Get free answers to your Child Custody legal questions from lawyers in your area.
Even if the 12 year old has an attorney can the 15 year old boy be the main representative but under the guidance of an attorney?
This is not a true scenario but for the future is any of this possible? Also the 15 year old boy would know about the laws and know the rights, crimes, possible... View More 
answered on Jun 2, 2020
No. Courts will recognize either the litigate or a licensed attorney appearing on behalf of the litigate. In some cases a person may have a "next friend" step in his or her shoes and can still have an attorney. The 15 year old in your scenario would not be recognized by a court as a... View More
answered on Jun 1, 2020
Best thing to do would be to seek an ex parte order from the court.
answered on Jun 1, 2020
Custody starts with a complaint filed by one parent alleging that a child is the product of that person and the other parent, and includes reasons under the 12 Best Interest of the Child factors that are applicable to the situation as to which custody situation is best for that child. In most cases... View More
I filed a ex parte for sole custody bc she is threatening to leave the state. It got denied, do I have to return my daughter to her mother?
answered on Jun 1, 2020
Yes. Without a court order, you have no authority to keep the child from the other parent. If you have ongoing concerns, and since your ex parte was denied, you can file a regular motion to change custody.
I'm a 23 year old female and he is a 26 year old male. This is both of our first marriage. We got married 12/07/2018. He keeps telling his friends and family one story as to why we are divorcing and tells me another story as to what he has told them. He has been active in smearing my name,... View More
answered on May 28, 2020
You start by filing a complaint and serving him. At that point you can begin negotiating child custody, property settlement, etc. If he files first, you would be the defendant but that likely won’t change the outcome related to child custody at all. Michigan is a no-fault divorce state. What... View More
My 3 year old daughter that stays with me by ourselves. Her mother is currently homeless and has been house hoping with ppl since ‘16,I was told to file a motion but that seems too long of process and too much for something that I feel is a no brainer. The mother said she understands that I need... View More
answered on May 27, 2020
First things, first...the Friend of the Court does not change custody or make orders; that is what judges do. If the mother is cooperative, it doesn't need to be a long process, but it is a process all the same.
answered on Apr 27, 2020
You will need to file an objection to the ex parte order. You should do so promptly, and with an attorney's assistance if possible.
Can she just take them I just got them monday
answered on Apr 23, 2020
Are you the legal father? (e.g. affidavit of parentage signed and on file with the state). You cannot expect the court to enforce an agreement it did not make or have record of. You should file a custody action so that you get a written order that can be enforced in the future.
We were both in other relationships at the end of our divorce and still are. Because this pregnancy happened so close to the final stamp I’m worried they will try and go back on my ex husband if my child’s father decides to bail and not sign the BC.
answered on Mar 29, 2020
Your ex-husband is only considered the legal father of your child if you were pregnant during the marriage. If your pregnancy began after the Judgment of Divorce was entered by the court, your ex-husband will not be the legal father. You will want to make sure the baby's biological father... View More
We have two children and need to appoint guardianship in the event of our death, as well as distribute our life insurance properly.
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answered on Mar 27, 2020
It sounds like you are a married couple and your plan of distribution at the first death is "survivor takes all". That being the case, utilizing death beneficiary designations or joint tenancy with survivorship title holding is effective to vest ownership in those assets in the survivor.... View More
answered on Mar 24, 2020
It is legal certainly to be represented by a family member who also happens to be an attorney so long as there is no direct conflict of interest for the attorney. Probably not the best idea for an attorney to do so for emotional and other reasons; many lawyers will refer family members to other... View More
What do I do for visitation asking for a time to si down and go over times is always brushed off. I'm done asking her I want my visits
answered on Mar 23, 2020
What does the Order granting guardianship say about visitation/parenting time?
Is it at the discretion of the parties? If so then you need to petition the Court that granted the guardianship to allow for parenting time/visitation if your mother won't cooperate.
If the order... View More
During the divorce ex-wife got pregnant with another man’s child but since the divorce hadn’t been finalized when she gave birth the courts dismissed the divorce. There was a custody agreement in place after filing for divorce however the courts are dismissed to divorce, so what happens to the... View More
answered on Mar 21, 2020
Not sure why the court would dismiss the divorce in this situation other than your ex-wife - assuming she is the plaintiff - failed to continue the proceedings. Regardless, with the divorce goes the court's ability to enforce your agreement.
You could file your own divorce action at this point.
answered on Mar 16, 2020
You've used two words - "abandoned" and "abused" - which have several meanings in a family court situation. Those words have specific legal meanings to the court; people often ascribe their own definition to those words, which sometimes is not consistent with the... View More
Because its been past 7 days. What can i do.
answered on Mar 12, 2020
You may need to request a new motion hearing to enter the prior judgment.
Can I ask for a new investigation because after speaking with several specialists they don’t understand why the child’s word and the defendants history wasn’t enough evidence
answered on Mar 11, 2020
Short answer is no. CPS is like the police; when you call the police, they come out and do an investigation. Sometimes they arrest people, sometimes they give a warning, sometimes they find nothing. The point is that once you call CPS, what and how they do their investigation is up to them - you do... View More
answered on Mar 11, 2020
File it anyway so long as it comports to what the judge said.
We had a hearing, but the judge did not swear in either party before the session. I'm just wondering if that makes the session in question inadmissible in higher court?
answered on Mar 2, 2020
It's good practice for judges to do so, but it doesn't always happen. Nor does it change the fact that there's a recording on everything and that people are presumed to be telling the truth in response to judges' questions.
Safety plan was unknown to mother
Daughter (1 of 3) children was assaulted, mother reported all known info of perpetrator to cps and state police
After daughter came forward there was a voicemail from a cps agent to the mother stating that she is not allowed to pick up her... View More
My son's (he is 19 years old) daughter is almost 17 months old & we have had her almost every weekend since birth, including 3-4 separate times when her mother left her with us for 7-10 days while she was out of state. Her mom abruptly stopped visits but since my son is not on the birth... View More
answered on Feb 22, 2020
Your son will need to start a paternity action to establish paternity. If you search on the State Court Administrator's Office website, you'll find the forms to fill out. You are right that establishing paternity alone will not change custody. Your son will then need to petition for... View More
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