Question:

My wife of three years has been unfaithful. She did it once and we moved on, but I just caught her again with another man. I can no longer be with a woman who has cheated, twice now.  We also have a 2 year old daughter who we both love very much.

I am currently working on a 60 day contract making good money, but may be out of work after that. If we take our divorce to court, does she have more leverage since she has a solid 9 to 5 job?

Emotionally speaking, I feel that she may not be in a good place at the moment.  She is taking anti-depressant and anxiety medications currently.  I don't want to take my little girl away from her, but I am not comfortable with her state of mind right now. She is a great mother, but I worry about what may happen if I am not there.  I wonder how she will handle being away from a child she loves with all her heart. What do I do now, and do I have any chance for obtaining custody of my child with my job being so up in the air?

Answer:

You should check with a local attorney for your options, especially regarding the mother's parenting time if you get custody and the likelihood that the court will have her mental health evaluated.  Also, you personally need to decide what’s more important – your feelings about your wife’s feelings or your daughter’s safety.  Once you make that choice, the rest of your actions may become clearer.

Erik H. Carter is a Senior Attorney of the Cordell & Cordell, P.C. office in Indianapolis, Indiana as well as the Litigation Manager of both the Indianapolis and Pittsburgh offices. Mr. Carter has practiced since 1993 as an attorney. He is licensed in Illinois, Indiana, Pennsylvania as well as the Northern District of Indiana and the Southern District of Indiana.