Few things you have gone through during your life were likely to be more stressful than your current child custody dispute. If you have increased your alcohol consumption to help you manage your stress, though, you may want to find a healthier coping mechanism. Indeed, according to Psychology Today, alcohol is never a long-term strategy for dealing with stress.
If heavy drinking becomes common for you, it may only be a matter of time before an officer pulls you over for driving under the influence. Even though DUI charges are bad enough on their own, they also can make your child custody case considerably more challenging.
Are you seeking physical custody?
As a parent, you either may want sole custody of your kids or a joint-custody arrangement. Either way, a DUI conviction may be problematic, as judges in the Old Dominion must consider the best interests of the children when making custody-related orders. As you may suspect, having a parent who has a propensity to drink and drive tends not to be good for kids.
Will you lose your legal rights?
Like all parents, you have a legal right to make certain fundamental decisions about your children’s upbringing. These decisions relate to your children’s education, culture, religion and medical care. Luckily, a first-time DUI conviction in your past is not likely to interfere with your legal custody rights.
You may have both a family lawyer for your custody case and a criminal defense attorney for your DUI matter. Ultimately, to protect your legal interests in both matters, it is imperative for you to tell both of these attorneys about your custody case and DUI charges.
