My ex is preventing me from seeing my son, of whom we have joint custody. Can I just go pick him up from school? If there is a custody agreement in place stipulating that a party may have access to a child at certain times, they may only have access at those times and cannot take action to enforce their custody rights on their own. Instead of self-enforcing a custody order, a party will need to take proper legal steps to have the custody agreement enforced as written. → Read More
What can I do if my ex violates the custody agreement by taking our child out of state? When a custody arrangement is in place, it is legally binding. If one parent violates the terms of this custody agreement, especially by taking the child to another state, then that parent is in violation of the law. He or she can be jailed for parental kidnapping and can face a host of other legal problems. As such, if you find yourself unable to find your child after the other parent skipped town, you do have options. → Read More
Enforcing Child Visitation Rights Enforcing child visitation rights as defined by a child custody order. → Read More
How Do My Ex-Spouse and I Get Joint Custody of Our Children? If you and your ex agree that you should share joint custody of your children, what can often be one of the toughest parts of a custody arrangement is already settled. → Read More
How can grandparents obtain custody of their grandchild who has been abandoned by his biological parents? It is possible in certain circumstances for grandparents to become a child’s legal guardian and to obtain physical and legal custody of a child. As a general matter, though, grandparents rights are subordinate to parental rights. This means that in order for grandparents to get custody of a child, the biological parents must either agree to the custody arrangement or there must be a compelling reason why it is best for the child to live with his grandparents instead of his parents. → Read More
Can non-biological parents be awarded custody? Child custody court hearings involving non-biological parents, such as step parents, can sometimes get complex. A biological parent will almost always have superior rights to child custody. However, there are certain situations where a biological parent can be given custody rights by the court, even over the objections of the biological father or mother. → Read More
Stepparent Child Visitation Rights Custody battles are often ugly between divorcing biological parents, but when a biological parent and a stepparent get divorced, does the stepparent have a legal right to child visitation? The answer to that question depends largely on the state in which the parents reside, but in general, stepparents seeking child visitation rights have an uphill climb if the biological parent is still living and does not wish for the stepparent to have child visitation. → Read More
I was awarded custody of my 3-year old son after my divorce. I’m remarried now and my son considers his stepfather his father. There is a presumption in favor of natural parents as the successor custodian in the event of the death of the custodial parent, but it can be overcome if the court feels it is in the best interest of the child. → Read More
How to Get Child Visitation: For Grandparents As a grandparent, it is natural to wish to be in the life of your grandchildren. Unfortunately, sometimes this becomes a difficult issue if you are being denied the right to visit. You can sometimes compel visitation by petitioning the family court in your state, but the rules for granting such a petition vary. If you wish to file a lawsuit to compel visitation, you may want to consult an attorney experienced in family law issues. → Read More
I married an army colonel after my divorce. He recently was re-assigned to another out-of-state base. Could my ex-husband stop us from taking the children to the new location? When you have a legal custody arrangement in place, it generally indicates whether you may move with the children and if so, how far you may move. For example, it is common for a custody arrangement to mandate that a parent may not move with a child more than a set number of miles or minutes away. Regardless of whether your custody arrangement expressly limits your right to move or not, you will still need to inform your ex of the move and you will need to get permission from either your ex or the court to modify a custody agreement or to move with a child before you pack your bags. → Read More
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