Judge Rules that Shared Custody and Visitation Rights for Separated Parents is Suspended during State of Alarm in Spain

Family law judges  are debating whether the decree set by the state of alarm should encompass the assistance and care for children in relationships were parents are separated.

A judge from the Madrid area of Alcoron has ruled that during the state of alarm, and due to the pandemic of the coronavirus, the right of parents to exercise visitation rights with their children will be suspended, as this was not included in the decree approved by the Government last Saturday.

“It’s considered unnecessary to make any pronouncement regarding the suspension of the visitation regime, taking into account that” this state of alarm makes it impossible to “transfer the child’s parent to the minor’s” house to exercise this right in the first place, declared the head of the Court of First Instance in Alcorcon.

According to legal sources, the judges have not yet had to rule on many cases with this topic of focus, since it has only been a short amount of time since the state of alarm was put into place.

The wording of the decree has been confusing for some parents as they question their rights to exercise their visitation regime. Many are contacting law firms to enquire about this changed aspect of their day to day life, especially as today Thursday March 19, is Father’s Day in Spain.