Q: The other party filed for default in a custody battle, what do I do next? Will they grant him what he wants?
I recently went through a terrible loss; my 2 baby brothers and my Tia were murdered, so my ex decides to kick me while I’m down and file for Full custody AGAIN, because I was planning 3 funerals, dealing with the deaths of my brothers and Tia and grieving , my response was too late, I was 4 days late into filing and his lawyer filed a motion for default. Now, the judge only has what he filed lies about why I’m such a bad mother, and false information and not my part not the truth and my response towards all of that WHAT DO I DO
A: Someone needs to look at your court papers. If a motion for default was filed, it sounds like you were served with a petition. You don't say if this is a divorce case, a paternity case, or a straight child custody case. If it is really "a motion for default" then you can file your own motion to set aside the default. But it could be something else. First go to the courthouse and get a copy of all papers in the case file. You will be charged 50 cents per page. Then call up the offices of 3 family law attorneys and find out if they have a free first interview. Bring your copy of the court file with you so the attorney can review all the papers in the file. Go to all three attorneys before you make any decision whether to hire one of them or none of them. Find the one that you feel good about. You may be spending a lot of time with the person so make sure you have a good feeling about them. Usually it is not too late to do something, but you need to have an experienced family law attorney look at the file. If you don't have enough money to hire any of the attorneys, you still will have learned a lot by talking to three attorneys. Don't give up. And also don't wait around. Start calling tomorrow and get those three appointments set up.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
