The mother keeps throwing New York City dinner parties, and the father worries their kids might contract COVID-19. What’s a divorced couple to do in the age of social distancing?
This one chose the time-honored route and went to court — by phone, of course. In the emergency conference, the judge rebuked the mother but left the custody arrangement intact.
This clash, recounted by New York family lawyer Marilyn Chinitz, illustrates the treacherous terrain facing the 8.3 million American children whose divorced or separated parents share responsibility for raising them in the pandemic.
These families are discovering that the coronavirus isn’t the only thing that’s novel these days. So are the legal issues it is raising for a fraught realm of divorce law: joint custody.
Many courtrooms are closed, and judges are primarily hearing emergency cases involving domestic abuse or other imminent dangers. So lawyers and mediators across the country are stepping in to referee already contentious relationships.