As part of the custody process in Minnesota, you need to create a co-parenting plan. A good co-parenting plan helps facilitate a strong co-parent relationship which leads to better experiences for your children.
You and your co-parent can generally include terms in your co-parenting plan that are specific to your situation, although a court will still examine the plan to make sure it is in your children’s best interest.
A co-parenting plan should be thorough and cover every type of situation, including how to handle unexpected events. Here are some items to be included in your co-parenting plan.
Legal and physical custody
Legal custody is which parent has the power to make major decisions on behalf of the children. Major decisions include those involving medical, educational or religions choices.
The law presumes that joint legal custody is in a child’s best interest. A court grants joint legal custody in most cases. Joint legal custody means both parents have equal power to make decisions and no parents’ choice will control over another.
Physical custody is who the children live with and when. Your co-parenting plan must specifically state a physical custody schedule. The physical custody schedule should include specific days and times, transportation requirements and how you and your co-parent will communicate with each other.
Communication terms
Your choice of communication methods may depend on your co-parenting relationship. If you are on good terms with your co-parent and can maintain an amicable relationship, communication by any method, including phone or in-person, might be best.
However, if conversations with your co-parent often turn into arguments or your co-parenting relationship is strained, your co-parenting plan could include language stating that all communication must be done through text message or a parenting app.
The benefit with this option is that all communications are in writing. This reduces the chance of misunderstandings and encourages respectful communication, since messages are potential evidence in court and could be read by a judge one day.
Holiday and vacation time
Your physical custody schedule should include holiday and vacation schedules. You must state annual holidays and who the child will spend the holidays with each year. Holiday time should state exactly when the holiday time begins and ends and when the regular physical custody schedule resumes.
Vacation time should include the same type of language, stating how many weeks of vacation each parent receives with the children each year. Language that requires a certain amount of notice, such as each parent being required to provide two-month notice of when they want to take vacation, is a good idea.
Although it is standard practice that holiday and vacation time takes precedence over the regular custody schedule, you may want to include this in your co-parent plan to avoid confusion.
Relocation or other unexpected situations
Finally, a co-parenting plan should address what happens in an unexpected situation. A common example is if one parent wishes to relocate with the children.
Your co-parenting plan should indicate that each parent must provide each other with their new address within a certain time. If one parent wants to move a significant distance away, such as to a new school district, out of state or even out of the county, the plan should address what to do.
You have the option of modifying your co-parenting plan. Otherwise, Minnesota law does not allow a parent to relocate a substantial distance without the agreement of the other parent or court approval. If you and your co-parent cannot agree on what to do if one parent wants to relocate, you might find yourself heading to court if that happens.