Nashville-Area Lawyer Helping Families Establish Child Custody and Support Agreements
As parents, we love our children. No one intends for children and parental rights to become a source of contention in a divorce, legal separation, or when non-married parents share a child. At the same time, our relationships with our children are the most important issues to loving parents, and they aren't something you want to compromise on.
Determining paternity, getting the right parenting agreements — child custody and visitation — and child support orders in place is the foundation for successful parenting after separation or when you and the other parent no longer share a home. As a family law attorney, Lisa Millican Ewing is committed to protecting the best interests of your children and promoting your goal of fair child custody, visitation and support arrangements.
At the Ewing Law Office LLC, we provide sophisticated legal services to divorcing and unmarried parents who need assistance with these issues. We encourage parents to put conflicts aside and focus on their children's well-being. When disputes do arise, we provide aggressive, experienced advocacy.
For a free phone consultation about your child custody, visitation or support issue, or to set up an appointment at our Nashville office, contact us today. We represent clients in Davidson,, Rutherford, Sumner, Wilson and Williamson counties and throughout Middle Tennessee.
Safeguarding Children's Interests in Custody and Visitation
Attorney Ewing works closely with each client to establish positive child custody and parenting arrangements. Whether we are protecting the mother's or the father's rights, our goals are to promote the children's best interests and to set up the arrangements with minimal conflict.
Parenting orders (child custody and visitation orders) include both legal and physical custody. Both parents are intended to have meaningful parenting time, and both are generally granted legal custody so they can make important decisions about their children's education, religion, and health care.
Every family's situation is unique, and it is possible to negotiate many different physical custody arrangements. For example:
- Sole custody — The children live with one parent and it has been found not to be in the children's best interest to have unsupervised parenting time with the other parent.
- Primary custody — The children live primarily with one of the parents and the other parent has standard visitation rights, including overnights, holidays and summer vacations.
- Joint custody — The children split their time living with both parents. In rare cases, parents may chose to change their living situation (moving between living in the family home and in an apartment) rather than have their children move.
- Split custody — Each parent assumes custody of a different child.
Appropriate Child Support Orders
In Tennessee, child support is calculated by a standard formula which takes into account each parent's net income and child-related expenses such as costs for daycare, school, and medical insurance. Attorney Ewing's accounting background is a valuable asset for clients who need to ensure their child support is based on a fair and complete picture of both parents' income and expenses.
When your financial or living circumstances change, you may be able to obtain a modification of your child support order, and attorney Ewing can assist you in petitioning for one.
Contact Us Today
If you have questions about sole or primary custody, contact us for a free initial phone consultation. Same-day, evening, and weekend appointments are available at our office, which is conveniently located one block from the Davidson County historic courthouse. We charge reasonable rates and accept credit cards for our services.
