Hearing is Not Harm: Why Utah Child Custody Courts Must Rethink the Code of Silence
In the practice of family law, we often hear a sentiment that is as ubiquitous as it is hollow: "We must protect the children from the litigation." On its face,…
When Representation Replaces Evidence: The Procedural Problem with PGAL Recommendations
Appointing a private guardian ad litem in a child custody and parent-time dispute case often creates a closed loop in which children who are the subject of the dispute cannot…
The False Virtue of Silence: Why We Must Stop Silencing Children in Custody Disputes
There is a pervasive, almost religious orthodoxy in family law litigation over child custody and parent-time that goes something like this: “We must protect the children. Therefore, we must never…
When Would It Be Appropriate to Modify a Utah Custody Order?
Child custody orders are not etched in stone, but neither are they revolving doors. Utah law makes that clear. Parents often assume that if circumstances “change” at all (no matter…
Kelly v. Johnson, 2025 UT App 175 – Child Custody and Relocation
Kelly v. Johnson - 2025 UT App 175 THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS SHAYNE KELLY, Appellee, v. IRIS JOHNSON, Appellant. Opinion No. 20240857 Filed November 28, 2025 Second District Court,…
A Better Approach to Utah Divorce and Child Custody Litigation
If Utah’s domestic-relations legal system is serious about accuracy, fairness, and reducing unnecessary conflict, then the system needs processes that beneficially affect how cases are litigated and how evidence is…
How to Protect Your Child From Being Manipulated Into Making False Accusations During a Custody Dispute
A candid, experience-based guide for parents who need the truth without varnish or theatrics. Not every case involves manipulation. Not every professional fails. But when these problems occur—and they do—the…
When Is It Time to Take Your Ex Back to Court to Terminate Parental Rights?
If the other parent has dropped out of your kids’ lives—no support, no visits, no calls—for six months or more, you may have a legal basis to seek termination under…
Evidence, Not Guesswork: The Case for Testing Proposed Child Custody and Parent-time Schedules Before Making Final Custody and Parent-time Orders in Utah
Utah courts are tasked with making custody and parent-time decisions based on the best interest of the child. But you cannot know what schedule truly serves a child’s best interest if…
What Should I Do If I Have to Have a Custody Evaluation, Psychological, or Other Evaluation Conducted?
Utah family courts often order custody, psychological, or substance-abuse evaluations. Learn what to expect, how to prepare, and how to protect yourself during these high-stakes assessments. _________ When a Utah…
Temporary Custody Orders: A Potential Trap Every Utah Parent Should See Coming, and How to Avoid It
Utah judges and domestic relations commissioners reassure parents that early custody, parent-time, and support orders issued during the pendency of the child custody case are “just temporary.” Don’t believe it.…
The Myth of Utah’s “Standard Parent-Time”
Utah law does not impose a mandatory “standard parent-time” schedule. The schedules in Utah Code § 81-9-302 are only possible options for courts to consider. In practice, however, judges often adopt them with little…
Is the Term “Neurodivergent” Being Bandied About in Family Law Circles as a Way of Manipulating the Courts?
Yes. The term “neurodivergent” is increasingly being used in family law not only as a genuine descriptive category but also as a rhetorical and strategic tool. Here’s how it’s being manipulated: As…
Beyond Specific Legal Arguments, What Is One Significant Way the Court System Could Better Ensure Fairness for All Parents in Child Custody Disputes?
I apologize in advance; I cannot limit myself to just one answer, but I will start off with the “top” idea and then share others. Courts could make custody disputes…
Judicial Overreach in Utah Child Custody Order: Return to Restraint
In Utah, as in other states, courts deciding child custody and parent-time disputes are charged with applying the “best interests of the child” standard. That standard is necessary, but it…
Utah Motion for Temporary Orders: What They Can Cover, and How to File for One
Utah Motions for Temporary Orders: What They Can Cover, and How to File for One
When a Utah divorce case is commenced, life doesn’t stop while the case is pending. Children still need a consistent schedule. The mortgage, utilities, and insurance bills still come due.…
Don’t Let This Happen to You When Drafting a Legal Custody Child Custody Award
If a parent is awarded sole legal custody of a child, does that award not carry with it an implicit obligation to exercise that sole legal custody power in good…
What Potential Issues and Problems Should I Anticipate and Take Action On Now as a Divorced Parent Whose Minor Children Will Be Going Back to School or Starting at a New School This Fall?
Don’t wait until the first day of school to address custody schedules, school choice, communication with the school, extracurricular costs, or special needs. Review your decree, coordinate with your ex…
My Lawyer Says That the Things I Think Are Important to My Divorce and Child Custody Case Are not Important (or Not Nearly as Important as I Believe Them to Be). Is My Lawyer Right? How Can I Know? What Do I Do?
Do you wonder whether your divorce lawyer is ignoring what really matters in your divorce or custody case? With this post you will learn why your concerns may be legally…
Should You Have Your Spouse or Co-Parent Subject to a Psychological Evaluation in Your Divorce and Child Custody Dispute?
I. Introduction A psychological evaluation in a custody or divorce case sounds powerful. You may believe (or even know) your spouse to be manipulative, unstable, or even dangerous. So why…
A Presumption of Equal Physical and Legal Child Custody Should Be the Norm
Most parents in Utah assume that when they separate or divorce, the court will start from a position of splitting custody evenly. That’s a reasonable assumption—shared parenting has become the…
Reforming Child Custody in Utah Divorce: A Parental Fitness Approach
In Utah, divorce-related child custody disputes often escalate over parenting flaws that wouldn’t justify state intervention outside divorce. This approach is flawed because it creates a double standard that unfairly…
The Overrated Book, The Understated Truth: Atomic Habits and the Indispensable Role of Quantity in “Quality” Parent-time
People rave about Atomic Habits by James Clear. I do not. It’s not a bad book, but not life-changing, at least not for me. Maybe it didn’t move me much…
Protecting Parental Rights: Why Sole Custody Shouldn’t Be the Default Response
A single mistake shouldn't cost a parent his or her relationship with his/her child. Yet too often, family courts award sole custody based on isolated incidents or "aberrant behavior" that…
Can My Ex Legally Let a Sex Offender Be Around My Kids in Utah?
TL;DR: No, not without strict limits. In Utah, no parent may not allow a registered sex offender to be around your children—even in that parent’s own home—without the other parent’s…
I Can’t Believe I’m Giving This Advice, but I Am: Why Every Divorced Parent Should Consider Background Checks on New Partners Who Are or Who Will Be Around Their Kids
If you're divorced and you are, or your ex is, introducing a new boyfriend, girlfriend, or spouse into your minor children’s lives, you should seriously consider running a background check…
Child Custody and the “Primary Caregiver” Scam
Of the Utah domestic relations commissioners and judges who treat fathers as second-class parents in making temporary and permanent custody and parent-time rulings, they practically gush about the standard for…
How Do Fathers Fight for Child Custody?
Do you mean to ask, How do deserving fathers fight: for sole child custody? for joint child custody? for equal child custody? Or do you mean to ask: “How do fathers ‘win’ their…
How to Handle Child Custody When the Mother Is Negatively Influencing the Child?
Although they shouldn't do it, courts will generally treat mothers and fathers differently simply based upon sex. Sexual discrimination, to put it bluntly. Not all courts do this, but many…
Sexual Discrimination in Utah Child Custody and Parent-Time Awards – I’m Just Going to Leave This Here (Part 2 of 2)
See Pusey v. Pusey, 728 P.2d 119-121 (Utah 1986): Opinion DURHAM, Justice: Plaintiff cross-appeals from that portion of the divorce decree awarding custody of the older son of the marriage to defendant…
Sexual Discrimination in Utah Child Custody and Parent-time Awards – I’m just going to leave this here (Part 1 of 2)
See Pusey v. Pusey, 728 P.2d 117, 121 (Utah 1986): ZIMMERMAN, Justice (concurring in the result): [I] also believe it is time to discontinue any hint of support for the notion of…
Do You Live in Salt Lake, Summit, or Tooele County and Are Being Denied Parent-time by a Non-compliant Co-parent?
Well, then, I have good news and bad news. Good news: you can file a motion with the court to seek relief. Bad news: prepare to wait a while before…
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…
Equal Physical Custody – Give It a Chance . . . a Fair Chance
Equal physical custody should be awarded far, far more often than it is currently in Utah. There are so many situations in which we have two loving, fit parents who…
If the Other Parent Is Withholding Parent-Time, Can I Bypass Having to Deal With Him/Her and Pick Up Our Child After School Instead?
If the other parent of your child is withholding court-ordered visitation (often now called “parent-time”) with the child from you, can you solve this problem by circumventing/bypassing having to pick…
Do Kids Like 50/50 Custody Schedules?
Some do, some don't. Generally, however, when both parents live in the same neighborhood, so that their children are able to get to school, interact with the same friends, attend…
How to Ensure a Child of Any Age Feels Equally Loved by Both Parents in a 50/50 Custody Arrangement
The goal of a successful 50-50 (equal) physical custody arrangement is that it work as seamlessly as possible for the children, both emotionally and logistically. Simply put, you know it’s…
Helping Children Be and Feel Equally Loved by Both Parents in a 50/50 Custody Arrangement: An Age-Based Guide for Parents
Co-parenting successfully in an equal (50/50) legal and physical custody arrangement requires more than just dividing time. It calls for each parent fostering 1) a strong bond between the child…
What Are the Most Effective Strategies for Parents to Ensure Their Child Feels Equally Loved by Both Parents in a 50-50 Custody Arrangement?
The key is that both parents place the child’s best interest above any bad blood between them; children are more likely to feel secure, loved, and emotionally connected to both…
What Do Children Whose Parents Were Awarded Equal Physical Custody (50/50) of Them Think of Such a Schedule?
Children's perspectives on shared custody arrangements (equal physical custody being one such arrangement) are complex and nuanced, seeing both benefits and challenges to them. Here is what children typically report about…
Having Experienced 50-50 Custody as a Child to Teen, What Do You Want Parents to Know?
Simply put, normal children of divorced or separated parents want their parents: not to make custody a turf war. Honor your children’s right to a strong loving and trusting, relationship…
Yes, Equal Custody Is a Great Idea and Should Be Awarded Far More Often Than It Is Now, but That Doesn’t Mean Equal Custody Can Always Work.
Where both parents are fit parents and want to be as involved as possible in rearing that child—both out of a personal interest in enjoying parenthood and out of commitment…
No, Utah Law Does Not Presume that Physical Child Custody Will Be 50/50.
Contrary to popular belief, Utah law does not, as of the time I write this post (April 2025), presume that the physical child custody award will be equal (50/50). Utah law presumes that legal child…
Yes, Equal Custody Is a Great Idea and Should Be Awarded Far More Often Than It Is Now, but That Doesn’t Mean All Judges Agree.
Where both parents are fit parents and want to be as involved as possible in rearing that child—both out of a personal interest in enjoying parenthood and out of commitment…
The Case for Fault-Based Divorce: A Perspective from the Trenches of Family Law
As a legal assistant at a family law firm (and as a soon to be law school graduate), I see firsthand how the current no-fault divorce regime can create problems…
What Are the Chances My Child’s Father Will Get 50/50 Custody in Utah if I Only Knew Him for a Few Months Before Getting Pregnant and He Was MIA Until He Was Ordered to Pay Child Support?
If you are a fit parent (not abusive, not neglectful, not suffering from any disability that renders you unable to provide the care and support the child needs, and can…
A Family Law Attorney 6 Months Out of Law School Works as an Assistant to One of the Top Family Law Attorneys in the Country. Could This New Attorney Handle an Extremely Wealthy Person’s Child Custody Case? Would Her Boss Let Her?
Anything is possible, but it is not likely that a recently licensed lawyer of only 6 months could handle an extremely wealthy person’s child custody case. Extremely wealthy people usually…
Should You Get Divorced? Weighing Your Options in a Difficult Decision By Braxton Mounteer, Legal Assistant
The decisions to marry and to end a marriage are not decisions to be taken lightly. If divorce is ever an easy choice, something is terribly wrong. Wrong with the…
What Can a Father Do If, After the Divorce, the Mother, Who Has Custody of the Child, Turns the Child Against the Father?
What can a father do if, after the divorce, the mother, who has custody of the child, turns the child against the father? What can he do? There are many things he…
If You Are Not Happy With the Current Child Custody Arrangement, Can You Change It?
I cannot answer this question as it applies to all jurisdictions, but I can answer it as it applies to the jurisdiction where I practice family law (Utah): Merely because you are…
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