Legal Question in Family Law in Arizona

You cannot "refuse" service, and you should not avoid service; if you object to having her named as his legal guardian, you will need to appear at the hearing to voice your objection. It would also be a good idea to file an objection to the guardianship prior to the hearing. At the very least, the court will have to evaluate whether the guardianship is necessary/appropriate, and this may depend on large part on the history of the relationship you have with your child.

Another possibility is to involve the family court and ask the court to grant you custody of your child since his mother has passed away. Unless there are currently orders limiting or preventing your contact, it may be in your child's best interests for you to take custody of him now; without an order giving her custody, his grandmother should not be able to keep him from you.

I recommend that you schedule a consultation as soon as possible. We offer a free initial consultation and can discuss your options and help you determine your best course of action.

Every case is different and specific facts have to be considered; however, normally a child is placed in the custody of the other parent if the custodial parent passes away or is no longer able to care for the child. If you want custody of your daughter, fight for it and participate in the Court proceedings. If you object to the grandparents as guardians, get into court and let the Judge know. In the meantime, maybe you can talk with the Grandparents about what is best for the child and everyone can work out custody informally. Even if talking the Grandparents is difficult, it's for your daughter. Don't all of you want what's best for the girl?

From your zip code it appears you live in Maricopa County. I practice in Cochise County so I would not be able to represent you in court. You can seek the assistance of a local attorney or represent yourself in court. This site at LawGuru has information on Custody and Guardianships. You can find sample forms, although none specific to your exact circumstances at the Maricopa County Self Service Center at http://www.superiorcourt.maricopa.gov/SuperiorCourt/Self-ServiceCenter/

Good Luck,

You can and should fight for primary custody of your son. Simply refusing service is not enough.

We can certainly help you consider and then pursue your options.

We have three attorneys. We charge from $220 per hour to $250 per hour. Our retainers can run as low as $500 for demand letters/phone calls, $1200 plus costs for uncontested matters, or from $2,000 to $4,000 for most contested matters.

We also can structure assistance to help you represent yourself.

Please remember that a retainer is just a prepayment of time, and not an estimate as to the total costs of the matter. If I finish within the retainer, than I refund any unearned amounts.

One of our attorneys can explain the issues and procedures better in person. As you can imagine, there is too much to cover via email. We offer free 1/2 hour consultations, in which we can discuss your matter in detail.

Please call us directly to discuss the specifics of your matter, or contact my assistant Gloria or my paralegal Jennifer to schedule your free 1/2 hour consultation

/s/ Rich J. Peters

RJ PETERS & ASSOC., P.C.

1422 North 2nd Street, Suite 100

Phoenix, Arizona 85004

602-254-7251

facsimile 602-254-1229

see our website at www.familylawaz.com