Co-parenting around holidays can cause major issues between parties, and for children. Chances are, if you are divorced or divorcing in the state of Montana, you have a parenting plan. Most parenting plans have provisions for how to handle various holidays. However, if these are not specific enough, or of one or both parties do not want to follow the holiday schedule, you can have problems.

If you are having a problem on the actual holiday, you need a copy of your parenting plan AND the court order ordering your parenting plan in order to have law enforcement assist you in enforcing your parenting time

Law enforcement might not want to help you (they may say “it’s a civil matter”) but if you have an order of the court, they should assist you.

If your ex violated the holiday provisions of your parenting plan you can pursue a contempt action, though it will be a moot point after the fact.

But, just as in football, the best defense is a good offense. You need your parenting plan to be as specific as possible about holidays. EXACT times, EXACT locations for pickup/dropoff, etc. If you and your ex want to do something different – great. But, your parenting plan holiday schedule is your fallback, and it needs to contain every provision necessary to prevent conflict. If your parenting plan is not specific enough, you can seek an amendment. Check out my blog post on changing your parenting plan.

Parenting plan amendments can be tough, but having an experienced Kalispell family law attorney can help. Call or email today to set up a consultation!