Portland Child Custody Attorneys

OneTec Family Law has experience litigating complex custody disputes and creating detailed parenting plans

When parents separate, the questions that keep them up at night are almost always about the children. Where will they live? Who decides which school they attend? How much time will I have with them? At OneTec Family Law, family law is the only thing we practice, and custody and parenting time cases are a large part of that work. Our Portland child custody lawyers help parents in Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas counties build parenting arrangements that protect their relationship with their children and hold up over time.

Some custody cases settle at the kitchen table. Others need a custody evaluation, a hearing, or a trial. We handle both, and we will tell you plainly which path your case is likely on.

If you are facing a custody decision, call OneTec Family Law at (503) 770-5555 to talk with a Portland child custody attorney about your situation.

Legal Custody and Parenting Time Are Two Different Things

Oregon separates custody into two questions, and most parents are surprised by how the law answers each one.

Legal custody is the authority to make major decisions for a child: school, health care, religious upbringing, and primary residence. Parenting time is the schedule of when the child is with each parent. A parent can have no legal custody and still have substantial parenting time, and in many Oregon families that is exactly how it works.

Sole custody

When one parent has sole custody, that parent makes the major decisions. The other parent keeps important rights unless the court orders otherwise. Under ORS 107.154, a parent without custody can still get school, medical, dental and counseling records, talk directly with teachers and care providers, and authorize emergency medical care when the custodial parent cannot be reached.

Joint custody

Joint custody means the parents share the major decisions. In Oregon, a court cannot order joint custody unless both parents agree to it (ORS 107.169). If one parent objects, the court will pick one parent to hold legal custody. The flip side is that when both parents do agree to joint custody, the court cannot override that agreement by awarding sole custody to one of them.

Because the joint custody rule turns on agreement, the early decisions in a case matter. Before you agree to anything, or refuse to, talk with a lawyer about what each choice means for your family later.

How Oregon Courts Decide Custody: ORS 107.137 in Plain Language

When parents cannot agree, the judge decides custody based on the best interests and welfare of the child. ORS 107.137 lists the factors the court must consider:

• Emotional ties. The child’s bonds with each parent and with other family members, including siblings and grandparents.
• Each parent’s interest in and attitude toward the child. Who has been involved, and how.
• Continuity. The value of keeping an existing relationship and routine in place.
• Abuse of one parent by the other.
• The primary caregiver. Oregon gives a preference to the parent who has been the child’s primary caregiver, as long as that parent is fit. Our post on the primary caregiver in Oregon custody cases covers how the courts apply this.
• Willingness to support the other parent’s relationship. Courts look at whether each parent will encourage a close, continuing relationship between the child and the other parent. This factor does not apply against a parent who shows the other parent has sexually assaulted, or engaged in a pattern of abuse against, the parent or the child.

A few rules sit on top of those factors:

• No single factor decides the case. The court weighs them together.
• If a parent has committed abuse as defined in ORS 107.705, the law presumes it is not in the child’s best interests for that parent to have sole or joint custody. That presumption can be rebutted, but it is a heavy starting point.
• A parent’s conduct, marital status, income, social life or lifestyle only counts if it is shown to be harming the child, or is likely to.
• A parent’s disability cannot be held against them unless behaviors or limitations related to it endanger the child.
• Neither parent is preferred because of gender. There is no built-in preference for mothers or for fathers.

Understanding these factors early changes how you handle the months before a decision. Judges look closely at who has been doing the day-to-day parenting and how each parent treats the other in front of the child. We help clients understand what the court will actually look at, so their conduct during the case supports their position instead of undermining it.

Custody Evaluations Under ORS 107.425

In contested cases, the court can order an independent evaluation. Under ORS 107.425, the court may order a psychological or mental health examination of a parent or the children, have an expert or panel of experts interview and evaluate the family, and authorize the expert to talk with other people and review relevant records. The court can also order its own investigation into the parents’ circumstances, and in some cases can appoint a lawyer to represent the children.

Evaluators are usually psychologists or social workers. They interview each parent, watch each parent with the child, and contact teachers, doctors and others who know the family, then write a report with custody and parenting time recommendations. In our experience, many cases settle once that report is in, even after county mediation has failed. Our overview of custody evaluations in Oregon explains what to expect at each stage.

Parenting Plans: The Document You Will Live With

Every Oregon judgment that sets parenting time must include a parenting plan (ORS 107.102). A plan can be general, setting a minimum schedule and leaving the details for the parents to work out, or detailed. A detailed plan can cover:

• The regular residential schedule
• Holidays, birthdays and vacations
• Weekends, including school in-service days next to a weekend
• Decision-making responsibility
• Sharing information and access to records
• Relocation of either parent
• Phone and video contact
• Transportation and exchanges
• How the parents will resolve future disagreements

The court must write a detailed plan if either parent asks for one, or if the parents cannot agree. In writing it, the court may consider only the child’s best interests and the safety of the parties. Either parent can ask for equal parenting time. The court can order it, and if it refuses, it must explain in written findings why equal time is not in the child’s best interests or would endanger someone’s safety.

For families where the parents can still communicate, a general plan offers flexibility. For high-conflict families, a detailed plan prevents arguments because the answer is already written down. Choosing the right level of detail is one of the most practical decisions in a custody case, and it is one we spend real time on with clients.

How a Custody Case Usually Moves Forward

Every case is different, but most Portland-area custody matters follow a similar path:

1. Filing. Custody is decided as part of a divorce or legal separation, or in a separate custody or parenting time case for parents who were never married.
2. Parent education. Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas counties all require parents in custody and parenting time cases to complete a parenting class. See our post on the mandatory parenting classes in the tri-county area.
3. Mediation. Parents are usually directed to mediation to try to agree on custody and a parenting plan. Many cases resolve here. Our post on family law mediation in the tri-county area explains how it works.
4. Temporary orders. If the parents need a schedule while the case is pending, the court can set temporary custody and parenting time.
5. Evaluation, if needed. In contested cases, a custody evaluation under ORS 107.425.
6. Settlement or trial. Most cases settle. The ones that do not are decided by a judge after a trial.

If a child is in immediate danger, Oregon has emergency custody procedures that move much faster, both before and after a judgment. Our post on Oregon’s immediate danger statutes explains when they apply.

High-Conflict Custody Cases

Some custody cases involve allegations of abuse, substance use, mental health concerns, or a parent who undermines the child’s relationship with the other parent. These cases need careful evidence, steady judgment, and a lawyer who is prepared for trial.

Our approach is to lower the temperature wherever we can, because children carry the cost of their parents’ conflict. That is not the same as backing down. When a case has to be tried, we prepare it to be tried, and if a trial court gets it wrong, our founding attorney has appellate experience before the Oregon Court of Appeals and the Oregon Supreme Court. For families who need ongoing help after judgment, a parenting coordinator can resolve day-to-day disputes without a return to court.

When Life Changes: Modifications, Relocation and Enforcement

A custody judgment is not always the last word. Oregon law allows changes when circumstances change, but the bar for changing custody itself is high, which is one more reason to get the original judgment right.

• Custody modifications. Changing which parent has legal custody requires showing a change in circumstances and that the change is in the child’s best interests. For joint custody, the law treats a parent’s inability or unwillingness to keep cooperating as a sufficient change in circumstances.
• Parenting plan modifications. Adjusting the schedule as children grow, or as parents’ work and living situations change.
• Relocation cases. Oregon custody orders require a parent to give notice before moving more than 60 miles farther from the other parent. A proposed move often leads to a dispute over custody or the schedule.
• Parenting time enforcement. When the other parent will not follow the plan.
• Grandparent and third-party custody. Oregon allows grandparents and others who have an established relationship with a child to seek custody or visitation in some circumstances.

Custody and support are closely connected. A change in parenting time can change the child support calculation, so we look at both together.

Why Parents Choose OneTec Family Law for Custody Cases

Our founding attorney, C. Sean Stephens, has practiced family law for more than 30 years. Before law school he earned a degree in psychology from the University of Oregon, with studies that emphasized early childhood development. That background shapes how he approaches custody cases: with attention to what a child actually needs at each age, not only what the statute says.

He is trained in the collaborative process, which can be a good fit for parents who want to settle custody without litigation, and he has represented clients on appeal before the Oregon Court of Appeals and the Oregon Supreme Court. When you work with OneTec, you work directly with the attorney handling your case, and you will always know where things stand.

Frequently Asked Questions About Child Custody in Oregon

At what age can a child decide which parent to live with in Oregon?

There is no age at which an Oregon child gets to decide. The court keeps that authority until the child turns 18. A child’s views can still reach the court, for example through a custody evaluator’s interviews or a lawyer appointed for the child. Most judges, and our attorneys, prefer to keep children out of the courtroom. Read more in our post on a child’s input in custody decisions.

Do Oregon courts favor mothers in custody cases?

No. Oregon law prohibits giving either parent a preference based on gender. The court looks at the best-interest factors in ORS 107.137, including which parent has been the primary caregiver.

Can the court order joint custody if one parent does not want it?

No. Under ORS 107.169, Oregon courts can only order joint legal custody when both parents agree. Parenting time is a separate question, and the court can order a shared or equal schedule even when one parent holds sole legal custody.

What is the difference between custody and parenting time?

Custody is decision-making authority over major issues like school, health care and religion. Parenting time is the schedule of when the child is with each parent. They are decided separately.

What happens if my child’s other parent wants to move away?

Oregon custody orders require a parent to give notice before moving more than 60 miles farther from the other parent. A move can be grounds to ask the court to change custody or the parenting plan. See our page on relocation cases.

What if my child is in danger right now?

Oregon has emergency procedures that let a court enter a temporary custody order quickly when a child is in immediate danger. Call us at (503) 770-5555, and if anyone is in danger at this moment, call 911.

Talk With a Portland Child Custody Lawyer

Custody decisions shape your children’s lives for years, and the first steps in a case often set the direction for everything that follows. If you are starting a custody case, responding to one, or need to change an existing order, call OneTec Family Law at (503) 770-5555 or contact us online. Our office is at 1207 SW 6th Ave in downtown Portland.