Cases unable to settle by reaching agreements

Every Other Weekend vs. Shared Parenting Time, also referred to as, Who gets the kids? Tragically, this competition is played out daily in Courtrooms throughout Tennessee. In contested divorce cases involving children, the primary tragedy is the divorce and imminent breakup of the family unit. After the divorce, there will be two households and no longer will each parent see the children every day.

If the parties are unable to agree on a shared parenting time arrangement, then at the end of the contested custody divorce trial the Judge will issue a Court order that chooses one parent (the Mother in most divorces) to be the “primary residential parent” and the other parent (the Father in most divorces) will be the “alternate residential parent”. In Davidson County contested custody cases, the “alternate residential parent”, i.e., the Father, is allowed parenting time every other weekend, from Friday at 6pm to Sunday at 6pm, and the “primary residential parent”, i.e., the Mother, receives all the remaining days. That breaks down to a ratio of 24:4 over a 28 day period.

If Father wants parenting time more than 4 days out of 28, then Father should try to obtain an agreement with Mother for more parenting time, and if not, then Father better “win” the custody battle in Court.