Casewell
How to read this in the United States
Custody questions rarely have one US-wide answer. State law differs, and county rules differ inside a single state. Start with the order or parenting plan that actually applies to you.
Record each event with the date it happened and the date you wrote it down. Keep the whole message thread, bill or calendar item rather than a crop of it. A screenshot should never be your only copy.
A reader should be able to see what happened, when you recorded it and what changed afterwards. Take the legal questions to a family-law attorney licensed in your state.
Your state and county matter
Custody rules change from state to state, and sometimes from county to county. Put your state and county at the top of anything you share. Quote your custody order or parenting plan word for word. Keep court notices and portal downloads exactly as you received them. If a move, a new school or another state is involved, raise it with your attorney rather than guessing which rules apply.
What OurFamilyWizard is for
OurFamilyWizard exists to make communication between two parents accountable. Messages are documented, ToneMeter nudges heated wording down before it sends, the shared calendar handles schedule trades, and expenses route through a system both parents see. Courts across the US order parents onto it precisely because it removes the he-said-she-said around communication. If your conflict lives inside the messages themselves, this is the tool category you need.
What Casewell is for
Casewell documents your experience of co-parenting rather than the conversation between parents. A custody journal entry takes under a minute. Category, child, what happened, when, with the screenshot, photo, or receipt attached to that event.
Entries accumulate into a timeline you can filter by child, category, or date range and export as a professional PDF. A parenting-time record for your attorney, an expense summary with reimbursement status, or a full bundle for family court preparation. The other parent never joins, never sees it, and can't derail it.
The overlap people ask about
Both apps produce records a legal professional can review, and both offer writing support that cools heated language. ToneMeter on messages in OFW, the optional neutral rewrite on journal entries in Casewell. The difference is scope.
OFW's record covers what happened on the platform. Casewell's record covers what you documented from life. The no-show at 5pm, the receipt for the school trip, the pattern across three months of Fridays.
Neither substitutes for the other, which is why the practical answer for many higher-conflict situations is both. The ordered channel for talking, the private journal for everything else.
Cost logic
OurFamilyWizard is priced per parent. So the real cost of the platform is usually two subscriptions, sustained for as long as the order or arrangement lasts. Casewell is one $2.99/week or $49.99/year subscription because there is only ever one user. If you're paying for OFW and mostly using your own notes anyway, you're paying platform prices for journal work. See the alternatives comparison for how that decision usually plays out.
Before you share your record
Everything above is about keeping your own record. Before you show any of it to someone else, a few extra steps help.
Deal with one question at a time. Share the current order, a short timeline and the files that prove the point. Keep everything else safe in case it is needed later.
Court rules on redacting details, exhibits and deadlines vary from place to place. Check with a family-law attorney licensed in your state or your court's self-help pages before you file or send anything.
Write your state and county at the top and use the terms from your own order. A rule from one state may not apply in another.
What a coherent US record looks like
Casewell keeps the dated entry, its source file and any later addition together in one private timeline. When a review is needed, select only the records that answer the question in front of you and share those with a family-law attorney licensed in your state.
Try for freeIs Casewell a replacement for OurFamilyWizard?
No. If a court ordered OurFamilyWizard, keep using it as directed. Casewell replaces scattered personal notes, screenshots, and spreadsheets — the private record on your side. And works alongside any shared platform.
Can I use Casewell and OurFamilyWizard together?
Yes, and parents in higher-conflict situations often should: OFW carries the between-parent communication, Casewell holds your private record of events, expenses, and evidence the shared feed can't capture.
Which is cheaper, Casewell or OurFamilyWizard?
Casewell is one $2.99/week or $49.99/year subscription for the single user. OurFamilyWizard is priced per parent — check their site for current plans and multiply by two for the realistic total.
Does this apply in every state?
No. Custody law, procedure and terminology differ by state and often by county. Use this page to keep your own record in order, and check legal questions with an attorney in your state.
Sources
Custody law, procedure and terminology differ by state and often by county. The official source provides orientation only. This page is a documentation guide, not legal advice.