Thanksgiving Parent-time in 2019
The “custodial” parent gets the Thanksgiving holiday in 2019 under the Utah in-state parent-time statute. The Thanksgiving holiday is defined as beginning Wednesday (Nov 27) at 7 p.m. until Sunday (Dec 1) at 7 p.m. However if you are following the parent-time schedule in Utah Code 30-3-35.1 then the custodial parent may keep the child(ren) Sunday night and return them to school Monday morning.
If your order follows the out-of-state schedule in Utah Code 30-3-37 then in 2019 the “noncustodial” parent gets the Thanksgiving holiday from Wednesday until Sunday.
Bear in mind this is based on the standard provisions of the Utah Code. Some court orders deviate from the standard schedule. If your court order does so then you should follow what is stated in your order. There are also special rules in place for children under 3 years of age.
Do you have questions about how Thanksgiving holiday parent-time works? Is your ex withholding your children from you? If so give us a call at 855-254-2600.
Does the holiday patent time override right of firstrefusal? Father works every Sunday even over a holiday weekends.
That depends on how the order is worded. There is no Utah statute that addresses that specific issue. While Utah Code 30-3-33(15) encourages family courts to adopt what is commonly called a “right of first refusal” giving parents priority to care for their children before their co-parent farms them off to third-parties, it is not required. And while Utah Code 30-3-35 says holiday time generally trumps regular parent-time, it does not say whether it trumps right of first refusal time. Courts have broad discretion to decide whether to adopt a right of first refusal at all and, if so, how it works (eg how many hours a parent has to be gone to trigger it, whether it applies to step-parents and other relatives, whether it is suspended for holidays and extended summer time, etc). If the order itself does not provide in a clear answer the parents either need to agree on whether it trumps holiday time or someone will need to ask the court to decide.
If your child’s last day of school was Tuesday. They did not have school on Wednesday. Can you get your children on Tuesday after school? Thanksgiving was my holiday this year. Tuesday night was my ex’s normal day. I am looking at 2 (e) (ii) (A) and (B) in the Utah Holiday Code.
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