Written by Canterbury Law Group

How To Get Visitation

Guide for Obtaining Visitation Permits

1. Examine Your Choices for Obtaining Directives Agree with the Other Parent

Make an effort to come to terms with the other parent. Your agreement may be deemed legally binding by a judge.
Use Alternative Dispute Resolution or Mediation: These processes can assist in bringing parties to an agreement without the need for a trial.
If all else fails, you have the option to ask for a custody trial, in which the court will decide on visitation and custody.
Free Marriage therapy: Conciliation Court offers free, brief marriage therapy to those who are unsure about divorcing, either before or after a case is opened.

2. Plan your Time and Create a Parenting Schedule

Make a parenting plan that outlines your visiting schedule and any other significant agreements you have with your co-parent.
Determine the Parenting Time: Assign each parent a specific amount of time to spend with the child.
Set the Timetable Right Away: Making your timetable in advance will benefit you during court cases or discussions.

3. Filing a Case (In the Event of No Agreement)

Representation: Your attorney will take care of the paperwork if you have one. Use these procedures if you are representing yourself.
Respondent vs. Petitioner: The parent who files is known as the respondent, while the petitioner is the other parent. They can both be called litigants.

4. Fill up the Required Forms

Divorced or single parents: Fill out the appropriate forms, depending on your circumstances.
Typical forms consist of:
Children’s Sensitive Data Cover Sheet
Declaration Concerning Minor Children Summons
Purchase and Consent Form for Parent Education Classes Parenting Schedule (make your own)
Extra forms for parents going through a divorce:
Request for Divorce in Case of Minor Children
Notice of Preliminary Injunction Concerning Creditors
Form for Current Employer Information
Notification of Your Rights Regarding Health Insurance Protection
Extra paperwork for parents who are not married:
Request for Court Order for Vital Records, Parenting Time, Child Support, and/or Paternity and Legal Decision-Making
Temporary Orders: During the lawsuit, submit a motion for temporary orders if you require custody or visitation restrictions.
Notarize Forms: Prior to filing, all forms must be notarized.

5. File Documents and Pay Requirements

File Forms: Send forms to the Superior Court in your county. With Arizona’s e-filing system, online filing is permitted in numerous counties. Submit paper copies in person if not.
Filing Fees: Aim for fees of $100 to $200, plus any extra expenses. For individuals who are unable to pay, there may be fee waivers or deferrals available.

6. Give the other parent the papers.

The document needs to be served to the other parent in a proper manner, and the court needs to receive proof of service.
Choices consist of:
Acceptance of Service: Get a signed Acceptance of Service form from the parent.
Certified Mail: File the delivery receipt and send the documents by certified mail.
Employ a private process server to deliver the documents if you have any.
County Sheriff: Deliver documents via the sheriff’s office; frequently, there is a reduced charge.
Publication of Notice: If the other parent cannot be found, issue a notice in a newspaper and submit the proof of publication to the court.

7. Await the Other Parent’s Response Deadline: Depending on the service option chosen, the other parent must react in a span of 20 to 25 days.

Uncontested Case: The case moves forward to settlement if the opposing parent accepts your petition.
Case in Controversy: In the event that the opposing parent is not persuaded, the matter proceeds to trial.
Default Judgment: You may request a default judgment in your favor from the court if the other parent chooses not to reply.

Speak With Our Father’s Rights Attorneys In Scottsdale

Our Father’s Rightschild custody, and guardianship attorneys in Phoenix and Scottsdale address your case with concern and personal attention, and always have you and your children’s best interest in mind when offering legal solutions.

We are experienced family law attorneys and will work with you to obtain the best possible outcome in your situation. You can trust us to represent you fully, so you can get on with your life. Call today for an initial consultation!

*This information is not intended to be legal advice. Please contact Canterbury Law Group today to learn more about your personal legal needs.

Written by Canterbury Law Group

Paternity Law

Family Law is a legal practice area where attorneys focus on legal issues such as divorce, adoption and child custody among others. Practicing family law attorneys can represent clients in family court proceedings, related negotiations and can also help to draft legal documentation such as property settlement agreements or court petitions. Some family law attorneys also offer services to help with adoption, emancipation, paternity or other matters not usually related to divorce.

Paternity law deals with the legal recognition of a man as the father of a child. It encompasses a range of issues, including establishing paternity, the rights and responsibilities of fathers, and related matters such as child support and custody. Here is a detailed overview of paternity law:

Establishing Paternity

  1. Voluntary Acknowledgment:
    • Birth Certificate: In many cases, paternity is established when both parents sign the birth certificate at the time of the child’s birth.
    • Acknowledgment of Paternity (AOP): Both parents can sign a voluntary acknowledgment of paternity form, which is a legal document recognizing the man as the child’s father. This can typically be done at the hospital or later through a government agency.
  2. Court Order:
    • Paternity Lawsuit: Either parent or the child can file a paternity lawsuit to establish the legal father of the child. This can be initiated by the mother, the alleged father, or the state (often in cases involving public assistance).
    • Genetic Testing: If paternity is contested, the court may order genetic testing (DNA testing) to determine whether the alleged father is biologically related to the child.
  3. Presumption of Paternity:
    • Marital Presumption: In many jurisdictions, a man is presumed to be the legal father if he is married to the mother at the time of the child’s birth. This presumption can be rebutted by evidence to the contrary.

Rights and Responsibilities

  1. Parental Rights:
    • Custody and Visitation: Once paternity is established, the father has the right to seek custody and visitation. Courts typically aim to make decisions in the best interests of the child, which can involve joint or sole custody arrangements.
    • Decision-Making: Fathers gain the right to participate in significant decisions affecting the child’s life, including education, medical care, and religious upbringing.
  2. Parental Responsibilities:
    • Child Support: Establishing paternity creates a legal obligation for the father to support the child financially. Child support amounts are determined based on state guidelines, which consider both parents’ incomes and the needs of the child.
    • Health Insurance: Fathers may be required to provide health insurance for their children or contribute to medical expenses not covered by insurance.

Challenges and Considerations

  1. Disputed Paternity:
    • When paternity is disputed, genetic testing is a reliable method for establishing biological relationships. Courts rely heavily on the results of these tests to make determinations about paternity.
  2. Unmarried Parents:
    • Paternity issues are often more complex for unmarried parents. Establishing paternity is a critical step for unmarried fathers to secure their parental rights and responsibilities.
  3. Revoking Paternity:
    • In some cases, an acknowledgment of paternity can be challenged and revoked if new evidence (such as DNA test results) suggests that the acknowledged father is not the biological father. The process and time limits for challenging paternity vary by jurisdiction.

Legal Assistance

  • Paternity Lawyers: Legal professionals specializing in family law can assist with paternity issues, including filing paternity actions, navigating genetic testing, and addressing disputes.
  • Government Agencies: Many states have child support enforcement agencies that assist with establishing paternity, especially in cases where public assistance is involved.

Paternity law is a critical aspect of family law that ensures the legal recognition of a father-child relationship, conferring rights and responsibilities upon the father. Establishing paternity can be done voluntarily or through court proceedings, and it plays a fundamental role in matters of child support, custody, and visitation. Understanding the legal framework and seeking appropriate legal advice can help navigate the complexities of paternity law effectively.

Need a Family Lawyer in Scottsdale?

Our experienced family law attorneys will work with you to obtain the best possible outcome in your case.  Proven trial lawyers in family court, you can trust the firm to represent you fully so you can get on with your life. Call today for your initial consultation. Our family lawyers can help with divorce litigation, collaborative divorcedivorce mediationchild custodylegal guardianshippaternityprenuptial agreements, and more.

*This information is not intended to be used as legal advice. Please contact Canterbury Law Group today to learn more about your personal legal needs. 480-744-7711 or [email protected]

Written by Canterbury Law Group

Supervised Visitation

The noncustodial parent may only see their child under the supervision of another adult during supervised visitation. It helps to maintain the parent-child bond while keeping the child safe. Also, it ensures that during visits, the custodial parent is aware of the child’s whereabouts.

Supervised exchanges, which shield parents from one another and shield children from witnessing conflict, are not the same as supervised visitation, also known as supervised contact, supervised parenting time, and similar terms.

If supervised visitation is required, the parenting plan will include a court order for it. In order for the supervised visits to take place, the parents might also need to set up a visitation schedule.

When might supervised visitation be required?

  • A parent has abused the child physically, sexually, or emotionally.
  • One parent has experienced emotional, sexual, or physical abuse at the hands of the other parent.
  • A parent is struggling with substance abuse.
  • An untreated mental illness in a parent endangers the child.
  • One of the parents could abduct or kidnap the other.
  • A kid has been neglected by a parent
  • After being gone from the child’s life, a parent wishes to establish a relationship with them.
  • Have there been any instances of potentially hazardous family dynamics?
    Supervised visitation is frequently a transient arrangement that, should the noncustodial parent fulfill certain conditions, can result in unsupervised visitation. For instance, in order to be granted unsupervised visits, the noncustodial parent might have to take an anger management course, get counseling, or submit to six months of clean drug tests.

The operation of supervised visitation

The terms of the supervised visits will be outlined in the court order if the judge determines that your child would benefit most from supervised visitation.

The location of the supervised visits may be mandated by the judge. For the duration of the visits, a monitor will be in the room with the noncustodial parent.

A social worker or someone similar may be assigned by the judge to go with the child to the noncustodial parent’s house (or other agreed-upon location). Throughout the entire visit, the assigned monitor will accompany the child and then give them back to the custodial parent.

If the participant is willing and the parents can agree on a person, the judge may permit a friend, relative, or acquaintance to serve as the monitor for supervised visits. Should you choose this course of action, you must evaluate the individual’s dependability and credibility.

Including supervised visitation in your custody arrangement

Make sure to use precise language that eliminates any possibility of misunderstanding when drafting your parenting plan to include supervised visits. Try to be as detailed as you can.

A lawyer can draft language that the judge will accept if you hire them. Make use of technology to eliminate uncertainty when creating your own plan.

Immediately after a judge signs your plan into a court order, the supervised visitation requirements under it can be legally enforced.

Plan out your timetable. Obtain a formalized parenting plan. Make a parenting time calculation. Have everything documented so you’re ready.

Do I Need an Attorney to Enforce Father’s Rights?

State laws differ when it comes down to the visitation rights of a father. Because cases involving family law can be time-consuming, exhausting, and emotional, it is highly advisable that you talk with an attorney near you. A knowledgeable and experienced family law lawyer can guarantee that your rights to visitation are protected, and can assist with any other issues that involve your case.

Source: Tipton, Sarah. “Visitation Rights for Fathers.” LegalMatch Law Library, 14 Aug. 2018, www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/visitation-rights-for-fathers.html.

Speak With Our Father’s Rights Attorneys In Scottsdale

Our Father’s Rightschild custody, and guardianship attorneys in Phoenix and Scottsdale address your case with concern and personal attention, and always have you and your children’s best interest in mind when offering legal solutions.

We are experienced family law attorneys and will work with you to obtain the best possible outcome in your situation. You can trust us to represent you fully, so you can get on with your life. Call today for an initial consultation!

*This information is not intended to be legal advice. Please contact Canterbury Law Group today to learn more about your personal legal needs.

Written by Canterbury Law Group

Grounds to Deny a Father Visitation Rights

The old tradition of one parent having physical custody and the other parent having visitation rights still exists today, but many courts are moving toward joint custody arrangements after divorce. This is especially true while your divorce is still ongoing and if one parent has moved out of the marital home – judges don’t like to upset a child’s present situation needlessly, so the parent who moves out might end up with visitation rights instead of joint custody until the divorce is finalized. Under certain circumstances, a court may deny visitation, but a custodial parent cannot do so on her own.

Court Grounds

Courts seldom deny visitation entirely, if at all, particularly in a provisional order while a divorce is still pending. Visitation may be denied after a trial during which custody is litigated as part of the divorce, but this would typically be the result of critical circumstances. As an example, in the state of Illinois, the statutes state that a parent has a right to acceptable visitation unless it can “endanger seriously” the child, either physically, mentally, morally, or emotionally. The appellate court in Illinois ruled in 1987 that even sexual abuse of the child was not grounds for denying visitation to a non-custodial parent since the court hadn’t adequately established that the abuse happened. Grounds for an absolute revocation of visitation must typically be grievous and verifiable beyond a doubt.

Supervised Visitation

Even though the courts are slow to deny visitation overall, they’re more inclined to order supervised visitation when contact with a parent might jeopardize the child. Supervised visitation includes a 3rd party being present to watch over the contact and protect the child if needed. California courts are willing to order this type of agreement for different reasons, especially regarding a likelihood of parental kidnapping, a drawn-out estrangement between child and parent, or in domestic violence cases. Illinois courts have arranged supervised visitation if the parent suffers from a type of mental illness, and Alaska will order them in cases of domestic abuse, but only if the parent has taken steps toward recovery. Alaska is a state that will refuse visitation when a parent has a domestic violence record.

Custodial Parents’ Rights

If you have major concerns in regard to your child’s safety, you’re not helpless. You can deny visitation on an individual basis due to an emergency, but you may need evidence to safeguard yourself from contempt of court charges if you do. As an example, if your spouse comes to pick up your child for visitation and he’s clearly been drinking, you don’t have to let her to get into the car with him. However, you should call the police, so you will have a record of the occurrence that you can later provide to the court when you voice your concerns, whether at a temporary hearing or included in your divorce trial. Even though you don’t have grounds to deny visitation completely, you can petition the court and ask a judge to do it for you. The burden of proof is always on you to establish that visitation is likely to harm your child, so you’ll need testimony and records of incidents that threatened your child’s well-being and welfare when she was in your spouse’s care.

Rehabilitation

Even if the court arranges supervised visitation or is denied in your divorce decree, it doesn’t mean the circumstances will never change. A lot of states will allow a parent who has been denied visitation to restore his rights through effective parental rehabilitation. This may include anger management classes, drug or alcohol abuse therapy, or other intervention plans. As you can request the court at any time to stop visitation, your spouse can request to re-establish it if he can prove good cause.

Can Arizona Court Deny a Father Visitation Rights?

What Are Some Common Reasons a Parent Is Denied Visitation Rights?

When two parents are separated or divorced, the custodial parent occasionally prevents the non-custodial parent from employing his or her child visitation rights. If you are a non-custodial parent that has been denied visitation rights that you once had, there are some simple reasons why you were denied your visitation rights:

  • You’re a non-custodial parent and are not paying child support
  • Objection of other parent’s relationships, like a new mate
  • Drug and/ or alcohol abuse
  • Incarceration due to child abuse
  • Abduction fears
  • Religious belief differences
  • Child’s desires

If there is a custody order in effect, denying visitation is illegal and can have serious legal consequences for the parent who refuses visitation. In some jurisdictions, a custodial parent may deny visitation if visitation with the non-custodial parent would risk exposing the child to direct bodily injury or emotional abuse. In addition, the custodial parent must also take particular steps before denying visitation, like getting a hold of the appropriate authorities. This is only allowed in exceptional circumstances.

Sources

ARS 25-414 Violation of Visitation and Parenting Time Rights.” Stewart Law Group, https://www.arizonalawgroup.com/arizona-family-law-statutes/ars-25-414-violation-of-visitation-and-parenting-time-rights/

Bird, Beverly. “Grounds for Denying Visitation Rights.” LegalZoom Legal Info, 21 Nov. 2017, https://info.legalzoom.com/grounds-denying-visitation-rights-26246.html.

Speak With Our Father’s Rights Attorneys In Scottsdale

Our Father’s Rightschild custody, and guardianship attorneys in Phoenix and Scottsdale address your case with concern and personal attention, and always have you and your children’s best interest in mind when offering legal solutions.

We are experienced family law attorneys and will work with you to obtain the best possible outcome in your situation. You can trust us to represent you fully, so you can get on with your life. Call today for an initial consultation!

*This information is not intended to be used as legal advice. Please contact Canterbury Law Group today to learn more about your personal legal needs. 480-744-7711 or [email protected]

Written by Canterbury Law Group

Child Visitation Rights For Fathers

In family law, the rights of fathers often involve a father’s visitation rights and the custody of his children.

Though the laws of each state vary, fathers usually reserve their right to custody and visitation without exception. Issues like paternity tests or a child’s surname on the birth certificate are usually more state-specific.

A father’s right to visitation basically means that the biological father has the right to spend time with the child during a given time. In the case of divorce, a divorce decree defines the rights and responsibilities of each party at the dissolution of marriage. It encompasses many important facets of a divorce proceeding, including child support, child custody, and the father’s visitation rights.

Father’s Rights include:

  • The right to visit the children at a specified time
  • The right to plan activities with the children
  • The right to be free of the mother’s monitoring during visitation times
  • The right to spend the entire assigned time with the children, with no infraction
  • The right to a mandate to stop the mother from taking the children out of state
  • The right to revise the divorce decree

Revising the divorce decree usually happens when the visitation schedule needs to be changed, or if a party has a problem with the other due to an issue over the agreement.

Modification of Father’s Visitation Rights

Visitation rights are generally altered due to changing situations. If a party is moving, or a work schedule was altered a modification might be required. If the child’s requirements have changed, or a third party (a grandparent) is asking for the rights to visit, then the parents can propose the changes to the court prior to acting on a new agreement. If one party acts before the court’s approval, a violation of the visitation order may happen, followed by severe consequences.

Father’s Rights Enforcement

Visitation rights are not automatically granted to the father. If you’re looking to declare your visitation rights, be ready to endure a thorough examination by the court. Before appearing before the judge, it is a wise decision to talk with an attorney. The court may evaluate your relationship with your child, your overall mental health, and your background. Any history of criminal activities, cases of domestic violence, or abuse may also influence the court’s ruling, as can substance abuse allegations leveled against you.

Do I Need an Attorney to Enforce Father’s Rights?

State laws differ when it comes down to the visitation rights of a father. Because cases involving family law can be time-consuming, exhausting, and emotional, it is highly advisable that you talk with an attorney near you. A knowledgeable and experienced family law lawyer can guarantee that your rights to visitation are protected, and can assist with any other issues that involve your case.

Source: Tipton, Sarah. “Visitation Rights for Fathers.” LegalMatch Law Library, 14 Aug. 2018, www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/visitation-rights-for-fathers.html.

Speak With Our Father’s Rights Attorneys In Scottsdale

Our Father’s Rightschild custody, and guardianship attorneys in Phoenix and Scottsdale address your case with concern and personal attention, and always have you and your children’s best interest in mind when offering legal solutions.

We are experienced family law attorneys and will work with you to obtain the best possible outcome in your situation. You can trust us to represent you fully, so you can get on with your life. Call today for an initial consultation!

*This information is not intended to be legal advice. Please contact Canterbury Law Group today to learn more about your personal legal needs.