Messages

1) There's no such thing as a permanent citizenship-when applying to legally be allowed to reside in the US and on recieving  Permanant Resident Status (Green Card), there is a waiting period of a minimum of 4 years before qualifying for the right to apply for Citizenship.

2) In Canada, you are not required to appear in court with your Atty.  As a matter of fact, you can not address the court at all at your hearing, you are of course welcome to be present but you are a spectator! Once you've paid an Atty for his services, he acts on your behalf.

3) If mom has initiated any procedings in Canada regarding the children the courts there will prevent any changes to the status quo until adjudication.



ArkStepMom (Canadian Citizen/Perm Resident)

Soc:
We have had our attorney retained since July, at which time we stated the details of our case, our claims and evidence.  We requested an emergency temporary order & mod of custody.  She agreed to conduct business over the phone as necessary as jurisdiction (as well as Attorney) are in a county 4 hours from ours
Since July we have requested over and over for the status of our case etc and since July she has accepted 1 phone call (which may have been a mistake). She has responded 3 times by email to our requests for information about the status of our case, usually answering with an excuse as to why she's not been in contact (ei: her mother was sick, she's been in court and she's 'been busy'!)
Now given that she is holding our retained and not forwarded reciept or any paper communication, beit bill or otherwise.  At this piont we can't even get her to answer as to whether BM has been served.
On October 2 she responded to email stating that we should have a court date "today", and haven't heard from her nor been able to reach her, we can't even figure out what the hearing would be for at this piont!!!

This would make our 2nd Attorney from hell.  My 7 y/o stepdaughter is stuck in an unsave environment and we're stuck with an atty who only spoke to us to take our payment details!  All our cards are max'd and the last of our funds went to the atty

What can you suggest?

Soc, I have a friend who is unable to register and she has asked me to pose this question:

Child concieved in Arkansas, born in Oklahoma, and parents divorce is in Arkansas.

Father brought custody case and mother is attempting to have this case dismissed on grounds that he filed in the wrong state, since child was born in Oklahoma

1) Where is the correct jurisdiction in the situation?

Soc;
We have an issue with CP constantly claiming NCP is harassing her.  Her claims are based on any inquiry regarding child (ie: illness)all recorded.  She will request NCP call her at work to discuss child or relative matters and shriek " don't harass me at work" also recorded.  Any denied visitation is followed up with a letter from NCP advising of our intention to submit the withheld visitation for contempt, sent cert, rr.  These letters are very generic, state the AO stipulation, why it will be submitted for consideration as contempt.  She claims this also to be harassment.
CP has trumped up semi-physical harassment claims as well.  She hasn't devulged to NCP she has suffered any actual physical contact from him but states NCP was "in her face" (which is actually false, StepNCP there as witness) and there are no RO's that we know of . Because of this semi physical "threat"  she claims she must bring her husband as witness,  consequently this makes her late to exchange child at visitations! Yet sometimes will drive alone.
We do know thjat there has been at least one altercation between CP and her husbands ex. (The she fight had somebodies head being slammed off the hood of a car!!)

We feel that this will be brought forward at some piont during our case, exagerated(sp?) I'm sure.  We'd hate to shoot ourselves in the foot, we'd rather present ourselves with pristene halo's!

1) Is there something that we should be doing as damage control?
2) Invalidate her claims?
2) Anything else you can add is appreciated?

Thank you in advance

Hi Soc;

In Arkansas, where we are a 'one party state'. We have recorded BM's communications over the phone with us for several years now and have pain stakingly transcribed it all to paper, verbatim.

Q1) Are these communications admissable in court?

if not/so

Q2) What can be doen to ensure the judge believes the conversion to be accurate? Notary?

Soc,
Once a Custody Mod/Contempt motion is filed with the court house, what time frame or constraints are there before proceeding with the intended action??

How long SHOULD it take after emergency temporary custody is requested?

Thanks

would you still have the same opinion knowing that we have not payed her fees yet?

Soc, you may remember the bug bite/handcuff  issue of my SD. We have interviewed atty's and have made a decision but have not yet hired her. It is likely that come July 1 (or whenever BM lets us get "child") that we will move for emerg temp custody. The atty tells us it may be as late as Sept for the hearing which comes after school begins. If this hearing does takes place after school begins, it would mean "child" will begin Grade 2 at her 5th school.
BM inability/refusal to provide "child" with a stable lifestyle will be one of the issues brought to hearing. (20 residences in 6 years, 4 schools grades K through 1, 2 husbands, since divorse from NCP and unknown # of short term cohabiting boyfriends ALTHOUGH since last Order, 1 on again off again new husband, 4 schools, 2 provable places of residence

1) Is it reasonable or legal to ask for Child Support suspension during the time we have temp custody?

2) What if anything can be done to prevent interuption into "childs" school year?

We also thought it emergency enough. But the problem we had was that there was a recent prescription for the bites (pick-up was Sunday, Dr. visit, we believe, was Friday, prescription also filled Friday!)

Photo's of child are date stamped.

1) Can it still be construed as "emergency" when the problem was treated?

2) Is a date stamp on the photo sufficient.

3) What about having a neighbor sign and date the photo.

Thanks, Soc