Not everyone can afford to hire an attorney but, when it comes to a divorce or custody case, almost everyone needs at least some legal advice.
There are very few options when it comes to complete and total pro bono representation, too, but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t opportunities to get your questions asked and answered.
Actually, that’s how Custody Bootcamp for Moms initially started. We saw a need for women to get up to date, Virginia specific information about custody cases – specifically, standalone custody cases at the juvenile court level – regardless of whether they could afford to hire an attorney. In fact, in most of our earlier promotional material, we talked about teaching women how to represent themselves. We quickly saw that a good number of the women who would register to attend were women with representation who wanted to better understand the process, so we streamlined the verbiage a little, but the fact remains – helping women become better advocates for themselves in the custody context, whether or not they have their own legal representation, is the main goal of Custody Bootcamp for Moms.
It’s a lofty goal, too. Custody cases are notoriously complex, compounded by the fact that custody decisions – whether by agreement between the parties or as ordered by the court – are modifiable based on a material change (meaning that issues can come up again and again, especially in abusive or high conflict cases, until the children age out) and because decisions at the juvenile court level are automatically appealable as a matter of right to the circuit court (meaning that, in some contentious cases, you could have as many as TWO trials on one set of issues).
The demand is there, though. Women literally begged us for more information. And we wanted to provide it. Providing information has always been sort of our thing, from the moment we published our first book – What Every Virginia Woman Needs to Know About Divorce. Though we all represent women one-on-one, we also all – all six of us – freely give our time to write (and revise) our books, free reports, blog articles, and emails, as well as teach seminars on divorce and custody to help educate women in Hampton Roads and beyond.
Though we’ve written and spoken a ton on these issues and we’re constantly working to improve our presentation(s), the video content and other resources we offer, and more, there’s really no substitute for human touch – which is why each seminar is led by one of our experienced Virginia divorce and custody attorneys. That was the only way we figured that we could make sure that every woman’s question(s) were answered.
These days, Caitlin Walters handles most – if not all – of our Custody Bootcamp for Moms seminars. As a former Guardian ad litem, she’s really ideally situated to handle them, too.
The fact remains: one of the best ways to get up to date, Virginia specific information about how to handle your own custody case at the juvenile court level – or how to check up on your current attorney, if you’re represented by counsel – is to attend Custody Bootcamp for Moms. There are no other seminars like it, and certainly no other similar program for dads. That’s okay; they get enough advantages anyway.
So, how can you register to attend?
You can register to attend Custody Bootcamp online. The cost is $297, and it covers the entire day – usually, about six hours – with Caitlin, including covering many key aspects of handling a custody case:
- How custody cases are decided,
- What the ‘best interests of the child’ factors are, and how they’re applied in custody decisions,
- The different types of custody (legal and physical; primary, shared, and split),
- How to question and cross examine witnesses (and how to survive being questioned and cross examined yourself),
- How to get your evidence in (and keep his out),
- When to sit and stand, how to address the judge, and what to wear,
- How to work with the Guardian ad litem and opposing counsel – and a lot more.
Caitlin does the presentation, but we’ve peppered in video and commentary featuring many of our other experienced attorneys, so you can get a sense of all of us – and the benefit of our ranging experiences. (After all, no two custody cases are ever exactly alike!)
If I can’t afford $297, what are my options?
We do have a scholarship program! For each seminar, we offer at least one fully paid Custody Bootcamp registration for a mom in need. In order to apply, shoot me an email at kcarter@hoflaw.com. Provide your name and contact information, as well as a quick statement about why you need the scholarship and how it would benefit your case.
Pro tip: We’re not looking for the saddest story! We’re looking for the woman who would benefit the most from attending.
We usually make selections the Monday before Saturday’s seminar, so you’ll have a few days to arrange to attend. Let us know if you can’t make it, so we can select an alternate winner. Nothing makes us as sad as having the scholarship winner not attend when someone else may have attended in her place!
You are more than welcome to email me with any other questions. I’ll do my best to answer, but I do believe that Custody Bootcamp is an incredible opportunity. Short of going to law school and taking a few years in private practice to learn the ropes before you take on your own case, it’s the best possible preparation you can have for a contested custody case.
For more information, to request a copy of our free custody book, or to schedule a consultation, feel free to visit our website at hoflaw.com or give us a call at 757-425-5200.