[3] Moreover, the agreement itself can authorize the employment of dispute-resolution methods, such as arbitration and mediation, that may be less costly than litigation.
A parenting plan agreed upon by the parties in an out-of-court setting is often termed "endorsed", "stipulated" or "on consent.
[10] Parenting plans are non-binding and not legally enforceable but may be written in such a way that they can submitted to a court for endorsement.
[14] Upon the introduction of the joint-custody in the national legislation in Romania, a standard parenting plan was released with the public.
There is a proposal of non-governmental associations to implement the parental plan in tertiary legislation (implementation guide under the aegis of authorized institutions), but also to introduce this plan into primary legislation (these are amendments to Law 272/2004 initiated by the DGPC).
[18] If the parents in a custody dispute request, many states allow children who are old enough to state an informed preference, to testify about their own preferences as to custody and parenting time, with their opinion taken into consideration by the court along with all other evidence relating to their best interest.
[20][21][22][23][24] In these states, an agreement's failure to specify the non-custodial parent's minimum level of access can constitute grounds for appeal of the adjudicating court's approval of the plan.
Where parents live farther apart, states such as Florida, Oregon, New Hampshire and New York allow the combination of these visits into longer stretches of time to reduce traveling.