When is a custody evaluation necessary or appropriate?

When is a custody evaluation necessary or appropriate? I would say that there are two situations where you want to seriously consider hiring a custody evaluator. One of those situations is if there is a legitimate question about out whether you or your spouse is the primary caregiver for the child and you can't agree on where the children are going to live. A custody evaluation can be very helpful in determining what the most appropriate parenting plan and custodial agreement would be for your kids. The other situation would be if there are concerns about domestic violence, addictions such as drug and alcohol issues, or any other domestic issues within your family that you think the court needs to have a heightened awareness of. A custody evaluation can be really helpful in figuring out what's going on with those situations and providing information to the court about how to develop an appropriate parenting plan and safe parenting plan for your children.