Almost everyone knows someone who has been, is or will be going through a “terrible” custody battle. The best of parents—acting under the stress of a separation or divorce—experiences a range of emotions from loss to rage.
In some cases, the perceptions of the parents are magnified by underlying psychological issues, substance abuse or both and lead to the truly high-conflict custody case. While there is no legal definition for a high conflict custody case, they all share some of the same hallmark behaviors and incidents while (and after the case) pending, including:
claims of or actual domestic violence and/or criminal ... Read More
Tag: Checklist
04
Jan2018
31
May2016
Most marriages last at least a few years if divorce is in the cards. Most litigants see obtaining the divorce decree as about the final step in that hard process. However, to have the best chance of returning your life to the closest place it was pre-divorce, a great deal of work needs to occur post-divorce.
First, make sure at the time of the divorce, key policies and protections don’t lapse like health insurance, auto insurance, and life insurance. Between changes of address and mail rerouting, this is easy and having an uncovered auto accident just makes healing from the divorce ... Read More
09
Jul2015
With technology and more access to different information on a faster basis, there is much more evidence available to parties, attorneys, professionals, and trial court judges to use making child custody decisions. These need to be identified as early in the divorce process as possible to be useful.
Custody evaluators and GAL’s can use and rely on evidence that might not be admissible in court. Therefore, it is important to work with your attorney to identify the evidence and determine how it is likely to be used to get into a correct evidentiary format.
That said, this blog focuses on common evidence ... Read More
24
Feb2015
Disputes over child custody, parenting time or visitation are often referred to third party professionals to investigation the matter fully and make a recommendation to the court.1 This process often leads to settlement and more streamlined trials. However, a court, who must use its discretion and make a child custody determination is not bound by an evaluator’s recommendations, but is likely to follow them.
Custody cases usually involve a great-deal of emotion and “he-said, she-said.” For this reason, the key point of the evaluator—making a best interests recommendation to the court--is difficult and time consuming. Evaluators are not perfect and there ... Read More
27
Sep2011
In these times of global financial uncertainty, Ciyou & Dixon, P.C. advocates observe that it is tougher than ever for divorced parents to make ends-meet. To some extent, this has always been the case. It’s a matter of basic economics–it costs more to run two different households, particularly on a single income if the other ex-spouses have not remarried.
This coupled, with recent revisions to the Child Support Guidelines, makes the idea of child support modification a more ready consideration, or down-right appealing, to many parents. However, a child support modification does not occur just because of the passage of time ... Read More
08
Sep2011
Ciyou & Dixon, P.C. has a significant practice area addressing civil and criminal appeals taken to the Indiana Court of Appeals and sought to be transferred to the Indiana Supreme Court. Typically, these cases come by referral from other attorneys or because a litigant wants to change counsel for a fresh appellate perspective.
We find that in meeting with most appellate clients, there are a number of checklist items that a client may bring to keep costs down (i.e., to keep the lawyer from spending time collecting something the client may easily obtain) and make for meaningful appellate consults and representation.
They ... Read More
30
Aug2011
As domestic advocates, Ciyou & Dixon, P.C. attorneys frequently are consulted and accept child custody modification cases. In order to modify physical custody, the moving parent must show there has been a substantial change in the child’s environment and the modification is in the child’s best interests.
We find most post-divorce child custody modification cases fall within three (3) categories. The first is where a party is still re-litigating the past. The statutory rule nevertheless prohibits a trial court from hearing evidence occurring before the prior custody order. Thus, if this is the case, it is unlikely to be successful.
The two ... Read More
18
Mar2011
Most parents who are not divorce lawyers often sense when physical custody should be modified. Little bits of information they receive from the kids, teachers, friends tell them this. A parent can help his or her lawyer prepare a modification case and save legal fees by helping answer some key questions to the following checklist.
Try to answers these questions in advance of consulting with your attorney:
How are the children doing in school?
What has changed with the parent(s) and children since the last custody order?
Do the parents have new significant others or spouses?
Is a parent moving or has moved?
Are the children ... Read More