Questions in regards to court order..............

[Stepmom0418]

The Newest Court order reads:

1) That an amended Temporary Order is hereby entered adopting the April 2, 2204 Order, but adding

A)Father will pick up child from "station" at 8 pm in x town on friday and mother will pick up child from "station" in x town on sunday.

B)If child has homework it is to be sent to fathers house to be completed if it is his weekend.

C)The Holiday visitation schedual that is listed in the mediation agreement is adopted.

    !) Father will have extended visitation of four (4) days for Thanksgiving 2004; (6) six days for Christmas 2004; and 6 days for Spring Break of 2005.



The April 2, 2004 Court Order reads: (Im only going to list the holiday part of this order cause it is what i have questions about)

 Father shall have visitation as follows:

B)Every other Holiday beginning with Easter with the mother. Holidays include Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Years Day, Easter, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day. When Holiday visitation follows a weekend visitation, the fathers visitation shall end at 7pm on the Monday Holiday instead of Sunday.

C) Father shall have visitation on Fathers Day and his birthday. Mother shall have visitation on Mothers Day and her birthday.Holidays shall take precedence over normal visitation.


Ok Child has Spring Break from March 24- March 28. This does not give the 6 days that the court has ordered. During this time it is also Easter. So according to the courts order the Father and the Mother are intitled to visitation. The mother agreed to the Extra Holiday Visitation due to all the time that she denied the father and child during 2004 and in exchange the father dismissed the show cause hearing for contempt but was dismissed without prejudice.

Now more recent mother and father were in court for the final trial Feb 9th and 10th. The has been no decision to date. During this custody hearing also heard was the contempts from before (that were dismissed without prejudice) plus new ones that occured just before trial. Still pending a decision on all the contempts plus physical custody and child support of the child. (Also the weekend before and the weekend after Spring Break is the fathers weekend. So this would make 3 weekends in a row and the mother has been known to deny anytime father gets 2 or more weekends in a row.)

Questions: (we are concerned about this because we would really enjoy having child here for the extra days like the court order says but are a little leary of being too pushy due to the pending decision)

1) As for the Holiday ............who gets Easter the father or the Mother?  

2) If the father gets Easter should he push the point if the mother says it is her Holiday.

3) Is there a normal time frame that a judge has to make his decion in or can he just leave us hanging like this forever??

4) Are there certain reasons that you are aware of that would take a judge soooo long in making his decision?

4) Any advise on any of the above??

Thank you as always Soc for all your help!

[socrateaser]

>1) As for the Holiday ............who gets Easter the father
>or the Mother?  

Assuming that Easter is not during Spring Break, then Mother, otherwise Father.

>
>2) If the father gets Easter should he push the point if the
>mother says it is her Holiday.

If entitled and refused, then yes. If you don't fight for your rights, you will lose them.
>
>3) Is there a normal time frame that a judge has to make his
>decion in or can he just leave us hanging like this forever??

Different rules in every jurisdiction. You can politely write the court and express your concern regarding the timeliness of the decision because of the coming holiday, and ask for a decision. You must send a copy of the letter to other parent and/or attorney, or the judge will not read your letter.

>
>4) Are there certain reasons that you are aware of that would
>take a judge soooo long in making his decision?

No point in speculating about reasons. Send the letter.

[Stepmom0418]

Soc, I got a bit confused. (LOL)

You said
Assuming that Easter is not during Spring Break, then Mother, otherwise Father.

Thats where the problem is.......Easter is during Spring Break so we are dealing with the spring break time that father is entitled to and easter which the mother is entitled to


Who gets their Holiday? Mother for Easter or Father for Spring Break? Hopefully this clears up my confusion.


Also wanted to add that after 2005 Spring Break this paragraph of the order ends and father gets his summer visitation rather than the Extra Holidays.

We are thinking that since father got the extra visits that mother "gave up" her Holiday for Easter this year. Are we correct?

[socrateaser]

>We are thinking that since father got the extra visits that
>mother "gave up" her Holiday for Easter this year. Are we
>correct?

As the court order for 6 days in spring break was intended to remedy the mother's prior frustration of custody, I'd say that you should get the maximum number of days, even if Easter Sunday happens to coincide with the spring break period.

And, I'm nearly certain that the court would agree. However, the orders are pretty confusing because of all the changes, so, you'd never get a contempt out of them.

The only absolute way to obtain a determination is to ask the court to clarify the order -- otherwise, you're probably in for a fight.