MEDIATING PET CUSTODY AND VISITATION

Since 2019, California Family Code has given courts the authority to issue orders during divorce or legal separation on the custody of pets.

Judges can award sole or joint ownership as well as visitation, expenses, and other factors associated with the pet’s welfare. Mediation, of course, is appropriate and less expensive than litigation. Alaska, Illinois, New Hampshire, and New York also have laws that direct judges or encourage mediation to consider the pet’s welfare rather than treating the pet strictly as property.

Private mediation is an option in all 50 states and offers many advantages, such as confidentiality, reduced emotional distress, reduced conflict, and creative solutions, which center on the pet’s well being.

Typically, pet mediation covers issues like living arrangements, visitation schedule, financial responsibilities for food, grooming, boarding, and vet bills, medical decision-making rules, and longer term issues related to relocation and end-of-life decisions.

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Fred Jandt is the author of two books related to this topic: “How to Survive a Mediation,” available wherever books are sold, and “A Hard Farewell” about dealing with grief after losing a pet, available on Amazon.