If you’re a parent of a young child, Halloween can be one of the most stressful holidays of the year. Halloween falls on a different day each year, for many parents with Custody Orders don’t include Halloween as a holiday the result is often unpredictable because custody will be exercised by whomever would exercise custody on that day under the normal schedule. In addition, since Halloween often falls on a weekday when school is in session, custody time is often limited by children’s’ school schedules and neighborhood’s defined trick-or-treating times. In order to avoid chaos, parents should insist on including provisions for the Halloween holiday or, at the very least, agree to a plan with the other parent well in advance.

Things to consider when negotiating a Halloween holiday schedule might include an altered pick-up/drop-off schedule or location to accommodate neighborhood trick-or-treating schedules. As with anything in a Custody Order, the more detailed the plan is the less likely there will be friction between parents at trick-or-treat time. For many parents, a plan which alternates who exercises custody on Halloween each year seems to be the best way to handle it. Since many the trick-or-treating window can be as little as two-hours, a plan that attempts to have both parents exercise trick-or-treat time is really only feasible if parents are willing to trick-or-treat together. If this simply isn’t an option for your family, it’s important to communicate in advance to ensure that all the details are hammered out well in advance of Halloween.

The parents (and children) who tend to cope best with life after divorce are those that pay close attention to detail from the beginning. A detailed shared custody arrangement, memorialized in an Order of Court, is an important road map for everyday life after divorce.

To schedule an appointment with one of our attorneys or for further information, call us at the Law Office of Gregory P. LaMonaca, P.C., at (610) 892-3877