How to Handle Child Custody When the Mother Is Negatively Influencing the Child?
Do you want the truth? Or, more accurately, the truth as I see it, having practiced divorce and family law for the past 28 years as of the date I…
The Difference Between Reunification Therapy and Family Systems Therapy By Braxton Mounteer, Legal Assistant
Families often find themselves having to confront their conflict and dysfunction when a divorce is filed. When families face conflict or dysfunction, therapy can (can, not always will, but can)…
I Have a Question About Whether to Divorce.
I decided to divorce my husband of 10 years after years of neglect and feeling unloved. We have a 6-year-old daughter. For the majority of our marriage I was always…
What are the child custody factors that judges consider?
What are the child custody factors that judges consider when determining what's in a child's best interest in custody disputes according to Utah’s family law statutes? The main factors are…
A.W. v. Marelli – 2024 UT App 8 – infliction of emotional distress
A.W. v. Marelli - 2024 UT App 8 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS A.W., Appellant, v. MILLIE MARELLI, Appellee. Opinion No. 20220207-CA Filed January 19, 2024 Third District Court, Salt…
Parenting before, during, and divorce litigation By Braxton Mounteer, Legal Assistant
Divorce is already hard enough on the parties involved, but it is even harder on the children of the recently separated family. I speak as a child of divorce, who…
How Long Will It Take for the Court to Adjust Custody in a Parental Alienation Situation?
You need to ask some other questions first before you get to the answer to the question of how long it will take. First, can you prove parental alienation to…
When an Order of Protection Gets Dismissed, Then Legally, There’s Nothing in Place Stating How We Will Share Our Son. What Do I Do Now?
Generally speaking (you will need to confer with an attorney who knows the law governing this question in the jurisdiction where you, the other parent, and the child reside), if…
From Pro Publica: Barricaded Siblings Turn to TikTok While Defying Court Order to Return to Father They Say Abused Them
There is far more to this story than the headline reveals. From Pro Publica: Barricaded Siblings Turn to TikTok While Defying Court Order to Return to Father They Say Abused…
How Do I Handle a Narcissist Ex-husband in the Visitation of Children if I Have the Primary Custody? He Is Very Manipulative to Our Kids.
I generally wouldn’t recommend trying to get the assistance of the court to remedy this problem. The legal system is not designed to address this problem well, if at all.…
Is There a Way to Get Legal Action on Child Support for Free?
That does not bode well for you, if in fact the child will be in the courtroom at the same time you and the judge assigned to your case are…
What Happens in a Custody Case Where Both Parents Try to Alienate the Child From the Other Parent and the Rest of Their Family?
My guess is that this question applies in two distinct contexts: 1) what does the court do in a child custody case where both parents try to alienate the child from the…
How Do You Prove Parental Alienation in a Child Custody Case?
Usually rarely and with great effort and difficulty. Why? I have written other responses to this question and questions like it, so my answer here will be more concise than…
In Re J.E. 2023 UT App 3, Voluntary Declaration of Paternity
2023 UT App 3 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS STATE OF UTAH, IN THE INTEREST OF J.E., A PERSON UNDER EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE. D.E., Appellant, v. STATE OF UTAH,…
How Does One Prove False Allegations of Parental Alienation?
With great difficulty, in most (not all) cases. “It used to be a fashion amongst men that when a charge was made some sort of proof was brought forward to…
What Happens in a Custody Case Where Both Parents Try to Alienate the Child From the Other Parent and the Rest of Their Family?
My guess is that this question applies in two distinct contexts: 1) what does the court do in a child custody case where both parents try to alienate the child from the…
How Do You Prove Parental Alienation in a Child Custody Case?
Usually rarely and with great effort and difficulty. Why? I have written other responses to this question and questions like it, so my answer here will be more concise than…
How Does One Prove False Allegations of Parental Alienation?
With great difficulty, in most (not all) cases. “It used to be a fashion amongst men that when a charge was made some sort of proof was brought forward to…
What Can a Judge Do When The 13-Year-Old Child in a Custody Case Who Was a Victim of Parental Alienation Says They Want to Live in a Foster Home?
Your question presumes that the judge heard from the child. In many cases (frankly most), even though the child has the greatest stake in the child custody award dispute, the…
My estranged father keeps asking me for money, what do I do?
My parents are divorced, my father has no savings, he didn't work for the entire period of their marriage, we were estranged for a while and now we are back,…
Are there experts who can evaluate parental alienation for a custody case?
There are “expert” witnesses for virtually any and every issue in legal actions. Can judges be bamboozled by pseudo-scientific expert witnesses? Without question. Do some judges who know that the…
Can an adult child be sued for helping one parent divorce the other?
Taking your question literally: Can? Yes. You can file a lawsuit for any “reason” or no reason at all. Crazy and/or malicious people file crazy/malicious/frivolous/unintelligible lawsuits all the time. Just…
Why isn’t 50/50 custody the default resolution in child custody cases?
I have studied this question throughout my career, and I've been a divorce and family lawyer for 25 years. If there is one family law question to which I know…
Our agreement says no child support, can my ex ask for it anyway?
Can my ex ask for child support? I have a 50/50 custody and no child support divorce agreement, but his mother alienated him against me and now he refuses to visit…
How do I pursue child visitation when I don’t know where the child is?
I’m preparing to begin pursuing child visitation. However, the child’s mother has moved and never told me where, and has cut off contact with me. How can I find out…
Parental alienation
I just read the following comment made by a viewer of my UFLTV parental alienation interview with Kelly Peterson. This viewer wrote, “So basically, parental alienation is proved by documenting the instances…
Why is disciplining a child a sign of parental alienation in the long-term?
This is an example of a logical fallacy; specifically, begging the question. It assumes the conclusion in the premise It is not a given that disciplining a child is a…
Can an unemployed alienated parent be forced to help pay for a car for the child?
First, unless there is a statute or court order that requires a parent to purchase a car for a child, or that requires both parents to share the costs of…
How do you stay strong while being alienated from your child?
Any way that works for you (without running afoul of God or the law of the land, of course). Parental alienation is one of the most gut-wrenching miseries one can…
Why would my ex block contact with my child when we have shared joint custody?
Let me count the “reasons,” both legitimate and otherwise: Legitimate (though not necessarily legal, unless permitted by a court order) reasons: the contact you have with the child is truly…
How exactly does shared custody work? Does the child end up being like that kid from Jacqueline Wilson’s “The Suitcase Kid”?
How exactly does shared custody work? Does the child end up being like that kid from Jacqueline Wilson’s "The Suitcase Kid"? The child certainly can be like the child (Andrea) from Jacqueline…
The biological father of my child filed to establish paternity. He’s unfit and I haven’t been served yet. How can I handle this?
The biological father of my child filed to establish paternity. He's unfit and I haven't been served yet. How can I handle this? My answer applies to both mothers and…
What to do before a divorce, if you’re not in the wrong
What advice would you give someone before a divorce, if it’s known it may happen and you’re not in the wrong? This is a very important question that too few…
Man awarded $750K in alienation of affection suit; his lawyer calls it a moral victory – abajournal.com
Click here to go to the story at abajournal.com: Man awarded $750K in alienation of affection suit; his lawyer calls it a moral victory abajournal.com BY DEBRA CASSENS WEISS OCTOBER…
