North Dakota Child Custody Laws
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The following is a summary of North Dakota child custody laws, and is by no means intended to be an all-inclusive description of what to expect in your particular case. In some cases, the exact text of the statute may have been simplified and/or modified to provide for easier understanding. For a more specific understanding of the laws, you should consult the full North Dakota Statutes and/or consult with an attorney about how the law might apply to your particular situation.

North Dakota laws require the court to consider the best interests and welfare of the minor child when awarding child custody. There is no presumption on the basis of gender between the mother and father, whether natural or adoptive, which parent will better promote the best interests and welfare of the child.

The best interests and welfare of the child is determined by the court's consideration and evaluation of all factors including:

a. The love, affection, and other emotional ties existing between the parents and child.

b. The capacity and disposition of the parents to give the child love, affection, and guidance and to continue the education of the child.

c. The disposition of the parents to provide the child with food, clothing, medical care, or other remedial care recognized and permitted under the laws of this state in lieu of medical care, and other material needs.

d. The length of time the child has lived in a stable satisfactory environment and the desirability of maintaining continuity.

e. The permanence, as a family unit, of the existing or proposed custodial home.

f. The moral fitness of the parents.

g. The mental and physical health of the parents.

h. The home, school, and community record of the child.

i. The reasonable preference of the child, if the court deems the child to be of sufficient intelligence, understanding, and experience to express a preference.

j. Evidence of domestic violence. If the court finds credible evidence that domestic violence has occurred, and there exists one incident of domestic violence which resulted in serious bodily injury or involved the use of a dangerous weapon, or there exists a pattern of domestic violence within a reasonable time proximate to the proceeding, this creates a rebuttable presumption that a parent who has perpetrated domestic violence may not be awarded sole or joint custody of a child. This presumption may be overcome only by clear and convincing evidence that the best interests of the child require that parent's participation as a custodial parent. The fact that the abused parent suffers from the effects of the abuse may not be grounds for denying that parent custody.

k. The interaction and relationship, or the potential for interaction, of the child with any person who resides in, is present, or frequents the household of a parent and who may significantly affect the child's best interests. The court shall consider that person's history of inflicting, or tendency to inflict, physical harm, bodily injury, assault, or the fear of physical harm, bodily injury, or assault, on other persons.

l. The making of false allegations not made in good faith, by one parent against the other, of harm to a child.

m. Any other factors considered by the court to be relevant to a particular child custody dispute.

-From 14-09-06.1 & 14-09-06.2 of the North Carolina Statutes

 

Parental Rights and Duties.
Each parent of a child has the following custody and visitation rights and duties, unless otherwise ordered by the court:

a. Right to access and obtain copies of the child's educational, medical, dental, religious, insurance, and other records or information.

b. Right to attend educational conferences concerning the child. This right does not require any school to hold a separate conference with each parent.

c. Right to reasonable access to the child by written, telephonic, and electronic means.

d. Duty to inform the other parent as soon as reasonably possible of a serious accident or serious illness for which the child receives health care treatment. The parent shall provide to the other parent a description of the serious accident or serious illness, the time of the serious accident or serious illness, and the name and location of the treating health care provider.

e. Duty to immediately inform the other parent of a change in residential telephone number and address.

f. Duty to keep the other parent informed of the name and address of the school the child attends.

-From 14-09-28 of the North Dakota Statutes.

 

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Other pages on North Dakota laws:
General North Dakota Divorce Laws
Alimony Divorce Laws in North Dakota
North Dakota Child Custody Laws
North Dakota Child Support Laws
North Dakota Laws on Property Division

 

© Help Yourself Divorce 2002-2008

 

IMPORTANT: Help Yourself Divorce is a paralegal service, not a law firm. Please don't rely on this information for legal advice. Seek help from an attorney if you need legal advice.

This information has been summarized from the North Dakota statutes. You can find the full-text version of these and other North Dakota divorce statutes online here: North Dakota Divorce Laws.