made for certain reasons. These restrictions may limit or even eliminate contact with the child. For example, if either parent has abandoned their child for a long period of time or repeatedly refused to take part in caring for their daily needs, or physically, sexually or emotionally abused the child, participated in acts of domestic violence, or has a long-term drug, alcohol or other substance-abuse problem which has prevented that parent from taking care of the child's daily needs.

A parent may request the court to appoint a Guardian ad Litem or parenting evaluation to investigate allegations and issue a recommendation to the court for residential placement and/or limited parent contact.

Changing the Plan

A parenting plan can be changed in only a few cases. It may be changed if both parents agree to the change, and if it is in the best interests of the child.

If one parent does not agree to a proposed change, the court can modify a plan only if revisions are made necessary by a substantial change that has occurred in the child's life or in the lives of the parents since the parenting plan was ordered.

Any change in the plan must be in the best interests of the child. Similarly, the residential schedule can be modified if the court finds that the child's present living situation and environment are physically or emotionally harmful.