Interoggatories.....

[Stepmom0418]

Dear Soc,

I am trying to help DH answer the following Interoggatory:

Describe in detail why you believe that you should be given primary physical care of your minor child, along with any and all evidence that you have to support your belief.

We want to answer this question to the best of our ability because it is the only question, other than one about criminal background, that BM's attorney has asked that is relevent to custody.

We have a few good ideas. Such as

1) School issues, SS has fallen behind due to missing 9 days of school already this year, 34 last year and 37 his kindergarten year.

2) DH would foster a realationship with both parents and would follow a CO. (BM has not done either and there are 12 counts of contempt on BM for the same day as trial)

3) DH has employment and can show SS the importance of holding a job

4) Stability of living in one home rather than jumping back and forth between 4 homes.

DH attorney told him to focus on the positive things that DH can provide.

Questions:
1) How would you direct us to answer this question if you were representing DH?

2) Is there any, general rather than our case specific, key points that you would recromend us to include in the answer?

3) What is your opinion on what we have thus far?

Thank you Soc!

[socrateaser]

>Dear Soc,
>
>I am trying to help DH answer the following Interoggatory:
>
>Describe in detail why you believe that you should be given
>primary physical care of your minor child, along with any and
>all evidence that you have to support your belief.

>Questions:
>1) How would you direct us to answer this question if you were
>representing DH?

LOL! You're being tricked, sweetie! Answer like THIS:

Objection: The question is broad, overreaching, and unduly burdensome. Furthermore, the question requires me to disclose in advance to my presenting my case in chief at trial, what would otherwise be attorney work product were I represented by an attorney. Opposing counsel should not be permitted to obtain such a clear and unfair advantage unless his client first waives her right to attorney-client privilege, so that I may propound similar interrogatories in response to this extremely complex question.

[Stepmom0418]

I should have been a bit more clear in my first post. DH is represented by an attorney and so is BM. DH attorney has sent the same type of questions to BM and her attorney. DH attorney has said to answer the question "from DH's" heart but part of us thinks that this is a trick questdions and that we should get another oppinion and that is why we are asking for your expertise!

1)Now in light of the information I provided can you give us an idea as to how to go about answering this question? Or do you still think we are being tricked?

[socrateaser]

>1)Now in light of the information I provided can you give us
>an idea as to how to go about answering this question? Or do
>you still think we are being tricked?

I think that your attorney is nuts to allow you to answer that question. Evidentily that's the way it's done in your neck of the woods, though.

[Stepmom0418]

DH attorney is currently waiting for BM's attorney to hand over their answers as well as a ton of documents that we requested.

One question that DH and his attorney asked BM was:

Please set forth every fact upon which you may rely claiming it is not in the best interest of the minor child to be in the primary physical custody of DH.

So as you see we asked the same type of information for them to supply as well.

We thought the question was a bit odd too but I guess it is the way it is done. DH attorney said that they can ask anything they want as long as it is relevent to the case.

I guess all is fair in love and war!

[patton]

stepmom, be VERY careful how you answer those questions, use very vague answers, do not under any circumstances give away you evidence.  Like Soc said somebody is trying to trick you or trip you up on your answers.

Anything you write on those interrogatories can be used against you in court.  Remember truthful but vague as possible.  The opposing party doesnot know what evidence you have, they are feeling you out and trying to get you to tell them everything you have, as are your interrogatories.

Anybody that goes into that much detail with the opposing party is pretty stupid.  You would be giving everything away, where they could build a defense against it.

[Stepmom0418]

This whole discovery thing has me way confused!

BM's attorney and DH's attorney has asked the opposing attorney to disclose any and all evidence, documents, and wittnesses that are intended to be used at trial.

Trial is on Feb 9th and 10th.

BM and her attorney are now 2 days past the deadline of handing over the things we asked for. We are trying to wait as long as the law will allow us to to send them our answers. Actually we are thinking of handing them their answers on either the day before or the day of trial because the law says that we have 33 days to answer (usually 30 but since they used the us mail it give 3 more days) They reached our attorney on January 7th, actually the very last day that they could do discovery.

I thought that this was an odd question but at the same time we asked them the same kind of questions as well. But the thing that really is odd is that BM mainly asked questions about financial situation past and present.

This is a custody trial and DH is requesting primary physical care of the child. The other thing that has us confused is that BM's attorney never asked ANY questions about me (SM) That was odd to us too!

Thanks for the advise!

[socrateaser]

I suggest that you question your attorney, i.e.:

"We mentioned this interrogatory to an attorney from another jurisdiction, and his response was that the question was so broad that it constituted an invasion into the area of attorney work product. He suggested that we refuse to answer any question that is not limited and specific. What would you think about us giving that answer?"

[Stepmom0418]

I like it Soc!

I will run it by DH's attorney this afternoon! Thanks so very much!

[Stepmom0418]

Dear Soc,

I am trying to help DH answer the following Interoggatory:

Describe in detail why you believe that you should be given primary physical care of your minor child, along with any and all evidence that you have to support your belief.

We want to answer this question to the best of our ability because it is the only question, other than one about criminal background, that BM's attorney has asked that is relevent to custody.

We have a few good ideas. Such as

1) School issues, SS has fallen behind due to missing 9 days of school already this year, 34 last year and 37 his kindergarten year.

2) DH would foster a realationship with both parents and would follow a CO. (BM has not done either and there are 12 counts of contempt on BM for the same day as trial)

3) DH has employment and can show SS the importance of holding a job

4) Stability of living in one home rather than jumping back and forth between 4 homes.

DH attorney told him to focus on the positive things that DH can provide.

Questions:
1) How would you direct us to answer this question if you were representing DH?

2) Is there any, general rather than our case specific, key points that you would recromend us to include in the answer?

3) What is your opinion on what we have thus far?

Thank you Soc!