court Friday...

[dipper]

Soc,

Court is in VA Friday - show cause against bm for cursing me in front of son, clarification/modifcation on visitation order, and CS.  I am self-representing.

I was ordered to pay bm for medical supplies she testified that she purchased last year and that I would not reimburse her for.  Judge did not care that she never used them and donated them.  I have paid her, but deducted $60 she owed me on counseling.  Now, she writes and tells me that this is not my right to deduct as the money belongs to her mother - her mother paid for the items.  

Soc, she never paid anything on these items.  The judge based his decision on my paying BM for items she had supposedly purchased.

Okay, a few questions on all of this, as I post according to guidelines, but this case is actually my dh's.  

I will be testifying at the hearing Friday, but would like to sit in with my husband as he is pro se on this one....

Could I testify first and then remain in court room with him?

Is there any recourse as bm lied about paying for supplies and we have in writing that she never paid anything?


If BM tries to bring up issues Friday, which no motion has been made for, is it legal for that to be addressed when my dh has had no time to prepare a defense or received a summons for?

[dipper]

Soc,

Court is in VA Friday - show cause against bm for cursing me in front of son, clarification/modifcation on visitation order, and CS.  I am self-representing.

I was ordered to pay bm for medical supplies she testified that she purchased last year and that I would not reimburse her for.  Judge did not care that she never used them and donated them.  I have paid her, but deducted $60 she owed me on counseling.  Now, she writes and tells me that this is not my right to deduct as the money belongs to her mother - her mother paid for the items.  

Soc, she never paid anything on these items.  The judge based his decision on my paying BM for items she had supposedly purchased.

Okay, a few questions on all of this, as I post according to guidelines, but this case is actually my dh's.  

I will be testifying at the hearing Friday, but would like to sit in with my husband as he is pro se on this one....

Could I testify first and then remain in court room with him?

Is there any recourse as bm lied about paying for supplies and we have in writing that she never paid anything?


If BM tries to bring up issues Friday, which no motion has been made for, is it legal for that to be addressed when my dh has had no time to prepare a defense or received a summons for?

[socrateaser]

>Could I testify first and then remain in court room with him?

Yes. He needs to explain to the court that your "assistance is essential to the presentation of the case." (legal magic words -- use them exactly as quoted).

>Is there any recourse as bm lied about paying for supplies and
>we have in writing that she never paid anything?

Move for a set aside of the prior order to pay on grounds that the other party materially falsified evidence (fraud), and if you prove it, then recourse is to have the order set aside and the other party sanctioned.

Generally, a set aside motion is a separate action, so it's not something that you would do off the cuff in the current hearing, unless the other party happens to admit on the witness stand that she never paid (unlikely). Then you could move immediately for the set aside.

>
>If BM tries to bring up issues Friday, which no motion has
>been made for, is it legal for that to be addressed when my dh
>has had no time to prepare a defense or received a summons
>for?
>

You object to the other parent raising an unexpected substantive claim at the hearing, as out of scope and irrelevant, and as unfair surprise, and ask that the court continue the particular issue to a subsequent hearing after being fully briefed on the matter.

Surprise evidence is not inadmissible merely because you are surprised by it, but you are entitled to have the matter continued so that you can prepare to fairly meet the new allegations.

[dipper]

Soc,

As I am pro se, would it be appropriate to talk to my son about what type of questions i am going to be asking him as long as I dont tell him what to say or to lie about it?

Reason being, some of this stuff happened a few months ago....I just want him to think of what I will be asking so that he can recall the event and think of what he would like to say....

[socrateaser]

>Soc,
>
>As I am pro se, would it be appropriate to talk to my son
>about what type of questions i am going to be asking him as
>long as I dont tell him what to say or to lie about it?

Whether it's appropriate or not is irrelevant. What matters is whether or not you're offering the other party an opportunity to ask your son if answers to questions were suggested to him in advance, or to suggest to the court that the child's testimony has been manipulated or coerced in advance.

As you're not an attorney, you have a lot more opportunity to talk to you son casually about the case, but if this causes the kid to believe that certain answers to questions will be expected, and he testifies to this in court, that will pretty much render his testimony incompetent and worthless.

Ordinarily, an attorney will try to obtain a sworn affidavit or declaration on penalty of perjury from a witness setting out the materials facts about which the witness will testify, so as to prevent the witness from inadvertantly or intentionally changing the testimony on the witness stand. This doesn't work real well with a child, because it will appear that you've tried to craft the kid's testimony in advance, as he will want to sign whatever document you've prepared for him.

An attorney may also prepare a list of questions and then ask them to a friendly witness prior to trial and have the witness answer them in an effort to understand in advance how the witness will testify.This is threading a needle, because it's fair game for opposing counsel to ask the witness if the other attorney asked these questions prior to trial, and if so, were any answers suggested, or: "Have you changed your testimony today from what it would have been, as the result of Mr. Attorney's questioning before trial?"

I wouldn't be afraid to do a practice session, but I absolutely would not discuss with the child how he should answer any particular question. Instead, I would simply not ask questions to which I received answers I didn't like, or I would ask different questions to try to get a better set of answers.

Also, I wouldn't spend more than 30 minutes practicing, because the longer you go, the more it will seem like you're trying to coerce certain answers from the child, and if he states that he feels under pressure to answer in a certain manner while on the stand, that will be the end of his testifying.