Mental Illness and Child Custody

Parents who have been diagnosed with a mental illness often face an uphill battle when seeking to obtain or retain custody of their children in the divorce process or after a divorce has been finalized. These parents may lose custody if the state believes that the parent is not able to provide the children with a safe environment at home or stable emotional and financial support. While there may be instances in which this determination reflects the best interest of the child, in other cases it is simply a matter of outdated and baseless prejudices.

You should not lose custody of your children simply because of a negative connotation associated with mental illness. The Orlando custody attorneys of the Schlegel Law Group are prepared to vigorously defend your right to keep your children. Contact us today at 407-648-0280 for the compassionate and knowledgeable legal counsel and representation that you need.

Measures to Protect Your Custodial Rights

While the statistics indicate that most children of mentally ill parents are not raised in their care, it is not certain that your mental illness will prevent you from getting custody of your child. The following are some steps that you can take to improve your case:

• Ensure that you are fully informed regarding your legal rights so that you can identify violations
• Obtain appropriate mental health care and treatment. Showing a willingness and desire to acknowledge these challenges is preferable to trying to ignore them.
• It is important for parents to stay in contact with children even if they have to be admitted to a psychiatric facility.

You do not have to face this alone, and it is important to remember that mental illness does not preclude you from obtaining custody of your children.

Contact Us

Contact an Orlando custody lawyer with the Schlegel Law Group today at 407-648-0280 to discuss your legal options if you are a parent suffering from mental illness and are concerned about your custody rights.