What About Custody Relocations
Under Pennsylvania law, relocation is any change in a childs residence which significantly impairs the ability of the non-relocating parent to exercise custodial rights. If a move qualifies as a custody relocation, then the moving parent must first go to court to modify the custody order. If the non-moving parent doesnt object to the relocation or modification, the court can modify the existing custody order by approving the relocating parents proposal for a revised custody schedule. The court also specifies the methods for making any modification. If the other parent objects, the court holds a hearing on the issue. If you are proposing or opposing a custody relocation, well give you the practical advice and professional representation you need to make sure your rights and interests are protected.
What If Parents Can’t Agree
They should try again to work out a solution that is fair to both of them, but most of all best for the children. Some communities have mediation programs or counseling services that can help parents reach an agreement. If they still can’t agree, either parent may go to an attorney for help in reaching an agreement. If that doesn’t work, custody may have to be decided by a court.
Can The Court Deny A Pfa Order
If an individual asking for a PFA doesn’t meet the requirements, they could be denied. In Montgomery County, two common missing requirements are the type of harm and the class of defendant. To get a PFA, a plaintiff can only allege abuse covered by the Protection from Abuse Act. The plaintiff must also have a relationship with the defendant covered by the PFA Act. Montgomery County courts can also remove or overturn a PFA that’s in effect. A judge may dismiss a temporary PFA at a final hearing as well.
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Enforcing Custody And Child Support Orders
Ideally, parents follow their custody orders and child support orders to the letter. If they don’t, they can face serious repercussions.
You have three options for getting the other parent to comply with custody orders: work with the parent, go to court or call the police. Speak to an attorney if you aren’t sure how to proceed or whether the other parent is violating orders.
If you have an unofficial agreement with the other parent, file it with the court and have a judge sign off to make it enforceable as a court order.
Use Custody X Change to document custody violations to help the court enforce orders.
Note that laws and procedures vary somewhat by state. For information specific to the largest U.S. states, see our guides to enforcing custody orders in California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas.
Keep Good Records Of Custody And Visitation Violations
If you think you may have to go back to court, make sure you keep clear records of all custody order violations. Write them down on a calendar or keep a detailed journal, including dates, times, and a description of the problem. Keep copies of any police reports or other papers, including copies of emails or phone records, that will help you prove your points at a court hearing. When you have enough documentation to show a clear pattern of violation, you can ask a judge for help.
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Violation Of Child Custody Order
There are a number of ways a parent might violate the terms of their child custody order. Some examples of common custody agreement violations include:
- Failing to return the child at the appointed time
- Failing to retrieve the child at the appointed time
- Picking up the child at a non-appointed time
- Showing up to visit at a non-appointed time
In other cases, if the agreement makes it clear, sending another person to retrieve the child may also result in a violation.
It is important to assess each individual violation to determine whether it was intentionally and knowingly committed. If you believe this is the case, document the incidents as they occur. That way, you will have specific evidence of each violation in the event that the matter goes to court.
Violations of a child custody agreement could result in serious penalties for the responsible parent. These penalties may include anything from a change to the terms of the agreement to a misdemeanor or even a felony.
Reasons To Lose Custody Of A Child
A child custody order can be violated in numerous ways, and these ways can all become reasons to lose custody of a child. Child abuse and neglect are the most common reasons that a parent would lose custody of a child. Other reasons are mental and emotional abuse, child abduction, unwillingness to work with the other parent for the best interests of the child, and drug and alcohol abuse.
Common violations of child custody orders include keeping a child for a longer visit than agreed upon or failing to tell the other parent about the childs whereabouts. Other violations may be taking the child on vacation without prior approval, taking the child out of state, or allowing an unauthorized person to take care of the child.
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Civil Law Vs Criminal Law
Residents sometimes call the police for issues that the PD DO NOT handle. Police Officers are responsible to deal with violations of CRIMINAL LAW, not civil law. Here is a basic description of the two:
1) Criminal law is a anything that is an act of CRIMINAL nature. Examples would be burglaries, thefts, sex offenses, DUI’s, trespassing, disorderly conduct, harassment, etc..basically anything that is deemed to be a crime under the PA crimes code.
2) Civil law is anything NOT a criminal act. This would be landlord/tenant evictions/disputes, child custody issues, disputes over ownership of property, Person A owes money to person B and they have not paid them back, any breach of contracts, etc…
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Enforcement If You Dont Have A Court Order
Without a court order, police or the courts can enforce your custody agreement only if you believe your child is in immediate danger. If that is ever the case, dont wait to or the child abduction unit at the county district attorneys office.
If your child is safe, consider whether you can negotiate with the other parent reach an agreement that works better for everyone. Then consider asking a judge to turn your parenting agreement into a detailed, enforceable court order. For resources to help you negotiate an agreement that you can take to a judge, see Get Help Creating a Parenting Agreement.
To find your local court, see page.
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Consult An Experienced Pennsylvania Child Custody Attorney
If you are facing issues related to child custody violations your stress level is likely high, and you likely need help in getting it resolved. Whether you need help enforcing an agreement, or defending yourself against allegations of violating the agreement, there are legal avenues toward success.
Child custody attorney David J. Cohen is devoted to representing the people of Pottstown, Pennsylvania, and surrounding areas. Contact the David J. Cohen Law Firm, LLC today for a consultation.
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Violating Child Custody Orders: Should You Call The Police
When your ex-wife violates the child custody or visitation order and denies your parenting time, many divorced dads wonder if they should immediately call the local police.
Unfortunately, enforcement of a divorce decree sometimes depends on the attitude of your local law enforcement and filing a police report for a custody violation doesnt always lead to a resolution. Even after the report is filed, many dads are still left wondering how to get the child back from the non-custodial parent.
In general, there are two ways to enforce a child custody or visitation order: with police intervention or through the court with a Motion to Enforce.
A court order that mandates or prohibits conduct is typically executable through the police. For example, orders to arrest, seize property, or for injunctions, depend on law enforcement agencies to be effective. Orders for parenting time carry the same court authority and therefore are technically enforceable by the police.
There is, however, a disconnect between theory and practice. In many cases, police officers might be unwilling to get involved in a family law dispute unless the conduct rises to a criminal infraction .
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Can The Police Get Involved In Child Custody In Virginia
Though it is not particularly common, police may be able to get involved directly with your custody case. For example, police are legally able to enforce the order in situations where certain actions are taken that are directly prohibited by the order. Say the order states that one parent must drop the child off on a certain day at a certain time. If they do not adhere to this order, the police are legally able to step in to enforce that order.
Just because they are able to doesnt always mean they will, though. In reality, police officers are typically reluctant to involve themselves in child custody or other civil matters unless it rises to the level of a crime. This may include serious offenses such as kidnapping or child abuse, for example.
However, this is not to say that you shouldnt try to involve the police when it comes to custody violations. If you have any inclination that your child is in danger, it important to call the police immediately. When it comes to the safety of your child, you never want to take chances. Even if nothing comes of it immediately, at the very least an officer can direct you back to the courts. Simply having that police report may significantly help your case.
If One Parent Does Not Follow The Custody And Visitation Court Order
There are several options:
- Contact your local police department and ask them to enforce the order.
- Contact the district attorney in your county. Look for the Child Abduction and Recovery Unit.
- File an action for contempt with the court. In contempt actions, you ask the court to enforce the order and make a finding that the other parent willfully disobeyed the court order. This is very complicated and can have serious consequences. Talk to a lawyer to get help with it.
In case you have to go back to court, you should keep accurate records of all visitation violations. Keep a journal or mark up a calendar, with the dates and times that the other parent did not follow the order and did not show up, or showed up late, or created other problems.
Enforcing a court order can be very complicated. Talk to a lawyer to find out what is best in your case. Click for help finding a lawyer.
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Enforcing A Final Order
You should follow your custody order to the letter .
Disobeying an order can result in loss of custodial rights and other penalties. Common violations include canceling visits without notice and blocking the child’s communication with the other parent.
If the other parent in your case doesn’t follow the court order, you should keep detailed records of the violations. You can use your Custody X Change journal or actual parenting time tracker.
For serious or repeat violations, contact the police or file for civil contempt with the court. If you think your situation calls for a contempt case, speak to an attorney.
Staying In Compliance With Court Orders
The legal wording in court orders can be hard to comprehend, and orders for physical custody can be particularly difficult to decipher. When exactly does “Week 2” begin this month? Which day is considered the middle of winter break?
Use Custody X Change to transform your order into a calendar you can edit and print, so you’ll never have to wonder whether you’re staying in compliance.
With the Custody X Change app, you can combine custody schedules for the school year, summer break and holidays into one master calendar. Making changes is easy just click and drag.
Take advantage of our technology so you never have to wonder if you’re interpreting the court’s order correctly.
Custody X Change is software that creates professional parenting plan documents and parenting schedules.
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Can I See My Kids If My Ex Got A Pfa Against Me
When an individual requests a PFA, they can ask for restrictions on contacting or visiting their children. If the plaintiff alleges and the court finds that the defendant has abused or threatened to abuse the children, or that the defendant has violated a custody order within the last two years, the PFA can prohibit the defendant from seeing or contacting the children. Unfortunately, if your ex wants to restrict your contact with your kids and the court accepts, you would be violating the PFA to see your children.
There are different types of PFAs, and your ex would have to file a temporary or emergency PFA before filing a more permanent one. The temporary PFA usually lasts for 10 days after that time, the Montgomery County Family Court will schedule a final PFA hearing. At the hearing, a judge will either lift the temporary PFA or issue a final PFA .
Child Custody In Pennsylvania
Child custody and visitation rights are a common part of a Pennsylvania divorce case. When two formerly married people have children, a child custody plan is put in place as part of the divorce process. Child custody issues can be extremely contentious and are rife with potential complications.
Custody is determined by a family court judge as part of your divorce. There are different kinds of custody in Pennsylvania, including:
- Temporary Custody: The parent has only a short time to have custody over the children.
- Split Custody: The parents both have full physical control on one or more children in a multi-child home. This means that siblings may be split up and live primarily with different parents.
- Sole Custody: All of the children live with one parent who has full custody over the children.
- Joint Custody: This is Pennsylvania’s preferred method, in which both parents have custody of all of the children. There are three categories of joint custody in the Commonwealth:
- Joint Legal Custody: A child lives in one home, and both parents share decision making over the child.
- A child lives in two homes, and the parents share decision making over the child.
- Combination of Both as Decided by the Court.
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How To Enforce A Custody Order
This article was co-authored by Clinton M. Sandvick, JD, PhD. Clinton M. Sandvick worked as a civil litigator in California for over 7 years. He received his JD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1998 and his PhD in American History from the University of Oregon in 2013.There are 12 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been viewed 98,111 times.
When Can A Parent File Contempt Of Court Charges
Contempt of court charges are typically filed when one parent âviolatesâ a child custody and visitation agreement, and this can encompass a variety of situations. Custody can be awarded to both of the childâs biological or legal parents, as well as stepparents and grandparents. If one parent refused to respect anotherâs visitation time or constantly tried to change the visitation schedule, the other parent could file contempt of court charges. In addition, if one parent attempted to move out of state without getting court-order approval, then the other parent could also file contempt of court charges.
Contempt of court charges can be filed in family law cases where:
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Contact A Montgomery County Lawyer To Discuss Child Custody Violations
For over 25 years, the legal team at the Law Offices of Sheryl R. Rentz, P.C., has helped parents throughout Montgomery County and the Philadelphia area maintain their relationships with their children. If you are facing difficulties seeing your child, then you should speak to our Montgomery County family law attorney immediately. We can review your custody agreement and provide legal guidance on how to move forward with contempt of court charges. If the case is serious, we may even be able to successfully file an emergency custody order to have your child returned to you. To speak to a compassionate and skilled lawyer, call our offices today at 290-9292 and schedule a free consultation.
What Is The Legal Definition Of Domestic Abuse In Pennsylvania
This section defines domestic abuse for the purposes of getting a protection from abuse order. Abuse is the occurrence of one or more of the following acts between family or household members:
- bodily injury or serious bodily injury
1 23 Pa.C.S.A. § 6102
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