Legal Question in Family Law in Virginia

Re: Interrogatories

Your attorney is the best source of advice.

You have to think ahead about how the interrogatories will be used at trial. Generally speaking, you are not going to get the other side to admit any damaging information such as you described with interrogatories. Example: "Q: Have the children ever expressed a desire to live with their father?" "A: No." (If you are lucky) or "A: They hate being with him because all he does is sit around and drink beer and smoke marijuana all day."

Interrogatories are more useful for questions such as identifying the location of documentary evidence: "What is the name, address and telephone number of the person who prepares your tax returns?" Or limiting future responses to questions posed on the witness stand: "What are the names, addresses and telephone numbers of all persons whom you contend witnessed corporal punishment by the father?" This last one sets up the questioning at trial: "Q: Who witnessed this corporal punishment? A: Sheriff Smith and Bishop Curley. Q: Your honor, may I approach the witness? Is this your signature at the bottom of the Responses to Interrogatories? You did sign this under penalty of perjury, didn't you? Could you please read your answer to Interrogatory 23? A: Nobody."

Re: Interrogatories

The question is fine but you don't expect them to tell the truth do you? Whenever change of custody is motivated by children's desires there are several ways to get that evidence in. The best way is to have the court appoint a GUARDIAN AD LITEM for the children, that is they would have their own lawyer who would be able to present evidence on their behalf. Another way is to have the kids see a counselor and then the counselor can testify in court. The last way and least preferable is to have the children testify themselves.

Interrogatories just give a heads up about the evidence - they in and of themselves are not evidence.

Good luck