Protecting Your Children's Best Interests
Child custody matters are among the most emotionally challenging aspects of family law. At Leffler, Bayoumi & Oliver, LLC, we understand that your children's well-being is your top priority, and we are here to help you protect their interests while preserving your parental rights.
Types of Custody in Maryland
Maryland courts recognize different types of custody arrangements:
- Legal Custody: The right to make important decisions about your child's life, including education, healthcare, and religious upbringing.
- Physical Custody: Where your child lives, and the day-to-day care responsibilities.
- Joint Custody: Both parents share legal custody and physical custody.
- Sole Custody: One parent has primary legal and/or physical custody.
Factors Courts Consider
When determining custody, Maryland courts apply the "best interests of the child" standard and evaluate the totality of the family's circumstances. Factors commonly include:
- Each parent's ability to meet the child's physical, emotional, educational, and developmental needs
- The strength, stability, and history of the child's relationship with each parent
- Each parent's capacity to communicate, cooperate, and make joint decisions affecting the child
- The child's existing routines, schooling, family ties, and community connections
- The willingness of each parent to support the child's relationship with the other parent
- The geographic proximity of the parents' homes and the practical impact on the child's schedule
- The child's preference, when the child is of sufficient age and maturity
- Any history of conflict, instability, or safety concerns that could affect the child's well-being
Courts consider these factors together to craft an arrangement that promotes stability, safety, and the child's overall best interests.
Third-Party and De Facto Parent Custody
In limited circumstances, someone other than a legal parent may seek custody or visitation of a child in Maryland. Third-party custody claims most often arise when a grandparent, relative, or other caregiver has played a significant role in a child's life. Because parents have a constitutional right to raise their children, courts apply a higher legal standard, typically requiring proof that the parents are unfit or that exceptional circumstances exist that would make placement with a parent detrimental to the child.
Maryland law also recognizes "de facto parents." These are individuals who have acted in every meaningful way as a parent, forming a bonded, parent-like relationship with the child with the consent of the legal parent. Once recognized as a de facto parent, the individual may be considered alongside legal parents in a standard best-interests analysis. These cases are highly fact-specific and often complex, requiring careful legal strategy and a thoughtful presentation of the child's history and relationships.
Our Approach
At Leffler, Bayoumi & Oliver, LLC, we assist families at every stage of the custody process. We help families from the initial establishment of custody and parenting plans to modifications when circumstances change, to relocation cases that require careful court approval and planning. Whenever possible, we encourage cooperative, child-focused solutions, as children generally benefit most when parents can work together. At the same time, we are fully prepared to advocate assertively in court when litigation is necessary to protect your children's well-being and your parental rights.