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The
Children
While it is the parties to the divorce who make all the
decisions concerning the future, it is often the children - the innocent parties - who are the ones that suffer.
More often than not the court will place the welfare of the children at the top of their list of priorities on a divorce and any arrangements which the parties enter into between themselves will not be enforced by the court if it is prejudices
the children's interests.
The guiding principle in all states is not to interfere in the
decisions of the parties unless it is necessary in the best interests of the child. The court will always encourage both of the parties to share the responsibility for making decisions about the children at all stages of the proceedings although in the case of a divorce involving older children, may take account of the child's wishes as well.
A court can make three main orders with regard to the
children:
- a
custody order - which states with which parent a child is to live.
- a
visitation order - which requires the parent with whom the child is living to permit the other party to visit the child or have the child stay with them.
- a child
support order - which requires one parent to pay
child support to another.
These subjects are discussed in detail in
the sections on child custody and
visitation and child support.
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