Legal Question in Family Law in South Carolina
Father seeking joint custody
My brother has a 3 yr old child with a woman that he has never been married to. He sought full custody for the child immediately after birth due to the fact that the mother is unfit. A coupel of months after the child was born, the child's mother, along with 4 of her family members waited on him and beat him nearly to death. They were convicted of Lynching. These charges were pending when they went to family court, and the judge awarded temporary custody to the mother pending the outcome of the lynching charges. The child's mother has been on probation for over 2 years for this. They are still riding on the origional temp order. He battles with this girl constantly over their child and sees him every other weekend, and whenever she sees fit. Question is, could he stand any chance of Joint Custody since they were never married? He is afraid to take her back to court for fear of losing what visitation he currently has, mainly because she threatens him about it.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Father seeking joint custody
The Court will most likely not order joint custody in his case (or any case) unless the parents agree to do so. Joint custody will have no chance of working if the parents are not on the same page.
The issue in your brother's case is whether the child is better off with the mother and her family or with him. If he believes that the child is better off with him, then he needs to take action to try to obtain custody a.s.a.p.
These are complex issues, and it is important that they be handled correctly. Therefore, it is important that your brother consult an experienced family law attorney to find out what options are available to him based on the facts of his particular case.
If you need more information, you can visit my family law blog (www.SCFamilyLaw.com) or our website (www.StevensFirm.com). I wish you the best of luck.
Ben Stevens
Re: Father seeking joint custody
If this is a South Carolina action, the temporary order may not even be valid anymore. If there was never a final hearing , he will probably have to begin anew. These are complicated issues and he should consult an attorney.
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