Need the best family lawyer
04-10-2012, 03:07 AM
#42
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Last I read was Texas is 87% to the mom unless she's a known fellon them it drops it down to 40-50. She has to be proven extremely unfit. It's bs I know personally. I paid over 12k to a lawyer to get my kids and it didn't happen. He was a long time local too. Basically my past got the best of me. I was living in colorado at the time and they are 60% to the dad. I tried to get the custody hearings up there but it wasn't happening cause we are both from Texas. I've found that over the years the best thing I could do is let them see how their mom is and hope that when they turn 13 they wanna come stay with me. It's a long hard road and
Can really drag you down. I do have a buddy that got his son from the mother. So keep a your head up, and good luck!
Can really drag you down. I do have a buddy that got his son from the mother. So keep a your head up, and good luck!
04-10-2012, 07:25 AM
#43
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chances are you won't get custody but you'll have to pay child support to her after this is all done. also for your visitation rights make sure you get a judge to sign off on it don't go by the AG (attorney general) because they can only enforce you to pay her every month, they don't enforce the visitation and she is not required to follow the visitation set by the AG. if a judge signs off on your visitation rights and if she breaks that agreement then you have something on her you can take back to court unlike the AG visitation rights. i know had to find out the hard way about the AG and their sorry asses. another thing after the court order is in place neither she nor her attorney can keep you from seeing your child, this will all be explained to you through a good attorney after everything is in place. if you can get a female attorney to handle your case, they seem to go for more rights than a male attorney does.
04-10-2012, 10:12 AM
#44
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Thanks for clearing that up imperial. I filed my cs through the attorney general and the judge decided visitatation, 12 years ago. Things changed I guess.
You are correct, AG takes your money and throws you in jail if you don't pay. WORTHLESS!
The state will also do nothing for her violating established visitation, unless you take her to court.
Texas is a mother state, not much if anything will be done for the fathers. Except take your money through cs, court fees, or attorneys.
You are correct, AG takes your money and throws you in jail if you don't pay. WORTHLESS!
The state will also do nothing for her violating established visitation, unless you take her to court.
Texas is a mother state, not much if anything will be done for the fathers. Except take your money through cs, court fees, or attorneys.
04-10-2012, 10:27 AM
#45
A half a dozen visits from CPS, prescription meds being used that weren't in her name, failed drug test, bad living conditions, crappy clothes, 95% empty refrigerator, proof of much of this with pictures, and all of this on $1,000 a month in child support, and I STILL couldn't wrestle by oldest boy away from his mom........I don't regret it and never will.........BUT I'll also never see that $30k again either..............its gonna be an all uphill battle for you man, be prepared. Good luck to you man.
04-10-2012, 11:30 AM
#46
The court will consider the following factors in deciding on joint legal custody:
Whether the physical, psychological, or emotional needs and development of the child will benefit from joint custody;
The ability of the parents to give first priority to the welfare of the child and reach shared decisions in the child's best interest;
Whether each parent can encourage and accept a positive relationship between the child and the other parent.
Whether both parents participated in child-rearing before filing for divorce
How close to each other the parents live
The child's preference, if the child is age 12 or older
Any other relevant factors
Joint custody will not be awarded where there is a history of family violence, neglect, or abuse by one spouse against the other spouse or any child. A false accusation of abuse may boomerang against the accusing spouse.
State law encourages the parents to enter into a custody agreement (which the law calls a conservatorship agreement) themselves.
The alternative to joint custody is sole custody .
Section 153.002, 153.003, 153.004, 153.007, 153.013, 153.134
Note: In most of the cases below, the father was awarded custody. In most divorces in Texas, as everywhere else, the mother obtains custody. It may be that it is the rarity of father-custody that inspired the mothers in these cases to appeal.
Cases:
Wolfe (1996) 918 SW2d 533 (The mother had, without permission, taken the child to New Zealand. Later, the mother was stopped at the airport trying to take him to Australia. The mother had been absent for over half the year for several years before the divorce. The mother lied repeatedly in her testimony before the court. The father engaged in an extramarital affair, and had a gym bag with sex toys and pornographic magazines. The child had never seen the bag and was unaware of the father's activities. The court did not show the contents of the gym bag to the jury, although both father and mother testified about the contents. The jury awarded custody of the child to the father. The appeals court upheld that award. The appeals court said that, since the child was not exposed to the bag, and since there had been testimony about it and the father's activities, then it was not an error for the judge below to have excluded the gym bag from being shown to the jury.)
Valdez (1995) 930 SW3d 725 (father was awarded custody where mother had been working as a topless waitress for a year since the divorce and had left the child with the child's maternal grandmother who did not have court-granted custody. The daughter may have been molested by a relative living at the maternal grandmother's house. The daughter was afraid of the mother).
Zuniga (1994) 664 SW2d 810 (The court awarded custody of three boys, ages 12, 8, and 7 to the father, and awarded custody of a fourth boy, age 2 -- judgment was rendered on his second birthday -- to the mother. The court stated that siblings should not be split up except under compelling circumstances, but found that these circumstances were sufficiently compelling. The father claimed to have done all the cooking and cleaning for all the boys. He was a farm laborer and gasoline attendant. The mother had worked until midnight three days a week but claimed to wash and cook for the boys the other days. The mother had a somewhat higher earning potential than the father as a result of her one year of business school and computer training. The oldest boy was interviewed and said he wanted to live with the father because the father took care of him. Also, the father's mother lived nearby and helped every day.).
Kotrla (1986) 718 SW2d 853 (The mother admitted to having used marijuana and cocaine in 1982 or earlier, prior to the marriage. The mother also had "an association with" a lesbian. The court was allowed to consider all these factors in awarding custody to the father.)
Sharp (1986) 710 SW3d 696 (The fact that wife was living with a married man did not, by itself, disqualify her from being custodial parent. In this case, the evidence suggested that the man and the daughter had a good relationship. There was also evidence that the father left hard-core pornographic materials out in the front room where the child could see them.).
Glud (1982) 641 SW2d 688 (The court awarded custody of two boys, age 11 and 10, to the mother. The judge said, "In my opinion I think it would be detrimental looking at it from a man's standpoint, and I'm a man and father, Mr. Glud, I think it would be very difficult for a man to raise two boys like a woman can. Therefore I'm going to name her as managing conservator of the children." The appeals court concluded that this showed gender bias against the father. Both parents were loving and capable of caring for their children. The appeals court ordered a re-trial on the custody issue).
Whether the physical, psychological, or emotional needs and development of the child will benefit from joint custody;
The ability of the parents to give first priority to the welfare of the child and reach shared decisions in the child's best interest;
Whether each parent can encourage and accept a positive relationship between the child and the other parent.
Whether both parents participated in child-rearing before filing for divorce
How close to each other the parents live
The child's preference, if the child is age 12 or older
Any other relevant factors
Joint custody will not be awarded where there is a history of family violence, neglect, or abuse by one spouse against the other spouse or any child. A false accusation of abuse may boomerang against the accusing spouse.
State law encourages the parents to enter into a custody agreement (which the law calls a conservatorship agreement) themselves.
The alternative to joint custody is sole custody .
Section 153.002, 153.003, 153.004, 153.007, 153.013, 153.134
Note: In most of the cases below, the father was awarded custody. In most divorces in Texas, as everywhere else, the mother obtains custody. It may be that it is the rarity of father-custody that inspired the mothers in these cases to appeal.
Cases:
Wolfe (1996) 918 SW2d 533 (The mother had, without permission, taken the child to New Zealand. Later, the mother was stopped at the airport trying to take him to Australia. The mother had been absent for over half the year for several years before the divorce. The mother lied repeatedly in her testimony before the court. The father engaged in an extramarital affair, and had a gym bag with sex toys and pornographic magazines. The child had never seen the bag and was unaware of the father's activities. The court did not show the contents of the gym bag to the jury, although both father and mother testified about the contents. The jury awarded custody of the child to the father. The appeals court upheld that award. The appeals court said that, since the child was not exposed to the bag, and since there had been testimony about it and the father's activities, then it was not an error for the judge below to have excluded the gym bag from being shown to the jury.)
Valdez (1995) 930 SW3d 725 (father was awarded custody where mother had been working as a topless waitress for a year since the divorce and had left the child with the child's maternal grandmother who did not have court-granted custody. The daughter may have been molested by a relative living at the maternal grandmother's house. The daughter was afraid of the mother).
Zuniga (1994) 664 SW2d 810 (The court awarded custody of three boys, ages 12, 8, and 7 to the father, and awarded custody of a fourth boy, age 2 -- judgment was rendered on his second birthday -- to the mother. The court stated that siblings should not be split up except under compelling circumstances, but found that these circumstances were sufficiently compelling. The father claimed to have done all the cooking and cleaning for all the boys. He was a farm laborer and gasoline attendant. The mother had worked until midnight three days a week but claimed to wash and cook for the boys the other days. The mother had a somewhat higher earning potential than the father as a result of her one year of business school and computer training. The oldest boy was interviewed and said he wanted to live with the father because the father took care of him. Also, the father's mother lived nearby and helped every day.).
Kotrla (1986) 718 SW2d 853 (The mother admitted to having used marijuana and cocaine in 1982 or earlier, prior to the marriage. The mother also had "an association with" a lesbian. The court was allowed to consider all these factors in awarding custody to the father.)
Sharp (1986) 710 SW3d 696 (The fact that wife was living with a married man did not, by itself, disqualify her from being custodial parent. In this case, the evidence suggested that the man and the daughter had a good relationship. There was also evidence that the father left hard-core pornographic materials out in the front room where the child could see them.).
Glud (1982) 641 SW2d 688 (The court awarded custody of two boys, age 11 and 10, to the mother. The judge said, "In my opinion I think it would be detrimental looking at it from a man's standpoint, and I'm a man and father, Mr. Glud, I think it would be very difficult for a man to raise two boys like a woman can. Therefore I'm going to name her as managing conservator of the children." The appeals court concluded that this showed gender bias against the father. Both parents were loving and capable of caring for their children. The appeals court ordered a re-trial on the custody issue).
04-10-2012, 11:34 AM
#47
If you are unmarried, the mother has sole custody. - If the parents are not married and there is no court-ordered visitation the mother can keep the child from the father but the father can petition the court to establish his paternity and request a visitation schedule ordered by the court. Unwed mothers generally have sole custody until the father takes some action to establish his paternity.
Once you've obtained a court order for visitation, A custodial parent cannot deny the court ordered visitations of the non-custodial parent.
If the parents are legally married one parent cannot keep the child from the other parent unless there is a court order.
Once you've obtained a court order for visitation, A custodial parent cannot deny the court ordered visitations of the non-custodial parent.
If the parents are legally married one parent cannot keep the child from the other parent unless there is a court order.
Last edited by 427LS7HCI; 04-10-2012 at 11:40 AM.
04-10-2012, 11:50 AM
#48
Unless you can prove her to be unfit, (child abuse, starvation, drugs, violence, current criminal activities, etc that would put the child in harms way), you're not going to get custody of your child in the State of Texas.
Your best offensive is to file for visitation or joint custody. I hope this helps.
04-10-2012, 02:38 PM
#49
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Excellent point stated above.......make sure paternity is determined before you do anything. Your lawyer will probably tell you about a few surprises he has encountered......mine did, and boy they weren't pretty.
Someone else mentioned you should gather info from any social networking sites she may use......great idea there as well.
You can try to offer her money too. I had $10k cash money waving in front of my boys mom, AND I just bought a car for her and told her I would take the payments. She actually turned me down.......big surprise..........yours may take the bait though..........there is a specific time and a place for that though.
Someone else mentioned you should gather info from any social networking sites she may use......great idea there as well.
You can try to offer her money too. I had $10k cash money waving in front of my boys mom, AND I just bought a car for her and told her I would take the payments. She actually turned me down.......big surprise..........yours may take the bait though..........there is a specific time and a place for that though.
04-10-2012, 06:51 PM
#52
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Paternity test to determine you are the father. You never know. The state should give you the option with child support and it will have to be established if you want custody. If for some reason , Maury voice, you are not the father then no custody or child support.
Real advice man, don't want to pay 18 years for something that isn't yours. Plus the emotional turmoil of the custody stuff. ****...
Real advice man, don't want to pay 18 years for something that isn't yours. Plus the emotional turmoil of the custody stuff. ****...
04-10-2012, 11:35 PM
#54
It be even more of an uphill battle. If it's determined, that the child is NOT yours, you can still fight for custody, however, if the private investigator or attorney comes back with "dirt" (anything things/actions that can substantiate neglect, hostile environment, violence, drugs or anything felonious) on your ex, the child will go into CPS custody first and temporarily awarded to the state. Then from there you would have to file for an adoption of that child and at the same time, CPS will be investigating the mother. Once you file for an adoption, CPS then investigates your background, verify employment, etc to determine if you would even qualify or have the ability to adopt and support a child. Adopting a child is not easy, especially if you are a SINGLE parent, it's a long, through, expensive and drawn out litigive process.
Did you sign the birth certificate???
Did you sign the birth certificate???
04-11-2012, 09:01 AM
#56
That's established paternity because with the mom and your signature on there, she has consented/validated that you are the father.
Next step is to get a copy of the birth certificate with both signatures on there and proceed with filing a motion for visitation orders.
If you run into static with the birth certificate, file a motion requesting a paternity test. A paternity test and a signed birth certificate is rock solid evidence that you are infact the father, you'll have more leverage for when you file your motion for immediate visitation rights.
Next step is to get a copy of the birth certificate with both signatures on there and proceed with filing a motion for visitation orders.
If you run into static with the birth certificate, file a motion requesting a paternity test. A paternity test and a signed birth certificate is rock solid evidence that you are infact the father, you'll have more leverage for when you file your motion for immediate visitation rights.
04-11-2012, 01:19 PM
#57
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ill ask my cousin...he got custody of his girl...kept the house, cars, and he gets child support...the mother isnt a bad mom either, he just had a damn good lawyer...its possible man just keep positive.
04-11-2012, 04:06 PM
#58
Just a little advice here and motivation.
I am in Harris county and my bud got FULL custody of his daughter. It took a few years, but he has always lived clean and she has not. He is smart and always taken care of his kids.
She was not a crackhead or any type of drug user, but REAL dumb. Sometime the best advice is to answer questions with yes and no. Well, she didn't and her foot was in her mouth more than it was in a shoe.
If you child is ever in danger or neglected while she in your ex-wife's custody, then take pictures of the scene. I is not illegal for you to take pictures of your own child, just others.
Record telephone conversations, but let her know you are doing it.
Do not go out, establish a residence, a job and show STABILITY. If you have not done this in your past, it will definitely be an uphill battle.
I hope you have a CLEAN record as well.
First and foremost, listen to your attorney.
I am in Harris county and my bud got FULL custody of his daughter. It took a few years, but he has always lived clean and she has not. He is smart and always taken care of his kids.
She was not a crackhead or any type of drug user, but REAL dumb. Sometime the best advice is to answer questions with yes and no. Well, she didn't and her foot was in her mouth more than it was in a shoe.
If you child is ever in danger or neglected while she in your ex-wife's custody, then take pictures of the scene. I is not illegal for you to take pictures of your own child, just others.
Record telephone conversations, but let her know you are doing it.
Do not go out, establish a residence, a job and show STABILITY. If you have not done this in your past, it will definitely be an uphill battle.
I hope you have a CLEAN record as well.
First and foremost, listen to your attorney.
04-11-2012, 05:26 PM
#59
I never go out and I dont drink, and even if I had a drink I would never do so in front of my daughter. She sees enough of that from her moms side. I live at home with parents (working on getting a place) I've always maintain a full time job. I work as a rig mechanic (she never worked until we separated a year ago and then she got a part time job at a fast food restaurant) never been in trouble with the law besides speeding tickets that I paid. I've done a deployment over seas (400 days) when I was in army. And when I came back 6 months later we separated. I told her to move out. I was tired of the verbal abuse (your not a man.... Your a sorry as dad....ect.) I got to school full time and next year I'll finish school with B.A.S in criminal justice.
04-11-2012, 06:25 PM
#60
Perfect!
Just keep your head up and you will get there. Always let them **** up. They will everytime or you would still be together.
You may have to eat crow and do things that in other situations you would not do(like keep your mouth shut), but it will owrk out for the best.
And if you do get a judgement against her or if ther is a judgement that comes down and gives EXACT guidelines of who gets her on what weekend, then keep that document with you at all times, especially when you are picking the child up or the ex is trying to pick her up.
I have been with my bud 1000 times when the cops were called on him and everytime, he proved her wrong with the paperwork.
It is so fun to wave at his ex when the cops are telling her to leave.
The local pd has even told her they have a file on her for her constant false calls.
She has stopped calling them and for almost 6 months never came and picked up her daughter. She is terrible and blames everything on my bud.
All she does is F up.
I hope you are as lucky.
Just keep your head up and you will get there. Always let them **** up. They will everytime or you would still be together.
You may have to eat crow and do things that in other situations you would not do(like keep your mouth shut), but it will owrk out for the best.
And if you do get a judgement against her or if ther is a judgement that comes down and gives EXACT guidelines of who gets her on what weekend, then keep that document with you at all times, especially when you are picking the child up or the ex is trying to pick her up.
I have been with my bud 1000 times when the cops were called on him and everytime, he proved her wrong with the paperwork.
It is so fun to wave at his ex when the cops are telling her to leave.
The local pd has even told her they have a file on her for her constant false calls.
She has stopped calling them and for almost 6 months never came and picked up her daughter. She is terrible and blames everything on my bud.
All she does is F up.
I hope you are as lucky.