After a divorce or custody order is entered, life keeps moving, and sometimes it moves in ways that no one expected. Whether it is changes in work schedules, school needs, living arrangement, or relationships, it is not unusual for parents to find that the original custody or parenting time order no longer fits. Kentucky law allows parents to request changes.
A request to change custody, whether from joint custody to sole custody or the other way around, cannot be made lightly. A parent must generally wait at least two years after the last custody order before asking the court to make a change. There are exceptions, but they apply only when something serious is happening, such as if the child’s current environment may be harmful to their physical, mental, emotional, or moral well-being, or if the child has been placed with someone else who is acting as a primary caregiver.
Even after two years, the court will not grant a change in custody unless it finds that there has been a meaningful change in circumstances since that last order and that a new arrangement would be in the child’s best interests. In making that decision, the court considers several factors, including whether both parents agree to the change, whether the child has become integrated into the other parent’s home, whether the child’s current environment is unsafe or unhealthy, and whether the benefits of a change would outweigh the potential disruption. Even in a request for a modification of custody, the presumption in Kentucky is that joint custody is in the child’s best interests.
When a parent asks to modify an existing parenting time schedule, the court looks at whether a change would serve the best interests of the child. The law gives the court flexibility to adjust parenting time when needed, without requiring proof of a major change in circumstances as it does with custody. And there is no presumption that equally shared parenting time is in the child’s best interests in modification cases.
That said, the court still will not restrict a parent’s time with their child unless it finds that doing so is necessary to protect the child from serious harm. Courts are cautious about reducing parenting time and will always prioritize the child’s safety, stability, and development.
If you are thinking about changing your custody or parenting time arrangement, it is a good idea to understand not just how your life has been changed, but how those changes affect your child. Kentucky courts are focused on what is best for child, and any decision to change an existing order will be guided by that principle.