Legal Question in Family Law in New York
I am a ny resident. I have custody of my Twin daughters. On Sept 30 of 2010 I appeared at a upward mod hearing. Previous to that date I also filed a motion to stop the support. When I appeared I requested to hire an attorney. I also reminded the Judge that I had filed amotion with a return date of October 18th. The judge asked me if I had the proof of service. I left it home by accident but pointed out to the Judge that it was not due until my return date October 18th. She ignored me and set a date for Dec15th tracking the custody case which I won that day Dec 15th. When I showed with my support attorney he politely told the judge that he could not understnd why I was not able to produce the proof of service at an adjourned date. Knowing well that she bulldozed me being the "MAN" in this case she flip flopped and asked if I had the papers now. I did and produced them. She inturn on the record asked my ex (under oath) if she still denied being served. My ex exclaimed ABSOLUTELY. This created a severance hearing.The severance hearing was set for March 4th 2011. She showed with an attorney and just before the trial began her attorney said that she is willing to accept service. The trial was cancelled at my expense. It cost me 300.00 for an expert witness who never had to testify plus attorney's fees, Am I entitled to a credit and if refused can I obtain a copy of the transcrpts and sue in another Court?
1 Answer from Attorneys
The simple answer is no. You can appeal the decision but you can not get a credit for expenses in a loosing cause. You also can not sue in another court for expenses spent in a court with the authority to deny the request.