Legal Question in Family Law in Florida

change of custody

My ex-wife has primary physical placement of our 3 children. I have contacted DCF, hired a mediator and filed a motion for emergency change of custody. 2 days later my ex came to my job and verbally told me she is giving me custody of the 3 children, and wants me to enroll them into school in my county. Now I can't find her or get her to return my calls to sign legal papers, the kids have been with me the last week, I have found schools for all of them but I am waiting on papers. The girls all want to live with me and have wanted to. There has been neglect and some abuse with the mother. The mediator met with my oldest daughter(12) and his recommendation is that the girls should live with me. I filed a change in custody with the court, but I found out today that the hearing is not until March 3. What can I do now? Can I keep the children? They are afraid to go with their mother. Can I file an ''abandoment issue'' The mother is going to be homeless on 2/20 she is loosing her home to the bank, no job for 6 months no place to go? Please Help me


Asked on 2/08/08, 12:07 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
Matthew Z. Martell Law Office of Matthew Z. Martell, P.A.

Re: change of custody

Legally, no you can't because she is the primary residential parent and you are the secondary residential parent and you have shared parental responsibility. You cannot unilaterally decide that you now should have sole custody because you ex-wife is having financial problems and the kids want to live with you. Abandonment is not really in play right now because it has only been a week. It sounds like the facts are in your favor. So, you need to hire any attorney, make sure that you have filed the right legal documents, and get your hearing scheduled on an emergency basis. Assuming that you filed a Supplemental Petition for Modification of Child Custody, Child Visitation, and Child Support and it has been served on her and she had failed to Answer it within 20 days, you are entitled to a default judgment. However, I am making a big assumption that you have done everything that you should have done to date. In the interim, I recommend filing a Motion for Temporary Relief and scheduling it for an Emergency Hearing. You really need an experience family law attorney to help you immediately. This is not something that you can do on your own quickly and successfully. So, you should hire a local family law attorney immediately.

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Answered on 2/08/08, 12:45 pm
James Hart The Hart Law Firm, P.A.

Re: change of custody

It sounds like you have done all that you can do for now. If she is willing to agree to change custody (and it sounds like she is), and if you are able to enroll the kids in school without her assistance, then there is nothing to do until you get to the hearing on March 3.

However, you may want to speak with an attorney about this. I have seen way too many people who thought the court hearing would be a simple formality, and because something got missed along the way they get a raw deal in court.

I would think the biggest concern is getting the kids enrolled into school.

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Answered on 2/08/08, 1:11 pm


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