Child custody issues appear after a divorce. Both parents want to keep the child or children with them in most cases. This is when the problem arises. Also, such a problem arises when two people have a child without marriage. In most situations, the state law and court give a solution to such an issue. That’s where you need a child custody lawyer.
If you want to keep your child or children with you, and your ex-partner wants the same, you should talk to someone who can help you to get them into your custody. A lawyer can assist you with this in court.
Let’s learn more about child custody lawyers, what they do, and other related things.
Understanding Child Custody
Child custody is a legal term for a parent’s rights, responsibilities, and obligations toward a child. After a divorce, the parents have a concern about dividing the responsibilities of the child or children between them. In most cases, the negotiation between them doesn’t work well. In such a situation, the court makes the decision.
Child custody is of two types. One is legal custody, which means the ability of the parents to take decisions like medical needs, healthcare, education, and overall well-being. Another is physical custody, which means the day-to-day responsibility of the child, including the place to stay.
In both cases, the court tries to suggest joint custody so that the child stays in frequent touch with both parents.
However, you can take the help of your lawyer if you have a specific wish about the custody of the child and you want to fight in court for that.
Should I Get a Lawyer for Child Custody?
As the court tries its best to keep both parents in touch with the child, hiring a child custody lawyer might seem to be an unnecessary expense in most cases. But some situations need you to get someone for you.
For example, getting a child custody lawyer would be very helpful if you don’t know about the steps and situations you have to handle in court. You’ll struggle to learn the process. There is a chance that you can’t concentrate on the case while struggling with all the rules, requirements, and tough situations in court. A lawyer can make things smoother for you.
Also, if your case is complicated, for instance, if the other parent is not satisfied with the court’s order and wants it to go as their wish, a lawyer would help you to handle the situation.
What does Child Custody Lawyer Do?
You’ve already learnt that a lawyer can help you go through the complex child custody process and make things smoother. But it is not the only advantage of hiring a lawyer for child custody cases. Other things they can do for you include-
- They can help you calculate the amount of child support as they know the factors that affect it. Thus, you’ll have a better idea about the amount of support, and you can ask to modify it based on your situation.
- If you feel you’re deprived of the rights you should have, your lawyer can help you with it. For example- if your ex doesn’t want you to meet the child frequently, the lawyer can support you in getting your rights.
- The court’s child support order may not satisfy you in some cases. You have the right to ask for modification. However, the process of modification of the existing order is more complex. When you have a lawyer with you, it will be easier.
- Your ex-partner might seek a modification of the current child custody order from the court. If you think the current order is the best, you need to fight them in court. There is no hesitation that your child support lawyer can help you with this.
Hiring someone to help you with child support cases has a huge benefit. You’ll feel that while facing the complications.
What Kind of Lawyer Do I Need for Child Custody?
Any kind of lawyer can handle child custody cases, but it won’t be wise to pick one randomly. Instead, you have to pick someone who has experience with such cases.
That’s why look for a lawyer who handles family law cases. They have a better understanding of family law and child custody law. It would be better to select someone experienced in handling child custody cases for a long time.
Experience matters.
The Process to Find the Best Child Custody Lawyer
Picking the best lawyer for such cases is crucial if you want to get the best output from it. Here is the process you can follow to find out the best one.
Step 1- Recommendation
In the very first step, you would search for recommendations. Ask your friends and family if they know someone who handles such cases. Also, search engines recommend good lawyers too. So, search there.
Communicate with any lawyer you know and ask them to suggest someone to handle your cases. Different types of lawyers are connected because of their profession.
Also, you can go to a local bar community and ask for suggestions.
In the end, make a list of the lawyers you’ve been recommended.
Step 2- Filtering
In this step, you’ll filter the list to pick the most credible 5-6 options.
Start from their websites. Nowadays, most lawyers are active on their websites and social media profiles. This will help you know their experience, success rate, types of cases they handle, and the recent ones they’re working on.
Also, you’ll find reviews there. However, for review, you should depend on the websites dedicated to service or legal service reviews. They offer the most dependable and true client reviews.
Based on the research, sort out most from the list and keep only 5-6 lawyers.
Step 3- Digging Deeper
Now you have to dig deeper. What you need to do here is communicate with them directly. Contact the remaining lawyers over the phone. If someone offers free consultancy, meet them directly.
In this step, you’ll ask them about their experience, your possibility of winning, the recent similar cases they’ve worked on, the time they can invest in your case, etc. I’ll discuss this more a bit later.
This would help you to understand them better. Focus on their eagerness to handle your case and the confidence they have. Also, you should keep an eye on their communication skill. It is the most important skill for lawyers.
Try to be comfortable with them. Without being comfortable, you can’t discuss the issue properly.
Step 4- Picking One
After face-to-face or over-phone communication with all of them, select one from the list. Prioritize communication skills, enough time to invest in your case, and communication comfort.
Also, the fees may matter to you. But try not to make it your primary focus.
Following this process, you can select a lawyer to help you with your case.
What Questions to Ask a Lawyer for Child Custody
Naturally, the lawyer would handle the maximum portion of your child custody case. But you need to have curiosity about it. Also, to make sure that the lawyer is compatible, you need to ask a few questions, such as-
How does the court determine which parent gets custody?
You should know how, depending on which considerations, the court determines the best custody option for the child. It will help you to provide enough information to the lawyer about the child and your relationship with the ex.
Also, knowing about the process helps you to stay comfortable and prepared for what’s coming up.
Tell me about your experience in child custody cases.
You must be sure you’re hiring a compatible lawyer for the case. There is a chance that your ex-partner will hire one too. So, you must ensure that your lawyer has enough experience to face such cases.
Select someone who can help you with the case from all perspectives. For this, the lawyer must have experience handling such cases, study this type of law, and have good communication skills.
What to do next?
There is a chance that you don’t know the legal procedure. So, it is very common to ask what’s next.
Ask your lawyer this question after you describe the situation. Then see what they ask you to do. Go for the best possible solution.
Should I go to court or mediation?
Child custody cases can often be solved by mediation. It depends on several factors, though. So, you can ask your lawyer about this.
Taking the case to court involves a huge cost of money and time. So, if mediation can solve the issue, trying this option is the best possible course of action. Let’s see what your lawyer suggests about this.
What should be in the child custody agreement?
Child custody agreement contains many fields about the custody and responsibility of the parents to the child. Before filing a case, having an idea about this is better. That’s why you can ask your lawyer about the fields in the agreement.
Typical custody agreements include-
- Physical custody terms
- Legal custody terms
- Visitation and custody schedule
- Visitation terms and conditions
- Things to do during holidays and special events
- Ways the parent will communicate
- Ways to resolve any dispute regarding the child
Lawyers handling such cases know better about the recent changes. So, you should ask the lawyer you’re talking to about this.
How can you help to get custody of my child?
You should know their plan for the case. So, ask them such questions. You can want to know a detailed course of action, maybe to know the process they’ll follow. Also, ask them about the strong sides they’ll use to win the case. Counter them with some advantages of your ex if you want to go further.
What can be the possible solution?
Asking about the possible solution keeps you prepared for the result. Also, the lawyer may discuss another case similar to yours to give you a better of what can happen.
How much is your fee?
There is no fixed fee structure for lawyers. It varies depending on several conditions. So, without asking directly, you won’t know how much you need to spend to get custody of your child.
Ask them about their fee, how they’ll receive it, and if there is any way to reduce it. These will have an impact on your decision.
Let’s discuss the possible fee and fee structure of lawyers.
How Much does a Child Custody Lawyer Cost?
As there is no fixed payment rate for legal help, the charge lawyers ask for is huge in most cases. Also, it varies within a wider range. A lot of factors have impacts on this too.
Some common factors affecting the cost of a child custody case lawyer are-
- Type of settlement- where will it be settled- court, mediation, or any other option?
- The difficulty and complexity of the case,
- The time needed to solve the case,
- Experience of the lawyer or attorney,
- The area where the lawyer lives in,
- And so on.
Depending on the important aspects of the case and the lawyer, the total fee of a lawyer or attorney for child custody can be anywhere between $4,000 to $10,000. Most lawyers who ask for a flat fee charge you any amount within this range.
Some may ask for an hourly fee. Depending on the factors to consider, the hourly fee for such lawyers or attorneys is around $170-$500.
The problem is- a high fee doesn’t always say that the lawyer has enough experience to ensure the best solution for you. Also, a low fee isn’t the primary criterion for selecting a lawyer to fight for you. So, you need to focus better on experience and success rate.
With an hourly fee structure, the cost can rise a lot. But most legal services out there follow this fee structure.
What are the Other Costs of Such a Case?
Besides the lawyers’ fee, you must carry several other costs to apply for custody of your child. For example- if you want to settle the issue in court, a court fee is required. Depending on the place you live in, the court fee differs.
If you don’t want to settle it in court and look for mediation, that’ll cost you too. The hourly charge for an expert private mediator is around $200-$300.
Numerous costs may come up while the case is going on. For example- multiple appearances in court will cost you a lot. Also, child psychiatrists and other types of experts should be hired in such cases. You would also have to pay their fees, typically at an average $200 hourly rate.
Such cases may need you to join parent conferences or limited family assessment. The programs cost you a lot, around $600-$1500, or even more, depending on the program you’re joining.
There will be some miscellaneous costs too associated with such a case.
Overall, such a case would cost anywhere from $6,000 to $40,000. So, you must be prepared enough to handle such huge costs to have your child’s custody.
(N.B- The amounts here are assumed and may not match exactly with the amount needed in real life. Any of the costs may vary.)
What If I don’t have the Ability to Hire a Lawyer for Child Custody?
If you don’t have the ability to bear such a huge expense, don’t worry. You have several other options.
Filing for a Pro Se
Filing for a Pro Se means you want to work on the case on your own. In such a case, you won’t need a lawyer.
However, you need to perform immense research on such cases. You should know about the process, things you should know, and a lot more things.
A Pro Se would help you to save your money. But you may often get stuck.
You can consult a family lawyer if you’re stuck somewhere. This would cost you the consultation fee only.
Pro Bono Service
Pro Bono service is a situation where the lawyer works on the case for free. The lawyer’s and supporting persons’ fees are completely waived in such services.
Typically, big law firms offer Pro Bono services. Go and check the websites of such law firms.
Pro Bono services are offered by law schools too. They offer such a service to use the case as study material. However, they prioritize your case with a similar concentration so that you don’t be neglected from your rights. If you have a legal school of any university in your area, try that.
Discounted Service
Several law firms and lawyers offer you discounted services where the cost of legal aid is taken down to 50%. Such opportunities will help you to save some bucks from your child custody case.
Discounted services are offered by legal aid societies and programs too.
Court Appointed Lawyer for Child Custody
A Guardian Ad Litem is an individual assigned by the court to protect the child’s interest. If you can’t hire a lawyer but know that the child wants to stay with you, appoint an ad litem for the child.
Ad litem attorneys have some barriers. They can’t work in your interest. The child’s interest should be the only focus of an ad litem. So, hiring them won’t help you much if the child has no wish to stay with you.
You May Also Like: Child Support Lawyer
How To Get a Court-Appointed Lawyer for Child Custody?
You must submit an application to the court to have a court-appointed attorney for child custody. In this case, the court may ask for proof that shows you’re unable to appoint an attorney to represent you in court.
Then, you’ll have to go through a short procedure allowing you to talk to a court-appointed attorney for the case.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
How long does it require to resolve a child custody case?
There is no specific time boundary for this. But the court tries to settle such cases early because of the mental pressure on the child.
If you’re lucky, you’ll get things done within two months. But if you’re not, it may take one year. Who knows!
Why does the court modify child custody orders?
The court can revise a child custody order under several circumstances. Depending on where the case is taking place, it varies.
The most common reasons behind modifying a child custody order are- the death of a parent, safety issues, relocation of the custodian or child, etc. Ask your lawyer to know the reasons in your state.
What to do to ensure a better result in a child custody case?
In such cases, the relationship between the child and parent gets the maximum priority. So, make sure that you have a good relationship with your child. Also, don’t be nervous on the court. Make sure you have enough financial ability to take care of the child.
The court may ask for a custody plan. Prepare one in your mind.