Child Safety Is Court's Only Concern When Parents' Beliefs Conflict

 Posted on December 12, 2017 in Child Custody

One of the difficulties when separate parents raise children is how to handle conflicting beliefs. Parents may have different opinions on:

• What their children's religious beliefs should be;
• Which medical treatments should be allowed; and
• What they should eat.

Decisions about how to raise children must be made with their best interests in mind, but what is best for the children is subjective in these cases, which are more about personal preference. A family court is unlikely to intervene in these disputes, unless a parent’s beliefs are harmful to the child.

Religion

The freedom to exercise religious beliefs is part of the First Amendment in the U.S. Constitution. Thus, a court cannot decide which parent’s religion the children must follow. The parents are left to make that decision themselves as part of their divorce agreement or as a personal understanding. The exception is when religious beliefs cause harm to a child. In the worst cases, religious practices can:

• Cause a parent to deny medical treatment to a child;
• Demean a child based on his or her gender or sexual orientation; and
• Involve the child in risky activities.

Whether a court will protect a child from certain religious practices depends on whether the court requires a standard of proving actual harm or merely the risk of harm.

Healthcare Decisions

Factors other than religion may affect how a parent views healthcare for his or her children. A prime example is the anti-vaccination movement, which is based on controversial medical studies. Some parents forgo modern medicine for alternative or holistic treatments that are unproven. It is unhealthy for a child if parents have inconsistent views on which medical practices to follow. A court will often grant decision-making power for health choices to the parent who has more parenting time. However, the responsibility may shift if the court decides that the primary parent's rejection of conventional medicine puts a child’s health at risk.

Diet

Some dietary choices, such as vegetarianism or veganism, are based as much on moral beliefs as making healthy food choices. If practiced well, children can eat healthily on these diets. However, children need the protein, calcium and vitamin D that meat and dairy provide. A parent who does not offer substitute foods that provide these nutrients is hurting his or her children’s physical development. If the diet is forced upon the child, a court may consider it to be malnourishment.

Lifestyle Choices

You have the right to raise your children to follow your beliefs, as long as those beliefs do not harm them. If you disagree with your co-parent on how to raise your children, you must come to a decision that is in their best interest. A Kane County family law attorney at Goostree Law Group can help you craft a parenting agreement that establishes how your children will be raised. To schedule a free consultation, call 630-584-4800.

Source:

http://stories.avvo.com/relationships/family-kids/can-sued-raising-child-vegan.html