Asked in Child Custody, Child Support, Divorce and Family Law for Alabama

Q: Why was my right to counsel denied in a custody modification or neither informed of my right to be represented

Since i couldnt afford a attorney I was forced to have to represent myself and lost the joint custody I had of my boys and I believe it has to do with my exwife working for the Marshall county sheriff's office conflict of interest

1 Lawyer Answer
John Michael Frick
John Michael Frick
Answered

A: You aren’t entitled to a court-appointed attorney at taxpayer expense in such a civil proceeding, but are entitled to hire one at your own expense.

Claiming indigency that would entitle you to a court-appointed attorney if you had a criminal case against you in a custody case isn’t usually helpful in winning the custody case against the other parent where the legal standard is “best interest of the child.”

It is rarely going to be in the best interest of the child to award custody to an indigent parent over a gainfully employed one.

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