On behalf of Stange Law Firm, PC posted in child custody on Tuesday, September 4, 2018.
After your divorce proceedings have been completed in Jackson County, the hope is that you and your now ex-spouse will be able to work together on those ongoing issues which require collaboration (namely, the custody of your kids). Such a task may not be easy, as evidenced by many of those that have worked with us here at the Stange Law Firm eventually seeking to have the parental rights of their former spouses terminated. The law may support your decision if you indeed feel that such a step would be the best option in your case. However, completing such an action can often be difficult.
Per information shared by Missouri’s Judicial Branch, the law allows for the termination of parental rights based on consent. For this to happen, your ex-spouse must agree to it. Even with his or her consent, however, the court must still find that taking such action is in the best interest of your children before approving it.
If your ex-spouse contests having his or her parental rights terminated, the burden of proof lies on you to show that doing so would benefit your kids. The good news is that you only need support and prove one of the grounds for contested termination. For example, say you seek to have your ex-spouse’s parental rights terminated because he or she is a habitual drug user, and you believe that he or she may be abusing your children. No concrete evidence exists, however, to show that he or she is guilty of the latter. If the former is proven, however, then the court can indeed approve your requests. Remember, though, that a preponderance of evidence must support such proof.
You can learn more about your rights in relation to your child custody case by continuing to explore our site.
