Substance Abuse During A Divorce

What should you do if your soon-to-be ex-spouse is abusing substances, legal or illegal?

One of the hot topics that we have at Bloomfield family law during divorce or any sort of custody proceedings is a concern with a spouse or other parent who is using illegal substances or even using legal substances, but abusing them to the point that there are concerns for the safety of the children.

We have a lot of cases where parents have come to our office and have expressed concern that one parent is using medical marijuana or is using marijuana in general now that it is deemed illegal in the state of Michigan.

one of the things that we can assist you with at Bloomfield Family Law is trying to identify whether or not the use that's taking place is in fact affecting a parent's ability to make decisions for their child and whether or not it is affecting their ability to provide care for the child.

For instance, you may have a parent who has an alcoholic beverage even while the children are present, but doesn't do so in excise. In that situation, a court is not likely to really consider that a substance abuse issue that is affecting the children.

However, if we're seeing something where a parent is drinking and access, they're constantly drinking in front of the children, maybe missing medical appointments, school conferences, bills are going unpaid because a parent is spending money on substances instead . Court is going to look at that more stringently and perhaps consider a modification and custody suspension of parenting time orders requiring parents to do certain things or not do certain things during parenting visitations. The attorneys at Bloomfield Family Law Firm can help you review those issues and create a litigation plan and how to address those issues with the court and ensure that your children are safe.