Case Details

How a parenting plan closed without a hearing — and what stayed on the file.

Family law

Parenting plan without a hearing

School years and holidays written into a plan both parents could keep — settled before anyone filed for a contested hearing.

The client came to us after months of informal talks that produced nothing except rising fees. We rebuilt the file from calendars, school records and a clear proposed order — then asked for temporary terms that put the children first and kept both parents in the picture.

The work was not theatrical. It was dates, a draft both sides could live with, and a named attorney who would not let the other side stall.

Key challenges

No shared calendar

School terms, holidays and handover times had never been written down in one place both parents trusted.

Rising fees, no order

Months of informal negotiation had spent money without producing a signed parenting plan.

Hearing pressure

The other side floated a contested hearing that would have stretched the matter over a year.

Children first

Any plan had to protect schooling and routines — not score points for either parent.

“We needed something both of us could keep — not a courtroom fight our children would remember.”

Our approach

01

Rebuild the file

Collected school calendars, travel history and prior emails into one pack both parents could read without a glossary.
02

Draft a workable plan

Wrote term-time, holiday and handover rules in plain English — short enough to follow, specific enough to enforce.
03

Mediate with a named attorney

The partner on the call was the partner who signed the advice. Temporary terms locked before anyone filed for a hearing.
04

Close and file cleanly

Consent order lodged with the court. Both parents left with the same signed plan and a clear path if terms needed review.

The result

Consent order — no hearing required

Both parents signed a parenting plan covering school years, holidays and handovers. Temporary terms held through the school year. No contested hearing was listed.

Fees stayed inside the budget we set at intake. The children kept their routines. The file closed with a named attorney’s signature — not an intake desk.