Tennessee Child Custody Legal Questions

Firstly sister needs to surrender on the warrant and get it dealt with. At the same time she needs to gather proof of these threats, whether recording or texts. She needs to take that proof and get an Order if Protection. It may also be that a family member will have to file for custody. Lots of legal issues. Your sister may have a rough patch of taking responsibility but then she can rebuild, safely.... Read More

As you are not married, she has sole legal custody. You have to locate them and serve her with a Petition for Parentage, and for custody. I don't know enough to know if you could take custody of one child. Her nationality is not going to be relevant to the case unless she wants to move to the Philippines. Hire a PI and find your family then file a case.... Read More

You can apply to Legal Aid. If you don't qualify, you can look for a lawyer with flexible payment options, but I don't think a "cheap" option exists, and sometimes you get what you pay for. Your bf should have placement priority w DCS if the state does take her, but there is a whole process for interstate placement. It sounds like you need a lawyer in MS.... Read More

If your notification follows the requirements of 36-6-108 of the Tennessee Code of Laws and father does not object, you should be able to relocate. If your notice was not legally sufficient, it's possible you'll have to file a Petition with the Court. Under the circumstances you described, I think you would be allowed to relocate.... Read More

Good morning. This is a great opportunity for people to ask questions of practicing attorneys. Your post is not really a question. you've posted a case number, anonymously. Even if an attorney wanted to spend their time for free looking up this case number, they won't know who you are in that case. They won't know what your issue is, so to answer your post someone would have to spend a huge amount of time researching something you didn't even identify,  to tell you everything about all the legal issues. I think if you have specific legal questions and post on this forum, it's likely that you will get a response from an attorney.  If "who can help me" is a way of seeking a lawyer to hire for your case, people would still need specifics. A short answer however is that if you have a case with the case number that means it's pending. If you do not have a lawyer, do you need one. That lawyer will help you.... Read More

I think that it would be possible for a court to grant you joint custody with your mom by agreement. I don't believe that would be a very likely result if it was contested. I think what any lawyer would want to really dig into with you is what exactly the goal is. If you're living in a home with mom, I would think that pretty much your time with the child is not being restricted. if your mom is not discussing decisions with you about your daughter, that might be an issue, but if you're being included, then it seems like you are really already exercising joint custody, even if that's not what the paper says.Especially with a 16-year-old, there is not an agreement, she's liable to be something close to 18 by the time you could fight this in court and go to trial.That takes me back to the beginning; if your mom would agree to redraw the papers so that you and her had joint custody, I think a judge would approve that. If it was some kind of fight, I think either you would have custody or she would have custody, but not both.... Read More

Interesting. That question to me seems governor and more by the ethical and professional rules of your profession, not the legal profession, but I can contribute. Just like for me to do a proper analysis of someone's legal situation, I need to see all the evidence that contributes to that situation, it would seem to analyze an adolescent who deals with issues from a divorce, whether directly or indirectly, you would have to see the evidence. I would think the key part would be making a clear and simple explanation to the parents of the therapeutic need. It seems they've taken the step to bring the child or adolescent to you, so they aren't therapy resistant, necessarily. Obviously material in your office is confidential just like in their lawyer's office. I think if you are confident and present your needs to them, the professionalism you show will put them at ease... Read More

I'm sorry you are having to struggke with this. Until that Parenting Plan is changed, it's operative. The burden is going to be on you to show it needs to be changed, and you'll have to file and serve a Petition to Modify Parenting Plan, along with probably one or more Motions. Courts are hearing some emergency cases, and working on video hearings, etc., but there's a lot of uncertainty everywhere. At least with a Petition to Modify Parenting Plan filed, if she shows up and acts on her threats, you've got an active case, and so potentially a shorter path to a temporary hearing.... Read More

Your point of contact should always be your attorney(s). The GAL is the child(ren)'s voice, and answers only to the Court. In fact an attorney GAL cannot speak directly to a represented person. If you have an attorney the only attorney allowed to speak with you is your attorney. Don't stalk them but fine to reach out weekly for an update. If they don't reply, possibly nothing to update.... Read More

Legally, as a relative you could be considered for placement if legal mother (bio grandma) is abusing or neglecting the child. As a practical matter, if the therapists and DCS workers do t believe the child and believe mom, it's going to be very hard. The abuse and neglect would have to be proven by clear and convincing evidence. It certainly sounds like a very difficult situation. ... Read More

If you pass the drug screens, then drugs won't be an issue in your custody case. If you can prove that your husband knew you were clean and made the accusations anyways, it's possible the Court would consider that as a factor in making a custody decision. There are lots of factors, and each gets weighed, so nobody can say exactly what effect any one thing will have.... Read More

That's a lot going on; I'm sorry you have so much on your plate. Father could file an action for primary custody, and he could ask the court to let him move out of state. All of that would be done using the child's best interest as the baseline. There are a lot of factors, but number one is continuity of placement and who has been the primary caregiver to the child. In the real world, I won't say more money doesn't matter, but it doesn't just mean he wins. It's not against the law to be poor.... Read More

If there is proof (clear and convincing evidence) that the new husband poses a significant risk of material harm to the children, a Court could grant a restraining Order or modify the parenting plan. Fairly  high standard of proof. It will depend on the exact facts of the domestic violence with wife and older daughters ... Read More