In New Hampshire, both unmarried and married couples with minor children must craft a parenting time plan that can fairly outline their respective parental duties and time-sharing schedules.
Ideally, the court will encourage you and your ex-partner to work on your parenting plan collaboratively and submit your proposed document together. However, if you cannot agree on a single plan, you can create your own proposals. During this process, the court will either approve one of the plans or make their own version.
In this blog, we will discuss two key factors about a New Hampshire parenting plan that you should know about:
How do parenting plans work?
A parenting plan is a written agreement between you and your ex-partner. This document will carry a detailed breakdown of your parenting arrangements with your children, as well as how you will share decision-making authority over your children’s day-to-day decisions and major decisions.
For a parenting plan to be effective, it must be comprehensive and created for the children’s best interests.
What key details must a parenting plan contain?
Under New Hampshire law, all parenting plans must include the following information:
- Legal residence of the children for school attendance
- Decision making agreements
- Communication agreements
- Drop-off and pickup schedules
- Weekday and weekend schedules
- Vacations, school breaks, holidays and birthdays
- Medical and dental check-ups
- Terms for relocation
- Dispute resolution
You can also include your own parenting time rules for other matters like gadget time use, international travel and boundaries for new romantic partners.
Healthy collaboration is key to an effective parenting plan
When you and your ex-partner set aside your differences and work on your plan collaboratively, you can ensure that your children can continue to grow up in a loving and stable environment where both of your presences are felt and seen.
