Does Addiction Affect a Custody Order?

It is safe to say that you are not proud of your struggle with addiction and substance abuse. After all, this may have ultimately driven your spouse to petition for a divorce. While you may understand where your spouse is coming from, you may fear that with your separation from them, you may also get separated from your child. If this is your primary concern going into your divorce proceedings, please read on to discover how one spouse’s addiction issues might affect a court’s decision on custody and how one of the seasoned Clarksville child custody lawyers at Fendley and Birch can help improve your chances of getting access to your child.

Does addiction affect a court’s decision on a custody order?

Unfortunately, yes, your history of addiction and/or current substance abuse issues may have a heavy influence on a Tennessee family court’s child custody decision. This is because, given these facts, they may categorize you as an unfit parent. They may have reason to believe that you cannot provide your child with adequate shelter, food, and safety.

That is, they may believe it to be dangerous for your child to have easy access to and be in the immediate presence of drugs and other substances in their home. Also, you may use your money to fund your addiction rather than for food and other basic needs for your child. And lastly, you cannot possibly ensure that your child is safe under your care while you are under the influence.

If your spouse brings forward evidence to support the court’s concerns, they may not give you any parental rights over your child. At the very most, they may grant you visitation rights, in which you may have scheduled interactions with your child while monitored by a professional individual or designated adult.

How can I improve my chances of getting custody rights?

Even if you do not get custody rights in your initial divorce case, you may make personal efforts to fight for these rights in a post-judgment modification case. For one, you may show the Tennessee family court that you have made proactive steps towards recovery by successfully completing a treatment program.

Then, you may exhibit that you have maintained your sobriety since leaving the rehabilitation facility. This may be confirmed through testimonies by loved ones who have seen a shift in your behavior. Or, through your willingness to comply with court-ordered random drug testing.

If triumphant in your argument, the court may be willing to gradually add to your parental rights. First, they may order to change your supervised visitation rights into unsupervised visitation rights. If you remain sober in the long term, you may eventually get some physical and legal custody rights.

If this blog has deeply resonated with your personal situation and concerns thus far, please reach out to one of the competent Clarksville family lawyers for more information. The team at Fendley and Birch will be glad to represent you in your upcoming legal case.