Opening a family case is the way to obtain a full custody to your child. You will have to ask the court for full custody and must come to an agreement with the other parent. Or else, you both go to court. If you are married to the other parent, you can ask for custody when there are reasons such as a divorce, legal separation, violence restraining orders. This can be done whether the parents are married or not.
Here are five easy steps to follow in Filing Child Custody Case:
Choose the Right Lawyer and Court
You need the right lawyer, someone with experience. You need several references to prevent from making experiments. The lawyer must have had cases similar to yours and who has worked with your judge in the past. If that lawyer is a Certified Family Law Specialist, it would be even better. File your petition for custody in the same court you opened your family law case in. Most times, you will open your case in the country where your child is.
Complete and review the necessary forms
Fill out a request for an order and give the facts supporting your request, supply the necessary information. Make sure you request both legal and physical custody. Then, review the forms carefully because they will be the basis of your custody arguments.
File the forms
Go to the courthouse and file the forms, you will have to pay a filing fee. Fees change depending on the location. If you cannot afford the fee, you can always ask for a fee waiver and show some sort of financial hardship.
Serve the other party and wait for an answer
When you serve the other party, you will hire someone, the sheriff or another competent person, to give a copy of your filed documents to the other party to look over and respond to. Once you have successfully served the other party with your petition for full custody, the other party will have an opportunity to respond to your petition. When the other parent answers your petition, they will have the option of agreeing with you or not. If the other parent declines to file an answer, you could file for a default judgment.
Take part in mediation and Submit an agreement
If the other party filed an answer and you did not get a default judgment, some courts will require you and the other party to take part in mediation before you can go to court. If your court requires mediation, you and the other party should make a good faith effort to agree on the terms of custody there, which will allow you to avoid the trial process. If you and the other party took part in mediation, and you came to an agreement allowing you to have full custody of your child or children, get the agreement signed by the court and that will act as your valid custody order.
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