Legal Question in Family Law in Arizona
I have joint custody with primary physical in the state of Arizona. My x dropped our daughter off at my front door with a large bag of clothes in november of 2008. He calls her occasionally, but has had only one visit in 10 months. He now wants to visit her again, but I want to protect her emotional well being. His last visit was 7 months ago. Is this child abdonment? What if anything can I do? She is only 4 yrs old, and is an emotional mess. Any advice is greatly appreciated.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Because you never moved to modify the order, technically whatever parenting time orders were previously in place can be enforced. If he won't agree to modify them at least temporarily, you will have to move to modify them. You might be required to request mediation first depending on your previous orders. Unless there is a true emergency, where the safety of your child is at issue and you can prove it, the court won't likely grant an emergency order. You might ask for temporary orders on an accelerated basis.