family court recomended my son have custody

[John-J-Jay]

an attorney cannot hold you hostage from going to seek another atty. It doesn't matter if you owe the 1st one or not. you can demand your entire file and advise him if he doesn't provide that to you, you will report him to the state bar. Don't let the atty put fear in you. Many attys will make you think that if you switch for one time it will hurt your case. It WON'T if you feel like you need to get a new atty do so, get your file. However it will cost $ to get a new atty

[Davy]

Marine mom... your Marine has a huge leg up since what I understand to be a master court has found in his favor.  More over, any new attorney may be far more reasonably priced because you are in a win-win situation and to attorneys it is mostly about winning (second to money).  

The aspect of a costly jury trial is probably a scare tactic.  Based on the info. in your post (not just the personality stuff) the she dog would probably not want to be evaluated by a jury of regular people but would hope for a bias and prejudiced judge that is accustomed to mommy only custody awards.

A change of attorneys normally requires a 'withdrawal motion' and can be pursued by the current attorney or the client or a new attorney.  Apparently your current attorney will not withdraw until be's paid more money (that's common).  Your reason may be for inadequate represntation of the father and THE CHILD or failure to pursue in an expedient manner to completion.  Be caeful (look at state statues to dismis in a civil matter) ... some courts may not allow dissisal until represented or should you not provide a good reason.  For example claiming this attorney sucks probably won't win the day.  

One thing that may be helpful is to learn how to interview an attorney (article section on this site).  The State Bar probably maintains a list of available attorneys (usually hungary; personally I had success with this method - I was in adifferent state).  You may want to consult with Father Rights groups in your area.  There is an organization for Iraq veterans facing divorce/custody issues upon return that may be helpful ... I did a simple google search and some popped up.  Veteran service organizations in your area may be some help in locating an attorney.  

Also, there have been folks from Washington state posting on this site that may be a lot more familiar with policies in Washington than others.
IL/Tx DAV Nam era here ... it's a shame Iraq veterans are facing some of the same issues and we fought back so keep up the fight.

Hope this post is helpful ... Oh...and thanks Marine mom....
 

[escape2paradise]

I am from Washington.  The attorney can not refuse to withdrawal and at the same time refuse to move forward.  Your son can get the attorney removed by firing him and filing the proper motion with the court.  However, a new attorney may be reluctant to take on your son's case given he has not paid his other attorney.  Attorney's need to get paid to.  

Like the others have said, find a way to get the money or your son can represent himself.  More and more people are doing so everyday.  Do not let this recommendation from the evaluator get old or a new one will be ordered and it may or may not go the same way.  Waiting is just increasing the odds against a custodial change.  Status quo is huge in Washington.  

If your son is smart and has the extra time he may want to consider representing himself.  There are some great books on how to do this.  I am reading a few myself.  I do have an atty. but like to get all the info I can on the process.  The "Nolo" series of lawbooks are great.  One I am reading right now is called "Represent Yourself in Court" by Paul Bergman and Sara J Berman-Barrett.  It is not family law specific but gives a great foundation for how the courts operate and tells you where to find more specific info such as your local court rules etc...It also has sample forms etc...

Good luck to your son!

[mistoffolees]

>If your son is smart and has the extra time he may want to
>consider representing himself.  

This is common advice and it certainly works for some. However, the more complicated the case and the more strongly it is contested, the harder this becomes. Personally, I've seen very few cases where I'd be comfortable recommending that someone represent themselves. There are just too many things that can go wrong.

You CAN spend a lot of time reading and learning and researching, but in the end, you're still an amateur facing a professional across the room. If you spend those hours working a second job instead of trying to become a lawyer-lite, it might well be a better use of your time.

This is a decision to think very hard on.

[escape2paradise]

I get that!  If he absolutely can't afford it, as his mom states, there are really only two other options.
1.  Get educated and rep yourself or
2.  Let it go and whine that you couldn't do anything and now your kid is being raised by a crazy person.

Number 2 should not be an option, but I don't know how many times I have heard a NCP whine about how they couldn't afford an attorney so they let situations like this go.  Then the kids are failed by both parents.  Definitely Pro Se is not the first option, but if an attorney can't be afforded it should be the next option.

[mistoffolees]

Absolutely. There are times when there's just no alternative.

However, my comments are directed more at the people who confuse "absolutely can't afford it" with "I'd have to give up a few of my pleasures in order to afford it". I certainly am not suggesting that this is the case here, but the point is that they will have few things in their life more worthy of doing properly and this is one of the last places that one should EVER try to cut corners.

If there's absolutely no alternative, then your advice applies.