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A father and daughter being screwed by the legal system
MorbidCharlie
Registered User new member
Registered User new member
Okay, I'm going to my best not to make this a tl;dr post.
I've been in a divorce for over two years and we've been seperated the entire time. There's been a lot of back and forth and I've made some smart decisions and some not so smart. I'm really looking for any advice or links to resources that anyone can give. More than likely if it's on the net, I've already seen it, but please post anyway as I'm trying to exhaust all options that I can. Unless something comes up, I'm going to make the tough decision to start selling off things I own to afford a lawyer, but I don't want to have to get to that point. This is going down in Fort Worth, TX.
We've gone to trial (March 2010) and temporary orders were set. We split time with our daughter 50/50. I have to give her $400 a month to help pay for the house. On days that both the mother and I work, she has to go to her maternal grandmothers. At the time, we were working overnights, so she had to stay overnight there.
It's now September. She has had a child with another man, and they have been living together for another year. I've been living with my fiancee' for a year myself and we are expecting a child in November. My lawyer and I drafted a Rule 11 based on a sit down that she (wife) and I had, and after hounding me to get it done almost daily, it went to the other camp and nothing was done with it. She has told me that the final decree is being drafted, but it's been three months and still nothing there.
While all of this is frustrating, the worst part is our daughter having to stay at her grandmothers. I have numerous photographs showing the unsanitary conditions of the house. The carpets are stained with cat urine and feces. The mother insists that our daughter stay there or she will take me back to court for contempt. Ironically, she's a registered nurse and makes more than I do (a help desk tech) so I believe she would have the means to do this and I cannot afford an attorney if she does so. I've done the only thing I know to do and am trying to get CPS involved, but haven't heard anything yet.
I make too much to qualify for legal aid, but cannot afford to pay my attorney any more. More than likely it will become a litigation battle, which means that our daughter will have to continue to go to her grandmothers and I will have to continue to pay the mother $400 a month.
There's more to the story, but this is it in a nut shell. If more information would help someone here, let me know (in the likelihood that someone here is an attorney).
I've been in a divorce for over two years and we've been seperated the entire time. There's been a lot of back and forth and I've made some smart decisions and some not so smart. I'm really looking for any advice or links to resources that anyone can give. More than likely if it's on the net, I've already seen it, but please post anyway as I'm trying to exhaust all options that I can. Unless something comes up, I'm going to make the tough decision to start selling off things I own to afford a lawyer, but I don't want to have to get to that point. This is going down in Fort Worth, TX.
We've gone to trial (March 2010) and temporary orders were set. We split time with our daughter 50/50. I have to give her $400 a month to help pay for the house. On days that both the mother and I work, she has to go to her maternal grandmothers. At the time, we were working overnights, so she had to stay overnight there.
It's now September. She has had a child with another man, and they have been living together for another year. I've been living with my fiancee' for a year myself and we are expecting a child in November. My lawyer and I drafted a Rule 11 based on a sit down that she (wife) and I had, and after hounding me to get it done almost daily, it went to the other camp and nothing was done with it. She has told me that the final decree is being drafted, but it's been three months and still nothing there.
While all of this is frustrating, the worst part is our daughter having to stay at her grandmothers. I have numerous photographs showing the unsanitary conditions of the house. The carpets are stained with cat urine and feces. The mother insists that our daughter stay there or she will take me back to court for contempt. Ironically, she's a registered nurse and makes more than I do (a help desk tech) so I believe she would have the means to do this and I cannot afford an attorney if she does so. I've done the only thing I know to do and am trying to get CPS involved, but haven't heard anything yet.
I make too much to qualify for legal aid, but cannot afford to pay my attorney any more. More than likely it will become a litigation battle, which means that our daughter will have to continue to go to her grandmothers and I will have to continue to pay the mother $400 a month.
There's more to the story, but this is it in a nut shell. If more information would help someone here, let me know (in the likelihood that someone here is an attorney).
MorbidCharlie on
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How much have you given your attorney already? There are some real scum bags out there. My first attorney (similar situation) cost me nearly ten grand and produced absolutely nothing. My new attorney is a fucking dream; great guy, upfront pricing, just awesome.
Get thee in front of a judge, post haste. Stop letting your ex make the time lines and stall you out. Make the hard decisions that push this forward. Take control of the situation for chrissake.
Do you know how the courts in your state decide custody? No matter what though, you need to show the courts that you are taking care of this kid. You need to be stable; are you renting or do you own a home? Do you move often? Does your child have health insurance? From who? What is your daughter's doctor's name? Is she up to date on her shots? Have you ever taken her for her shots?
PAPER TRAIL
The more communication you have with your ex via e-mail, and the more she sounds like a horrible person, the better. But of course, be careful what YOU put in the e-mail. As much as you might not want to, you have to play the game. Family courts are notoriously difficult to get a fair shake in for a guy. The judges in them can pretty much do whatever they want and it is extremely rare for a man to get custody.