The Pros and Cons of Using Co-Parenting Apps

Although many parents try to co-parent as best as they can, doing so can be a difficult endeavor, especially following a particularly stressful, emotional, or acrimonious divorce. Negotiating a detailed parenting plan can go a long way towards eliminating some of the difficulties often faced by divorced parents, as can attending counseling or seeking other professional help. In addition to these methods, many parents have also begun looking to co-parenting apps that are specifically designed to reduce conflict and help children transition to post-divorce life as smoothly as possible. For help navigating your own divorce or reaching a co-parenting agreement with your spouse, reach out to our Fort Lauderdale child visitation rights attorney today.

The Co-Parenting Trend

Unlike in prior decades, courts usually presume that ensuring that a child has meaningful contact with both of his or her parents is in that child’s best interests. In fact, a number of states have begun making a concerted effort to adjust their family law statutes and procedures to reflect this preference for co-parenting arrangements. This increased focus on co-parenting has, in turn, resulted in more communication between parents, something that can be made much simpler through the use of cell phone applications. Many judges even require divorcing or separated parents who share custody of a child to use these apps as a part of their parenting time arrangement.

The Benefits of Co-Parenting Apps

When used properly, co-parenting apps can help recently divorced parents more easily navigate the difficulties of co-parenting. One recently launched app, for instance, allows users to track each other’s locations and conversations, which can help ensure that the parties adhere to their parenting plan schedules and remain civil in their conversations with each other. This information can then be used at a later date to modify parenting time arrangements if necessary, while also helping ensure that parenting time plans are enforced. Furthermore, the apps often provide parents with access to important custody-related documentation, such as parenting plan agreements.

The proper use of these kinds of co-parenting applications has also proven helpful in reducing the amount of conflict and time spent in the courtroom, as the apps encourage parents to resolve small disputes between themselves, thereby allowing courts to focus on the health and welfare of the children in question.

The Potential Drawbacks of Co-Parenting Apps

Opponents of these apps argue that the drawbacks of co-parenting applications far outweigh their benefits. For example, detractors point to concerns over privacy, as using co-parenting apps can give judges in-depth access to the parties’ conversations and whereabouts. In addition to giving government bodies too much access to personal information, opponents also argue that judges who require parents to use these apps are placing the parties in the uniquely difficult position of paying for and using an app’s services and providing the court with private information or risking sanctions from the court.

Call Today for Legal Assistance

 For help with your own custody-related questions and concerns, please call Fort Lauderdale child visitation rights attorney Sandra Bonfiglio, P.A. at 954-945-7591. Initial consultations are offered free of charge, so please don’t hesitate to call or contact us online today.