No one relishes the idea of estate planning, or planning what happens after their death, but it’s especially challenging to take on the most important part of estate planning for parents — the necessary steps toward appointing a guardianship for your children should you die while they are still dependent minors. If parents neglect this critical aspect of family estate planning, then a judge from the probate court will decide where to place children and who has legal guardianship of…

The holiday season is right around the corner, which means that parents who are divorced will have to narrow down what happens with the children. There are several things to think about, so now is the best time to get started. One of the first things that you’ll need to do is to review the parenting plan to determine what schedule needs to be followed for the holiday season. Some parenting plans have alternating schedules, but others might have a…

If you already have a Parenting Plan (child custody agreement) in place following the separation of you and the other parent, to modify it, you will need to show the courts that there has been a change of circumstances and that a modification of the Plan is in the children’s best interests. Things change all the time: Children grow older and they have varying needs. Parents change too, and it may be that your work schedule means that you are…

When two parents choose to divorce, they must create a parenting plan delineating how they each share the benefits and responsibilities of parenthood. Often, these issues are some of the most difficult to resolve during the divorce process, because many parents feel the need to fight for greater control over their child’s life rather than creating a plan that truly focuses on the child’s needs. A strong parenting plan protects the best interests of the child while establishing healthy boundaries…

When Colorado couples started their families, they probably felt as though their marriages would last forever. Unfortunately, at some point, the marital relationship soured, and one or both spouses decided that divorce would be the best course of action. Even if at least some of those couples want to co-parent, their relationship may not allow them to do so, in which case they may want to consider parallel parenting for their custody and parenting time plans. For those unfamiliar with parallel…