I just spent part of the day getting a Capias order from the Tarrant county court set up to be served in another county. This is equivalent to an arrest. The person arrested will be the father of a disabled child who was ordered to pay child support and spousal support before he went into active duty overseas. He did not pay as ordered. He has returned to Texas and still will not pay. Now he will have to face the music.
A CAPIAS (Latin legal term) is a writ issued by a court, ordering the Sheriff of a county to seize a person to bring that person before the court. It is equivalent to a warrant for arrest. I prepared this order and asked the judge to sign it, ordering the arrest of this father. The judge signed it this week. Now we have to get the Order to the sheriff of the other county, to find the father and arrest him.
The usual procedure is this: When someone is ordered to pay child support and fails to do so, there is a motion or a petition for enforcement of the order for payment of support, signed by the court. This is the motion I filed for the mother.
If the individual receives good notice of the hearing, and does not appear, the judge will issue a warrant for the arrest of the person and bring the person to court in order to deal with the child support that is not being paid.
Just so happens that the other county is home to a large military base. The father is stationed at the military base located in that county, and was summoned to come to a hearing in Fort worth to explain to the judge why he is not paying child support. He did not come. He did not call. He did not hire an attorney. We know for a fact that he received notice of the hearing. So the judge issued the warrant for his arrest. Judges do not like it when someone ignores an order to appear.
Unfortunately for the father, he will be arrested by the sheriff in the other county, and will be held for ten days, giving him the opportunity to pay the child support. Then he will be brought to Tarrant County, and held until the judge has a hearing date for him, which will be the next Monday. This will add another 4 to seven days to his ten days in jail. It is possible this man will be in jail for two weeks or more. This is very unfortunate, as it could all have been avoided if he had come to the hearing and explained to the judge his circumstances.
Now it is in the sheriff's hands and we are waiting. I will update on what happens next.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Monday, April 5, 2010
Your meeting with Family Court Services: WHAT YOU MUST DO AND MUST NOT DO
For relatives or caretakers that have been awarded temporary custody of a child or children while the parents are in treatment or incarcerated:
What to expect when you go to Family Court Services:
Whenever there is a question for the court to decide concerning custody and possession of children, the court will order a social worker to conduct a social study into the circumstances of the people involved in a case, and to make a report to the judge. Before this can happen, you and all parties will be required to go to an orientation through Family Court Services. In Tarrant County, the orientation is usually conducted with a group of people in the room, and lasts a couple of hours. It is both an information session, and an attempt to move people towards reconciliation and resolution of family disputes.
A client called me recently to tell me she had gone to the required orientation with Family Court Services, here in Fort Worth, in order to pay the deposit to obtain a social study which was required by the temporary orders in her case. She has been awarded temporary custody of a child, until the parents complete their treatment programs and various other conditions. During the meeting orientation session, she and a roomful of other people were told to do everything they could to help the family reunify. To help strengthen the parents. Told to contact the parents. Take the children to see the parents. Avoid going to court if at all possible. She became very confused, she reported to me, and finally resolved to take the child to see the mother. She called the mother and arranged a meeting.
This could have been disastrous, and I strongly urged her not to do this, despite what she may have thought she heard at her meeting with Family Court Services.
Why is this a bad thing, you ask?
Helping parents to step up and take care of their children is always a good thing, you may say.
However, if you have retained an attorney to help you remove a child from a dangerous situation, you may make it difficult to build a case against the parents, which is the job of your attorney who is trying to get custody of a child away from the parents for you, as the client.
A dangerous situation involving drugs, alcohol, criminal activities, or family violence, is more than you can “help” by talking to the parents. These are deep rooted problems and behaviors that are beyond your ability to “help.”
In addition, your attempts to “help” will make your attorney’s job more difficult and increase your legal fees.
It may make it difficult to get an injunction or extend protective orders, which may be necessary to keep the parents away from your family’s residence if they should become irate or vindictive against you, or if they should decide to come and take the child from you despite the court orders. And it undermines my ability to build a case for you against the parents.
If the parents are in the middle of a drug and alcohol treatment program, it could interfere with progress that is being made.
If the parents are incarcerated, it may be determined by the attorney appointed to represent the child, as being inappropriate action. Jail, an ad litem or amicus attorney may say, is no place for a child. Do not take the children to jail to see the parents.
Your actions could shortcut the conditions the court has imposed for the return of the children. It could have the result of subjecting the child to upsetting and confusing circumstances that a young child can not understand.
And it could have the result of giving an attorney retained for the parents the ammunition he or she needs to argue in court that the parents are not as dangerous to the child as we are arguing. The argument goes like this: “if the parents are so dangerous, unstable, and unsafe for the child, WHY are these people inviting the parents to spend time with the child?” It puts you in a very contradictory position, which is not a good thing to try to explain to a judge.
What you MUST do and what you SHOULD NOT do:
YOU ARE REQUIRED BY LAW TO GO TO FAMILY COURT SERVICES if the court orders you to do so. You may even be required to go to mediation with the parents. However, please remember, if you are represented by an attorney, YOU MUST COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR ATTORNEY AND FOLLOW YOUR ATTORNEY’S INSTRUCTIONS. You should never go to mediation without your attorney present – or in close touch by telephone.
Family Court Services is not representing your interest. They are not representing the child’s interest. They have not studied your particular case or facts, and are speaking in general terms only. They have standard policies which are the same for everyone, and often are not able to make allowances for different fact situations. They may not know for instance about family violence, drug use, or other actions by the parents which would create unsafe conditions for a child.
DO NOT ALLOW YOURSELF TO BE INFLUENCED OR PERSUADED BY FAMILY COURT SERVICES to “reconcile” with the parents, until you have spoken with your attorney. Do not under any circumstances contact the parents until you have spoken with your attorney to evaluate how this may affect your case.
And do not try to “help” the parents. Do not give them money. Do not negotiate with them. Do not tell them what your plans are or what the conditions are for them to obtain custody of their children. This is not your job; it is the job of the social workers, the attorney appointed to represent the children, and ultimately the Court. You are no longer in a decision making capacity, so do not make the mistake of telling the parents that you are, or acting as if you are. Stay in close communication with your lawyer and if you have any doubt about what actions to take- TALK TO YOUR ATTORNEY FIRST.
This is the fundamental difficulty of Family Court Services – they will encourage you to “help” the family and the parents and to work out an agreement with them. If you have hired an attorney, you must not do this. If you do, you will be throwing away your money, and sending your attorney into the boxing ring with his or her hands tied.
For more information about how to contact Family Court Services in Fort Worth, Texas
See: http://tcweb.tarrantcounty.com/eFamilyCourtSvc/site/default.asp
What to expect when you go to Family Court Services:
Whenever there is a question for the court to decide concerning custody and possession of children, the court will order a social worker to conduct a social study into the circumstances of the people involved in a case, and to make a report to the judge. Before this can happen, you and all parties will be required to go to an orientation through Family Court Services. In Tarrant County, the orientation is usually conducted with a group of people in the room, and lasts a couple of hours. It is both an information session, and an attempt to move people towards reconciliation and resolution of family disputes.
A client called me recently to tell me she had gone to the required orientation with Family Court Services, here in Fort Worth, in order to pay the deposit to obtain a social study which was required by the temporary orders in her case. She has been awarded temporary custody of a child, until the parents complete their treatment programs and various other conditions. During the meeting orientation session, she and a roomful of other people were told to do everything they could to help the family reunify. To help strengthen the parents. Told to contact the parents. Take the children to see the parents. Avoid going to court if at all possible. She became very confused, she reported to me, and finally resolved to take the child to see the mother. She called the mother and arranged a meeting.
This could have been disastrous, and I strongly urged her not to do this, despite what she may have thought she heard at her meeting with Family Court Services.
Why is this a bad thing, you ask?
Helping parents to step up and take care of their children is always a good thing, you may say.
However, if you have retained an attorney to help you remove a child from a dangerous situation, you may make it difficult to build a case against the parents, which is the job of your attorney who is trying to get custody of a child away from the parents for you, as the client.
A dangerous situation involving drugs, alcohol, criminal activities, or family violence, is more than you can “help” by talking to the parents. These are deep rooted problems and behaviors that are beyond your ability to “help.”
In addition, your attempts to “help” will make your attorney’s job more difficult and increase your legal fees.
It may make it difficult to get an injunction or extend protective orders, which may be necessary to keep the parents away from your family’s residence if they should become irate or vindictive against you, or if they should decide to come and take the child from you despite the court orders. And it undermines my ability to build a case for you against the parents.
If the parents are in the middle of a drug and alcohol treatment program, it could interfere with progress that is being made.
If the parents are incarcerated, it may be determined by the attorney appointed to represent the child, as being inappropriate action. Jail, an ad litem or amicus attorney may say, is no place for a child. Do not take the children to jail to see the parents.
Your actions could shortcut the conditions the court has imposed for the return of the children. It could have the result of subjecting the child to upsetting and confusing circumstances that a young child can not understand.
And it could have the result of giving an attorney retained for the parents the ammunition he or she needs to argue in court that the parents are not as dangerous to the child as we are arguing. The argument goes like this: “if the parents are so dangerous, unstable, and unsafe for the child, WHY are these people inviting the parents to spend time with the child?” It puts you in a very contradictory position, which is not a good thing to try to explain to a judge.
What you MUST do and what you SHOULD NOT do:
YOU ARE REQUIRED BY LAW TO GO TO FAMILY COURT SERVICES if the court orders you to do so. You may even be required to go to mediation with the parents. However, please remember, if you are represented by an attorney, YOU MUST COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR ATTORNEY AND FOLLOW YOUR ATTORNEY’S INSTRUCTIONS. You should never go to mediation without your attorney present – or in close touch by telephone.
Family Court Services is not representing your interest. They are not representing the child’s interest. They have not studied your particular case or facts, and are speaking in general terms only. They have standard policies which are the same for everyone, and often are not able to make allowances for different fact situations. They may not know for instance about family violence, drug use, or other actions by the parents which would create unsafe conditions for a child.
DO NOT ALLOW YOURSELF TO BE INFLUENCED OR PERSUADED BY FAMILY COURT SERVICES to “reconcile” with the parents, until you have spoken with your attorney. Do not under any circumstances contact the parents until you have spoken with your attorney to evaluate how this may affect your case.
And do not try to “help” the parents. Do not give them money. Do not negotiate with them. Do not tell them what your plans are or what the conditions are for them to obtain custody of their children. This is not your job; it is the job of the social workers, the attorney appointed to represent the children, and ultimately the Court. You are no longer in a decision making capacity, so do not make the mistake of telling the parents that you are, or acting as if you are. Stay in close communication with your lawyer and if you have any doubt about what actions to take- TALK TO YOUR ATTORNEY FIRST.
This is the fundamental difficulty of Family Court Services – they will encourage you to “help” the family and the parents and to work out an agreement with them. If you have hired an attorney, you must not do this. If you do, you will be throwing away your money, and sending your attorney into the boxing ring with his or her hands tied.
For more information about how to contact Family Court Services in Fort Worth, Texas
See: http://tcweb.tarrantcounty.com/eFamilyCourtSvc/site/default.asp
Monday, January 18, 2010
Parents seeking to adopt child from Haiti
There are several phases to adoption from another country, including Haiti:
Judicial or administrative proceedings in Haiti to adjudicate the child an orphan
Granting of the child a Haitian passport
Granting of a Visa to enter the US by the US Consulate
Adoption of the child in the United States in the state where the parents will reside.
In Haiti, applications are made through the Haitian procedures, through the Ministry of Justice, which was destroyed in the quake. In that process, the Haitian child is confirmed as an orphan, and the rights of any parents are terminated.
Today there are more than 55,000 children waiting to be adopted, whose applications are lost in the pipeline that collapsed with the earthquake.
If you are one of those parents, there are immediate steps you can take.
Also contact a social worker who is experienced in international adoptions. Get your home study started. Your fingerprints and criminal back ground check.
Get your child registered on the Joint Counsel data base.
Gather up all your documents, copies, envelopes, notes, emails, everything you can lay your hands on including photographs.
Go to the website for the Immigration service: http://www.uscis.gov to watch for updates on policy changes for orphans and children. We are looking for an extension of the emergency humanitarian relief for children, as was done for Bosnia and other catastrophes in times past.
Continue to work on FaceBook, Twitter, and other websites to disseminate information about YOUR CHILD.
DO NOT GIVE UP EVER. KEEP PRAYING. Remember, many people all over the world are helping you and us.
Judicial or administrative proceedings in Haiti to adjudicate the child an orphan
Granting of the child a Haitian passport
Granting of a Visa to enter the US by the US Consulate
Adoption of the child in the United States in the state where the parents will reside.
In Haiti, applications are made through the Haitian procedures, through the Ministry of Justice, which was destroyed in the quake. In that process, the Haitian child is confirmed as an orphan, and the rights of any parents are terminated.
Today there are more than 55,000 children waiting to be adopted, whose applications are lost in the pipeline that collapsed with the earthquake.
If you are one of those parents, there are immediate steps you can take.
Also contact a social worker who is experienced in international adoptions. Get your home study started. Your fingerprints and criminal back ground check.
Get your child registered on the Joint Counsel data base.
Gather up all your documents, copies, envelopes, notes, emails, everything you can lay your hands on including photographs.
Go to the website for the Immigration service: http://www.uscis.gov to watch for updates on policy changes for orphans and children. We are looking for an extension of the emergency humanitarian relief for children, as was done for Bosnia and other catastrophes in times past.
Continue to work on FaceBook, Twitter, and other websites to disseminate information about YOUR CHILD.
DO NOT GIVE UP EVER. KEEP PRAYING. Remember, many people all over the world are helping you and us.
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