Custody

Child Custody is a complex area of law. It strikes right at the heart of what we value most—our children and their welfare. It is the highest concern of the court as well.

The hallmark of child custody is THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE CHILD. The whole system of laws and policies are all geared to find, protect, and enforce what is in the best interests of the child.

The first step in determining the best interests of the child is an agreement between the parents. If the parties have a parenting plan they mutually support, the court is directed to presume parents' good faith agreements are in the child’s best interests.

The court will make every effort to protect the decisions of the parents, so long as they appear to be made in the child’s best interests. In fact, the court will press the parents to strive to make their own agreement before it rules on the issue at a hearing or trial. The court provides many resources to help parents come to an agreement.

Class:  The first resource is Parents Forever, a required class for all families with children who are filing a new divorce or paternity action. 

Mediation/Conciliation:  Johnson County Court Services offers mediation and conciliation services for custody and parenting time schedule matters only. The court requires that parents attempt to resolve their disputes productively before any matter of child custody can be tried. They are aware that while an agreement may not be perfect, it has a lot better chance at being in the child’s best interests than anything they as judges, with limited exposure to the family, can create.

Family Assessment:  If mediation/conciliation fails, the court will try other resources, such as custody evaluations by a social worker, psychologist, or psychiatrist. These evaluations usually are reports to the court about the dynamics of the family and often provide recommendations and observations that inform the court in important areas affecting the best interests of the child.

Higher Ground: For parents caught in ongoing conflict, the court can order participation in HIGHER GROUND—a program where participants are screened before acceptance. The goal of the program is to take families who are suffering ongoing conflict and educate them. The education enables the parties to cease court-based conflict. Check our forms section for more information.

The research and practical experience of the courts and of family law professionals all concur: the greatest danger to the child is ongoing conflict between the parents. Continued conflict has profound psychological and physical ramifications that cannot be easily overcome once created. The trick is to avoid conflict in the first place. 

The focus of the court is to minimize conflict and foster cooperative parenting.  Johnson County Family Court Judges are clear on this common goal.

For a parent who fears that if they do not protect or control their children and how they are parented, they face a severe reduction in control as they move further into the court process.

Honored As:

Super Lawyer

-2010 to present 

Top Attorneys in MO & KS

-KC Magazine 

Fellow, American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers 

Fellow, International Academy of Family Lawyers

Nothing contained in this site creates any attorney-client relationship with anyone. 

Directions to Our Office

Law Offices of Joseph W. Booth

11900 W. 87th St. Pkwy.,

Suite 250,

Lenexa, KS 66215

Phone. 913-469-5300

Fax. 913-469-5310