Legal Question in Family Law in California

I have a daughter that is four years old and her father and I have a temporary order for joint custody. It is not working at all, there is no stability and soon she will be starting school. And I have reason to believe that she is not being taken care of properly. I do not want to release her into his custody anymore. I want to know what are the legal consequences of disobeying the order until I can modify the order. If the police arrive will i have to release my daughter?


Asked on 4/29/11, 12:23 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

If the father shows up with an order that says it is his custodial time and a police officer, they will enforce the order. In addition, if you continue to fail to abide by the order, the father can have you summoned to appear on contempt of court charges by filing an Order to Show Cause re: Contempt. That can and usually will result in at least fines and possibly a weekend in jail or community service to teach you that a court's orders are to be obeyed. If you have a problem with the existing order, file a motion to modify it. If it really is so dire a situation that it cannot wait for a regular hearing, you can ask for an order shortening time for the hearing.

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Answered on 4/29/11, 5:14 pm


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