Infant Visitation Laws and Father's Rights

If your child is an infant, and you are the father, then you may be at a loss to secure custody of the child during your divorce. This has nothing to do with your capabilities of a parent or your ability to provide a loving, comfortable atmosphere for the child.

The issue with infants has to do with their feeding. Most of the time, the court will naturally award the custody of an infant to the mother because she will breastfeed the baby. Because the father cannot provide the same nourishment, he cannot take custody of the child, unless the baby is already bottle-fed.

Still, this doesn't mean that fathers can't have visitation rights with their babies, and eventually petition for a child custody modification when the child is older. As a parent, it is important to be involved in your child's life from the earliest age. This is because you will want your child to grow up familiar with you and identifying you as an essential component of his or her life.

As a father, you can petition for visitation with your infant. The sessions of visitation may be short so that your child does not get distressed because his or her mother is not nearby. As your baby ages, you may be able to petition for longer visitation times. You will want to talk with your ex-spouse to negotiate a reasonable visitation schedule.

If your ex-spouse is against the idea of visitation, you can still petition for this right in court with the help for a San Fernando divorce attorney at Cutter & Lax. A lawyer at our firm will do everything possible to assist you in your request for visitation and make sure that you get to spend the time with your baby that you deserve! Hire the firm today!

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