If a person wants to take custody of a child that is alleged to be an abused, neglected or dependent child, either with Children Services filing a complaint, or a private party filing a complaint for custody, those prospective custodians must have a home study conducted before they can take the child.

Homestudies may also be conducted when a parent wishes to have custody changed from the original residential parent to him or her.  In this instance, the Court may want to learn more about the prospective residence.

Many people get nervous when the issue of a home study is raised, fearing that outsiders will soon be prying into their lives in ways that seem untoward or unfair.  However, homestudies are rather pro forma  and the items the investigators are interested in are very basic in nature.  When Children Services or a private organization conduct a homestudy, they are effectively looking primarily at the following:

1. Is the home structurally sound?

2. Is there adequate room in the home that would allow the custodians to take-in another child?

3. Is the home sanitary and safe in all respects?

4. Who lives in the home? And would any current resident present a danger to this particular child if he or she were to be brought into the home?

While this is not the entire list of factors the investigators will look at (according to the investigators themselves), the truth is that the above list consists of the primary factors the investigators will be interested in. Like most agencies, Children Services is overworked and is constantly having to place children in safe environments and no case can be investigated in the manner it would be in a perfect world.  Therefore, when investigators visit a home they are looking for basic and immediate red-flags that would caution against placing the children in this particular home, mostly because the lack of resources prevent the  sort of in-depth investigation that all of us would prefer.

As long as the home is safe, sanitary and well equipped to take in another child, the homestudy should be positive in the end.

Under Ohio law, once a parent is designated as the residential and custodial parent, the prefernce is to maintain that person as the custodial parent.  The Courts want to avoid a perneial tug-of-war between the parents with the children caught in the middle.  Courts do not want to see motion after motion filed by the parents, but would rather have the custody established and settled for the benefit of the children.  However, when it is appropriate, a post-decree motion for a reallocation of parental rights should be filed.  The issue, then, becomes what must a parent prove in order to gain custody of their children from the other parent.

When the issue of custody is originally litigated during the divorce proceeding, the parents stand on equal footing as to custody and the standard is simply what would be in the “best interest of the child.”  The best interest standard is a broad concept with 10 factors listed in the statute for the Court to consider.

The situation changes in the context of a post-decree motion. Unlike when the issue of custody was originally litigated during the divorce, the burden is higher on the petitioner.  The parents no longer stand on equal footing as the preference or presumption is to maintain the status quo.  For that reason the legal standard is more involved, which are:

1. That there has been a change in circumstances of the residential parent or the child since the original decree was issued (note: a change in circumstances of the non-residential parent does not matter).  There must be some change that warrants a reallocation of parental rights and responsibilities.  case law has been developed which provides lawyers an idea of what the courts consider to be a substantive change in circumstances.

2. That the change of custody is in the best interest of the child (and the court is again guided by the factors set out in the statute).

3. That any harm to the child by disrupting the status quo will be outweighed by the benefits of the change.

This is a condensed expression of the legal standard, and anyone wishing to have custody altered should consult an attorney, but hopefully it will give our readers an idea of what they must show if they want to pursue custody of their child.

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