Q: How does a person go about responding to a summons they have been served with that has to do with sole custody?
I was served with a summons to court who my oldest daughters dad filed. If I have paperwork that states I have already been named as the sole custodial parent to my daughter can she still be removed from me? If I also have no history of being committed into a mental health facility but the other party has in fact been institutionalized can she still be removed from my care? If I can produce all inbound, outbound as well as text messages from the school staff, law enforcement as well as dad stating that I did have his permission to go see her that day and the school got involved and contacted law enforcement can she still be removed? If I can prove that my daughter is doing so much better here with me than she was with dad where she was lice infested as well I mean will they take her? Please I need to know I have i have 14 days left calendar days left to respond and no money for a lawyer I need some kind of answer please so I can continue to represent myself
A: You need to file an Answer (paper) with the court stating exactly what you have described above. The legal standard is what is in the best interests of the child. You need to spell out in your paper why it is in the child's best interest to stay with you. Generally it is better to focus on why you are a good parent rather than why the other parent is bad. Speak with a local family lawyer for more specific advice. Perhaps you can get a free consultation.
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