Written by Jonathan Breeden
It is that time of year again when the nights get cooler, and the ghosts and goblins start to come out.
I personally love Halloween, and I love to go Trick or Treating with my children and with other people’s children as well.
I am afraid that my youngest is about to be too old and I will have to find others to trick or treat with in the future.
Let’s look at custody, trick-or-treating, and how the Courts handle these matters.
As it relates to child custody, a North Carolina Court can and sometimes will address who has the children on Halloween and can take them Trick or Treating.
If your court order, meaning you have a custody order signed by a judge, does not address Halloween as a holiday, then the parent with custody on whichever day of the week Halloween happens to fall on will be the ones to take the children Trick or Treating if they so choose.
If Halloween is important to you, as it is to me, you can ask the Court when it is making a custody decision to award Halloween every other year to each parent, just like the Court awards holidays like Christmas.
If you do not have a court order, then we advise that you try to talk with the other parent and see if you can agree to alternate Halloween among yourselves or even go Trick or Treating together with the children.
The good thing about Halloween is now, like a lot of things in our society, it is really no longer just a one-day event.
Halloween is now a season with many churches and community groups having events throughout the second half of the month of October where you can dress up your child and take the child to the activity just like you would on Halloween night.
This allows you to celebrate Halloween on your custodial time even if it is not October 31st in any one year.
As with all holidays, the key is communication. If Halloween means a lot to you, let the other parent know about that and work with them so both parents get to spend quality time with their little ghost or goblin.
Child custody can become complicated quickly, and we know better than most that these issues can be heated. Our firm understands how chaotic custody issues can feel. We’re here to help you work through any questions you have.
The Breeden Law Firm has been helping families resolve their custody issues for more than two decades. We are prepared to hear your story, so contact us to schedule your free consultation.
Call (919) 661-4970 or fill out our online form to get started.