Legal Question in Family Law in California
I currently have temporary full custody of my 14 yr old. Her biological father can only have face to face interaction if and when our daughter wants to based on counselor visits. The judge, at the 1/14/11 hearing, agreed with me that my daughter has a say in the situation due to her age. He was suprised that she had not been given the chance to have a say. I had requested at both mediations however, the mediators did not feel it was necessary. They were concerned with getting a relationship established between father and daughter, even though, he has had no contact with her for 10 years. Just last week my husband was transferred out of state for work, it was very much out of the blue, and we need to move with him. I need to know what to do to get that information in because our daughter has mediation, finally to be heard, on 3/11/11 and we meet in court on 3/28/11. Please help me with my next step. Do I file for an ex-parte hearing, or file certain forms and wait until 3/28? Help Please!
1 Answer from Attorneys
A father who has been out of the picture can still establish legal rights and visitation with their child. Although the child has no relationship with their parent, the court will most likely decide that reuinfication would be appropriate and in the best interest of the child to have a relationship with both parents. The court might consider that under very limited and slow progress the father and daugther relationship can be reestablished. That is up to the courts discretion in how much or how fast they would continue the reuinficiation services. Your daughter would certainly have a say in how she feels about the situation or with what time frame she would like to get reacquainted with their father.
For self represented individuals you can consult with the family law facilitator self help center at your local court house.
As always please consult a local attorney prior to taking legal action. Good luck. Also please check out my Santa Clara County Family Lawyer blog.
Law Offices James Chau
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San Jose, CA. 95126
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