Iowa Recent Legal Answers from Lawyers

A child does not have the right to stop visitation.  I'm assuming that a court has ordered visitation.  Once the court has ordered, it is up to the court to modify- not anyone else including the child.  Failure to provide the child for visitation could result in contempt charges against the parent claiming the child does not want to see the other parent. At the same time, you cannot place the child in danger.  It would seem that the current situation could be dangerous for the child.  You might want to contact DHS to investigate whether the child is in danger if he/she visits the other parent. You can go back to court to modify the custody order if you feel that is appropriate.  However, child support does not affect visitation/custody. These are two separate issues.... Read More

A parent cannot choose to violate a court order without facing risk of a possible jail sentence.  If a court has ordered visitation, the parent must provide the required visitation or face contempt charges.   The parent has 2 choices if he/she thinks the child is in danger.  One is to involve DHS.  DHS can take action to modify the order (at least temporarily).  The other action is to modify the custody order by going back to court and getting the judge to modify the custody order in some way.   If you are concerned, I would contact an attorney immediately to discuss the case and the contempt action.... Read More

Termination of parental rights is a very serious legal task.  If the parent has abandoned the child, the court could terminate parental rights.  However, if the parent has not abandoned the child, it is unlikely that the court will terminate.  Each child is entitled to 2 parents, including support from both parents.  It is unlikely that the court will terminate if the state effectively becomes one of the parents requiring the state to support the child.  If there is a step-parent who wants to become the legal parent, it is more likely that the court will support that action.    I would contact a family law attorney to discuss this in more detail.... Read More

There are many factors which have to be considered for sentencing.  Prior record is one of those factors.  Without providing details of the offense. level of theft, and circumstances of the offense it is not possible to provide information concerning possible sentencing.   Realize that the judge has discretion, but will base his/her decision upon the recommendations of the county attorney and the defense attorney/ defendant.  The judge will also consider the maximum and minimums provided by the Iowa Code for the offense and must stay within those limits.  The judge must also consider the rehabilitation of the defendant and the protection of society from the defendant. The judge must consider a jail sentence and fines/surcharges.  The judge can suspend jail and/or fines in certain circumstances.  The judge may also defer judgment or sentence and place the defendant on probation. I would find out what the county attorney is recommending in this case, as it is the most likely punishment that the judge will impose.... Read More

Whether or not an ex is behind in child support does not affect his legal status.  If your son would like to change his name, being a minor, both parents would need to consent to the change.   You might be discussing adoption by the step parent, though.  Adoption would require a termination of parental rights by the biological parent and would provide a name change.   If the biological parent has abandoned the child, it may be possible for the step parent to adopt the child.  Being over $11,000 behind in child support may be part of the evidence for abandonment.  However, being $11,000 behind, may also have the State of Iowa involved, and the state may also have to consent to any actions to terminate the past due amount. The past due amount of child support may still be due even if the child is adopted or turns 18.  This is because the amount was already due when the new legal action occurred.  If the state is not involved with Child Support Recovery, it could be possible to eliminate the past due child support in exchange for a voluntary termination of parental rights.   I would suggest contacting an attorney that deals with family law to sort out the actions in your case.... Read More

It is hard to answer your question definitively without looking at the records and determining why your bladder was injured. Generally speaking, because the initial incision during a hysterectomy is a "blind incision" when the bladder is injured during the initial incision is is deemed an accepted complication of the procedure. Sometimes the bladder can be injured during the insertion of surgical staples. That is a potentially viable claim. Finally, if a surgeon fails to recognize the injury, and you have to undergo another procedure to fix the problem that should have been recognized in the first surgery, you may have a case. In this last scenario, however, there will be questions about whether the case is financially viable.  If you want to investigate a malpractice case, you should contact a local medical malpractice attorney (one in your state).  They take these cases on a contingency basis which means you only have to pay if you succeed.  Additionally, initial consultations are usually free. You can use the "Find a Lawyer" service through this website to research medical malpractice attorneys.  Then, visit each attorney's website and look for a firm that has a record of successful verdicts,  ideally with experience in cases that involve your medical issue. If you are unable to find a lawyer who meets these qualifications within your state, sometimes you may contact an out of state lawyer who can refer you to a qualified attorney in your state while providing support related to the issues of medicine. Below are some articles you may find helpful.  They are written for a New Jersey audience (where I practice) but the ideas discussed in these articles usually apply in most other jurisdictions as well. Click here for an article that discusses the three main questions I ask when deciding whether to investigate a potential medical malpractice case. This discusses the issue of financial viability. Click here for an article that explains what you can and should expect when pursuing a medical malpractice case. Click here, here  and here for more information about me. Click here for summaries of some of the cases that I have litigated. Since I am a lawyer, I need to advise you of the following when I communicate with you: Please note that by attempting to answer your question, I am not acting as your attorney. I will do nothing further to protect or preserve your interests in the absence of any additional discussion with you about this matter. John Ratkowitz, Esq. Starr, Gern, Davison & Rubin, P.C. 105 Eisenhower Parkway Roseland, NJ 07068 Office: (973) 830-8441 Cell: (732) 616-6278 Fax: (973) 226-0031 Email: jratkowitz@starrgern.com  Click here for my website. ... Read More

The standard for the police to stop a vehicle is extremely low and may not be worth your effort to contest.  Your better course of action may be challenging how the field sobriety tests were explained to you and your understanding of what was expected of you.  There are often reasons to explain your driving behavior and performance on sobriety tests other than alcohol consumption.... Read More

You are going to need a court order.  At this point, you both have equal rights to the daughter absent any court order stating otherwise, and if there is no court order, you could also get your daughter and deny her access just as she is doing to you.  However, the courts would not look favorably upon this if you went to court.  You will need an order from the court to exercise your rights since your wife is denying you access.  The filing fee for a divorce is $185 and you can proceed pro se (without an attorney) if you desire.  I would advise using an attorney, but you do not absolutely have to have an attorney.  You do need a divorce decree to sort out your custodial rights and to obtain court ordered visitation rights.  You also need to do this soon.  If you delay, your wife could claim abandonment which could limit your rights or even terminate your rights.... Read More

Technically if there are three counts under a criminal case number, the State is charging three crimes.  Each crime could require bond, however, it is not normally done so.  However, the three crimes could influence the final amount of the bond required (which could mean adding up the three bonds to get one bond based upon the three).... Read More

Defamation is the publication (communication to a person other than yourself) of information about you that is untrue.  The defense against defamation is that the information is true.  Thus if the information was posted online (publication) and the information is not true, the neighbor could be sued.  However, one issue with civil cases concerns damages.  What injuries have you had concerning this false publication?  If you haven't had any damages, then an attorney is unlikely to pursue the case even if defamation occurred.  This is because the neighbor might be found to have defamed you, but you may not be awarded any damages.  You would need to be able to prove your damages in court.  You need to contact a local attorney to discuss this prior to taking action. What may be better in your case is to contact local counsel and ask them to draft a letter telling the neighbor to stop or they may be sued.... Read More

You need to contact local counsel to discuss this situation.  Unfortunately there are several issues in this case, and I would need more information to give you advice.  For example. You stated that your son was 17 when he was arrested for marijuana possession.  Is this case in juvenile court or district court?  If it is in juvenile court, was this informal or formal adjudication?  Was the case waived to district court? Is there a Child in Need of Assistance (CINA) case?   As you can see, there are many questions and the answers vary per the answers.   Even if your son is now 18, if the case is a juvenile case, and it has not been waived to district court, it would remain a juvenile case for disposition. Regardless, if there is a court case, your son is entitled to an attorney if a jail term is a possibility, and marijuana has a minimum sentence of 48 hours in jail.  Thus your son should apply for a court appointed attorney with the clerk of court in the county of the charge.  Your son should have been told his rights which include the right to counsel.  Talk to counsel about the case immediately.... Read More

You need to talk to local counsel because this issue will be complex depending upon the resolution of the criminal case and the charges involved.  Due to the complicated nature of this issue, I am unable to provide guidance over the Internet. Generally you can file with the court for guardianship/conservatorship, depending upon the case situation.  Guardianship and conservatorship can be a complicated issue that I would not recommend attempting without an attorney.... Read More

I'm not sure that I completely understand your question and would ask you to talk to local counsel about the details of your criminal case. Iowa Criminal Law Timeline (for indictable offenses-not simple misdemeanors): Timeline starts with arrest or citation = Day 0. Initial Appearanceoccurs without unnecessary delay (usually within 24 hours after arrest).  At this time, the magistrate informs the defendant of the complaint, right to retain counsel, right to have counsel appointed if indigent, circumstances of pretrial release, right to review conditions of release, right not to make a statement, reasonable time to obtain counsel, schedules or gets waiver of preliminary hearing, and provides a copy of the complaint to the defendant. Preliminary Hearing:  The defendant is entitled to a preliminary hearing unless there was an indictment or trial information filed or unless waived by the defendant.  The preliminary hearing is to be held no later than 10 days after the initial appearance if the defendant is in custody or no later than 20 days if the defendant is out of custody (these limits can be extended for good cause).  This is a probable cause hearing in which the magistrate determines whether there is probable cause to believe a crime was committed, and that the defendant did it.  If so, the defendant is held to answer for the crime in further proceedings.  If not, the charges are dismissed with prejudice (no refiling of charges).  Trial Information or indictment  must occur within 45 days after arrest or citation.  Trial information is filed by the county attorney charging the defendant with a crime.  Along with the trial information, minutes of testimony (or minutes of evidence) must be attached.   Failure to file the minutes of testimony with the trial information requires dismissal of information (without prejudice) upon the motion of the defendant.   After Trial information/ indictment, then arraignment occurs (no specified time in rules, but trial information must be filed before arraignment and must be conducted as soon as practicable). At the arraignment, the defendant gets a copy of the trial information, a plea is entered, bond is continued, and the case set for trial.  As to conflicts of interest and whether an attorney can represent you, this varies case by case.  If the attorney has confidential information that would affect the current case, then he should withdraw. Just because an attorney represented you years ago, doesn't necessarily mean that there is a conflict of interest.  You should talk to your attorney to see if there is a conflict.  If so, the attorney should resign, (and possibly the entire county attorney's staff and a special prosecutor assigned).... Read More

As there are no particulars to your girlfriend's background, it is impossible to state whether a fiancée visa is the last resort. There are other types of nonimmigrant and immigrant visas available if your girlfriend qualifies. There are visas like F-1 student, H-1B worker with specialized knowledge, etc., in the nonimmigrant categories and in the immigrant categories, visas such as EB-5 immigrant investor, EB-2 advanced degreed or exceptional ability individuals, and EB-3 professional workers or those requiring two years of experience to do the offered jobs.Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.  ... Read More