Parenting Time Considerations for Frequent Business Trips in New Jersey

Work travel, especially frequent, can make custody arrangements harder and cause trouble with keeping regular parenting time and a stable environment for your children.

Life as a working parent is a never-ending balancing act. If you add business trips into the mix, it can feel more like a circus-trapeze act. Even when parents are married or cohabitating with their child’s other parent, coordinating schedules and getting out of your normal routine to accommodate work travel is not easy. If you share custody with your child’s other parent, then your work travel or their work travel can present additional stress and questions like “how will this affect our parenting schedule?” or “who will take care of the kids when one of us is away?”

Getting into the nitty gritty of these logistics, if you or your co-parent are traveling for work on what would have otherwise been the traveler’s parenting time, is that parent responsible for arranging child care? Does the other parent have the option for (or obligation of) more parenting time in that scenario? These are all important questions and arriving at a mutual understanding of how to navigate work travel as co-parents requires knowledge of your custody agreement and the relevant law, as well as open communication. That is where our family law attorneys at Bronzino Law Firm can serve in a critical role that alleviates your stress and provides a convenient plan to accommodate work travel and custody moving forward. Please contact us at  (732) 812-3102 to speak with a member of our team today.

How Work Travel Can Entangle Custody and Visitation

For parents with shared custody, occasional or regular work travel can create challenges for court-ordered parenting time. Occasional travel can be difficult for parents to predict and may not be accounted for in a custody agreement if it was not an expected event at the time the agreement was drafted. If you or your co-parent travel regularly for work, this can present an even greater challenge, even if the travel is known and expected, because shared custody is already a delicate balance with children’s school schedules and other factors. Frequent travel can make it difficult to maintain a consistent schedule and can lead to missed parenting time and a lack of consistency for the children.

Even parents with sole physical custody can be challenged by work travel. Besides the difficulty of balancing work travel alone, if your child’s other parent is allowed visitation, it may be difficult for you to facilitate the visitations when traveling. It is also possible that, if the relationship is contentious, the other parent could challenge your sole physical custody on the grounds that your trips are making it difficult for you to provide a stable home environment for the child.

Traveling For Work? Striking a Balance With Child Care and Custody Adjustments

New Jersey law prioritizes the best interests of the child. While the law does not prevent parents from traveling for work during their designated parenting time, it does expect that the parent will make suitable alternative arrangements and adhere to the agreed-upon custody schedule.

The question of who will take care of the kids when one parent is traveling for work does not have a one-size-fits-all answer and really depends on the specific terms of your custody agreement. In most cases, if the traveling parent is traveling during a time that would have otherwise been their own parenting time, then they are responsible for arranging alternative child care while they are away. If the parties agree, then the other parent could take the children during that time but that parent does not have an obligation to take the children while the other parent is traveling nor can they demand that they be able to take the children while the other parent is traveling during the other parent’s traveling time.

Exceptions to this should be outlined in the parents’ custody agreement. Ideally, the parents would think about these situations ahead of time and agree on how to handle it within their custody agreement. If a change must be made due to a significant change in circumstances, either parent can petition the court to modify the custody agreement. The parties can also mutually agree to change the terms of the custody agreement to address the challenge of a parent traveling for work.

Proactive Planning And Open Communication: Keys to Custody Success When Traveling for Your Job

If you or your co-parent need to travel for work, it is important to be proactive in your planning and communicate openly and frequently. In an ideal situation, the traveling parent would give the other parent advanced notice of any travel plans and the parties would work together to create a solution or the traveling parent would arrange child care and both parties would respect the arrangement.  If the parties are amenable, virtual visitation through Zoom, FaceTime, or another video call service can serve as an alternative to in person parenting time when the parent is traveling. The parents could also modify their schedule during another time to make up for missed parenting time.

However, when it comes to both parenting or travel, flexibility is key. This is certainly true when you combine the two. Flights can get delayed and unexpected circumstances can come up. In a best case scenario, the parents would work cooperatively to navigate these circumstances. If the parties cannot work collaboratively to navigate the unexpected, it is important that the terms of their custody agreement be followed. Ultimately, it is the legal obligation of the parent who has custody during the time they must travel for work to arrange for alternative child care for the children and ensure that the children are transferred back to their other parent when it is their parenting time.

Let our Team Help You Navigate Custody Concerns Due To Work Travel in New Jersey

If business trips are interfering with your parenting plan and/or violating your custody agreement and the parents cannot agree on a solution, then you may need the help of a custody lawyer to assist in modifying your custody arrangement. The court may grant a temporary or permanent change to your parenting schedule if a parent’s work travel significantly affects their ability to maintain their parenting time. To make this change, either parent can file a motion with the court. The decision to modify the custody order will be based on the best interests of the child.

Whether you need assistance in understanding your rights and obligations under your current custody agreement, how to navigate requests or demands from your ex, or modifying your custody order with the court, our team of experienced child custody lawyers at Bronzino Law Firm can help. Please contact us today at (732) 812-3102 to discuss your unique custody, co-parenting, and other family law needs in Brielle, Beachwood, Island Heights, Howell, Neptune, Brick, Toms River, Sea Bright and throughout Ocean and Monmouth Counties. Our law firm provides free consultations and proudly assists individuals and families at the Jersey Shore.