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A new bill in Mississippi will require Joint Physical Custody & EQUAL Parenting TIME, unless the Court finds a compelling reason not too…

Senate Bill 2484 requires that, “There shall be a rebuttable presumption that joint custody and equally shared parenting time is in the best interest of the child. If the court grants joint custody and equally shared parenting time, the court shall construct a parenting time schedule which maximizes the time each parent has with the child and ensures the best interest of the child is met.“

(ii) The presumption created in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph shall be rebuttable by a preponderance of the evidence. A court that does not award joint custody with equally shared parenting time shall document the reasons for deviating from the presumption.

(b) To calculate child support for joint custody with equally shared parenting time, unless the court determines a deviation from this paragraph is in the best interest of the child, the court shall:

(i) Calculate a child-support award under the guidelines of Section 43-19-101 for each parent as if each parent was the obligor;

(ii) Calculate the difference in the two (2) awards by subtracting the lesser award from the larger award; and

(iii) Order the difference in the two (2) awards to be paid by the parent who has the higher adjusted gross income to the parent with the lower adjusted gross income.

(c) Upon petition of both parents, the court may grant legal and/or physical custody to one (1) parent without documenting a reason for deviation.

This is a potential monumental change in child custody law, primarily the requirement for equal parenting time. If signed into law this does away with the every other weekend visitation schedule…

Additionally, it drastically changes the child support landscape and can have “mom” paying “dad” dependent upon the math.

This made its way through the legislature with little fanfare and virtually zero input from practitioners and judges.

Matthew Thompson is child custody attorney and believes children do best with both parents as involved as possible.

Courts usually grant custody to one parent or the other and the non-custodial parent exercises his time at places and locations he sees fit…

However, sometimes the Court needs an unusual solution to an unusual problem.

Consider the Birds Nest custody arrangement.

In a birds nest, the children stay in the “nest” aka the marital home and mom and dad take turns coming and going from the home.

During mom’s time she has custody to the children and the home, to the exclusion of dad.

During dad’s time he has exclusive custody of the kids and home and mom is excluded.

This is a good solution when the child has a unique need and having that structure of home base is in their best interest.

It’s also a viable solution when use of the home is needed by a party for work as the “home office” or tools of the trade are kept on the property.

This is not an often used remedy as it requires potentially 3 temporary residences, but can be an effective tool in the tool belt of solutions in limited circumstances.

Matthew Thompson is a child custody attorney and recommends the birds nest in unique cases.

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