• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

my friend's custody battle

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

Anabeth

Junior Member
What is the name of your state?
california

I have a few questions for my friend. First is chid custody. Where can my friend look to find a pro bono child custody lawyer in Sonoma County, CA and can she use a lawyer from a different county in California for the case? Is there a way to get a different county hear the case?

My friend has a child custody case pending in court where her soon to be ex-husband verbally and possibly physically abused her, tried to get my friend locked up in a mental ward for life and say she was "unstable," had his mom take their child from Alabama to California without her permission (but with his) & refuse to hand the child over to her. He too has spent time in a mental hospital & visited him there during my military deployment before he was discharged. Both have medical & psych records that can be used in court, but my question is, despite my friend being cleared by the doctor as "stable" now, since she's away from the husband, the grandmother continues to claim she's "unstable" & fights for sole custody, and has even had her son, the father move in with her. My friend has two part-time jobs and lives with her own parents since being discharged from the military. She's taken every step asked of her to regain custody so far & it's been at least 6 months since they started going to court. How long & is it possible for my friend to regain custody of her daughter?

And for a divorce (which she needs too)...the husband started filing & trying to claim residency in Alabama first, but nothing was signed before he moved back to California. My friend has been living in Wisconsin now (I believe the state of residence she claimed in the military) since around October or November I think...about 6 months. Is the Alabama filing even going to go anywhere? If not, will she be able to file before him?
 
Last edited:


Zephyr

Senior Member
where is the custody case pending? and can you please have your friend come here, we would certainly need to know what, if any current orders there are
 

moburkes

Senior Member
What is the name of your state?
california

I have a few questions for my friend. First is chid custody. Where can my friend look to find a pro bono child custody lawyer in Sonoma County, CA and can she use a lawyer from a different county in California for the case? Is there a way to get a different county hear the case?

My friend has a child custody case pending in court where her soon to be ex-husband verbally and possibly physically abused her, tried to get my friend locked up in a mental ward for life and say she was "unstable," had his mom take their child from Alabama to California without her permission (but with his) & refuse to hand the child over to her. He too has spent time in a mental hospital & visited him there during my military deployment before he was discharged. Both have medical & psych records that can be used in court, but my question is, despite my friend being cleared by the doctor as "stable" now, since she's away from the husband, the grandmother continues to claim she's "unstable" & fights for sole custody, and has even had her son, the father move in with her. My friend has two part-time jobs and lives with her own parents since being discharged from the military. She's taken every step asked of her to regain custody so far & it's been at least 6 months since they started going to court. How long & is it possible for my friend to regain custody of her daughter?

And for a divorce (which she needs too)...the husband started filing & trying to claim residency in Alabama first, but nothing was signed before he moved back to California. My friend has been living in Wisconsin now (I believe the state of residence she claimed in the military) since around October or November I think...about 6 months. Is the Alabama filing even going to go anywhere? If not, will she be able to file before him?
What does your military deployment have to do with your friend's situation?:confused:
 

Anabeth

Junior Member
we were all soldiers deployed to Iraq at the time & he was at a military facility & my friend's condition & the entire situation, more or less, began during the deployment
 

Anabeth

Junior Member
also, within the 4 days she was moving back to Wisconsin is when the mother-in-law tried to have her served with papers trying to get permanent custody, after my friend called her the week before telling her she wanted her daughter back. The court is wanting there to be a gradual transition for the child. Attempts to use mediation have failed & my friends lawyer feels trial is inevitable, but hasn't pushed for my friend to have visitations with her daughter for more than 2 weeks long at a time & the visits are spread months apart. When asked in court (I was there to hear it) what else my friend needed to do to get her daughter back, the mother-in-law stated, "I don't know," yet the court for some reason keeps seeming to side with the mother-in-law & it's bizarre, but I know Santa Rosa, Ca is kinda small & I have a feeling she has some friends in the courts, since it's her home town & my friend is from Wisconsin.
 

Silverplum

Senior Member
There is no way you can give all of the relevant info in order to get valid legal help, and it's really none of your business.

The best thing you could do for your friend is encourage her to seek legal help herself. Many family attorneys offer free initial consultations, and say so in their yellow page ads.
 

Anabeth

Junior Member
I know the whole story, since I'm her best friend & I also have know her husband for about as long as she has. It's my business because my friend is allowing it to be my business to help her, to include a website I made to help her. She has a lawyer, but she's starting to feel like the lawyer isn't fighting hard enough to help her out. And I'm thinking of any way I can to help my friend.
 

Silverplum

Senior Member
I know the whole story, since I'm her best friend & I also have know her husband for about as long as she has. It's my business because my friend is allowing it to be my business to help her, to include a website I made to help her. She has a lawyer, but she's starting to feel like the lawyer isn't fighting hard enough to help her out. And I'm thinking of any way I can to help my friend.
Oooookaaaaay. :rolleyes: :cool:
 

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top