EDUCATIONAL ISSUES IN DIVORCE

The Court of Appeals recently in Fuentes v. Bd. of Educ. of City of NY, 12 NY3d 309 (April 30, 2009) ruled that unless the parties in an agreement express otherwise, or the court does in a decree or order, the custodial parent has sole decision-making authority with respect to practically all aspects of the child's upbringing, including but not limited to, educational decisions. This decision emphasizes the importance of divorcing, separated or other co-parents to determine these issues in advance. This case involved the noncustodial parent seeking a review of the special education services that a legally blind son was receiving and which the non-custodial parent deemed inadequate. When the non-custodial parent sought review by the education department, the appeal was denied due to lack of standing, viz., the non-custodial parent was not the proper party to make educational decisions for the child. Any party, whether married, separated or in any type of custody hearing, should realize the loss of certain parenting rights when sole and exclusive custody is given to the other parent.