Drug and alcohol are a major issue in divorce and child custody cases – and it’s one of the things that, in my experience, both Guardians ad litem and judges take seriously because it is very clearly and obviously not in the best interests of a child (or children) to be in the care of...
He wants more parenting time but he’s a drug user! What are my options?
I’ve heard so many different versions of the same story – a deadbeat dad, an abusive dad, a homeless dad, a narcissistic dad, an addicted dad – and desperate, terrified moms wanting to know what their options are. For one reason or another, many have asked me whether they’d get sole custody, whether they could...
In most cases, both parents will have the opportunity to have uninterrupted, unsupervised parenting time with their minor children, whether by agreement between the parties or by court order. In extreme cases, though, it is possible that the court would order one party or the other to have supervised visitation. This will usually be in...
Moms and dads often don’t parent the same. Sometimes, that’s a problem, and other times it’s not. It can be just a fact of life; a reflection of the difference in two coparents different backgrounds, perspectives, and world views. It can, actually, be a good thing when two parents are different, because it gives...
Drug and alcohol addiction is a serious problem in our society. Many families have loved ones who struggle under their addictions for years and years at a time. Watching the recent presidential debate, where President Trump mentioned Senator Biden’s son, who was discharged from the military because of his struggle with addition. I’m not here...
If I had a quarter for every time a client asked me about supervised visitation, I’d have an awful lot more quarters than the number of cases where I’ve seen supervised visitation actually get awarded. It’s not like an annulment, which is essentially a unicorn, but it’s not very common, either. In fact, it’s pretty...
Ugh, in laws! I totally get it, especially where custody and visitation is concerned. I’m a mom, too, and I used to feel like before I had kids, it was really not such a big deal. You’d see each other at holidays and keep in touch, but it wasn’t an overwhelming interference in your day...
Divorce and custody cases do all sorts of things to people. Things that, before the case were on the horizon, would have seemed unthinkable—in both good ways and bad. One of the most annoying things that happens is when a formerly deadbeat dad decides that he now wants custody, or at least wants more parenting...