In the world of family law, organization is a must. Nothing keeps both you and your clients organized like a co-parenting app. Co-parenting apps are created specifically to address the unique demands of divorced and separated families, and as such, they are able to streamline data-tracking and record-keeping like no other tool. Here are five ways a co-parenting app will make your life so much easier.
Increased efficiency, accuracy and transparency
By using an app, your clients can easily track, record and organize their entire parenting history – including custody time, expenses, communication with their co-parent and details about the parental duties they perform (or their co-parent fails to perform.) All of this can be done on the go – anytime, anywhere – so they are able to compile a more complete and accurate account.
Entries are time-and-date stamped, and any changes to data are recorded, which makes apps a highly effective tool to eliminate hearsay. Some apps, including Truece, Fayr and CoParenter, include geo-location tracking to help record custody time, providing an irrefutable record of whether each party is in compliance with their parenting plan.
Reduced paperwork and centralized records
Centralizing information significantly decreases the piles of paperwork you need to sort through to build a case. When your client uses a comprehensive co-parenting app, all of their records – including expense, custody, and communication history – are available in one streamlined source. It is not necessary to comb through pages of Google Calendars, bank statements, screenshots of text messages and emails.
Certain apps – such as Truece, Talking Parents and Fayr – offer customizable, court-admissible reports that summarize data in various categories. For instance, your client could generate a report of their entire expense history, or they could search conversation history by keyword and run a tailored report of relevant messages exchanged with their co-parent. Such simple, precise access to their information allows for better organization, less headache and far less busywork for you.
Extra protection for your client
Information entered into a co-parenting app is secure and verifiable. If your client’s co-parent has a habit of altering their joint calendar, conversations, or other shared information, the transparency and accuracy of a co-parenting app will help protect your client.
Kimberly Brown, a Seattle attorney, recommended Truece to her son when he and the mother of his children split up. He now uses the app as a daily journal to record parenting history such as visitation time, child support payments, participation in day-to-day parental tasks like transportation to doctor’s appointments and purchases for the children, and notes on interactions with the children’s mother.
Kimberly Brown comments: “Currently he and the mother are getting along (ideal). However, people typically go to court when things fall apart … and if/when they do – he will have his records in order.”
A tool suitable for all clients
No matter the situation, there is a co-parenting app suitable for each one of your clients. For low-income clients, there are a variety of affordable apps on the market for less than $10 per month. Truece and AppClose also offer a free subscription tier with full access to their tools at no monthly cost. For clients in highly contentious cases, apps like Our Family Wizard and CoParenter include a “tone meter” to restrict confrontational language, which your client may find appealing. Or they may prefer an app with single-user capability such as Truece or AppClose that will allow them to track their own history without participation from their co-parent.
In any case, your clients can search for the app that will best fit their needs. The more comfortable they are with the app, the more consistent they will be in their use, thus ensuring thorough records are available when needed.
Peace of mind
Nothing can change the difficult nature of divorce, but stress can be alleviated with the use of a comprehensive, reliable tool that provides proof of custody, communication and expense history. When your clients are confident in the knowledge that their information is accurately and securely stored, they can breathe a sigh of relief – which translates to less distressed, more efficient meetings with you. It’s a win-win.
Erica Jolly is a content writer for Truece Co-Parenting App, a Vancouver-based tech start-up that provides organizational and data-tracking tools for divorced and separated families. She can be reached at erica.jolly@truece.com.
