Child Abandonment

[justncase27]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Ga

My soon to be ex-wife has held my daughter from me and has now filed for abandonment. She has a lawyer, I do not. Court is this Friday. I was only contacted by a voicemail! Is that considered giving me notice? Also, could I really be convicted for this even though she has refused to let me see her?

 

[Antigone*]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Ga

My soon to be ex-wife has held my daughter from me and has now filed for abandonment. She has a lawyer, I do not. Court is this Friday. I was only contacted by a voicemail! Is that considered giving me notice? Also, could I really be convicted for this even though she has refused to let me see her?

How long has be been since you've seen your child? Are there any court orders in place? What have you done insofar as attempting to see your child?

 

[CSO286]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Ga

My soon to be ex-wife has held my daughter from me and has now filed for abandonment. She has a lawyer, I do not. Court is this Friday. I was only contacted by a voicemail! Is that considered giving me notice? Also, could I really be convicted for this even though she has refused to let me see her?

Were you served?
How long has it been since you've seen the child?
Are you the child's legal father?

You are going to need a lawyer. Barring that, you had better make sure you appear.

 

[justncase27]

She has held her from me since July 4th. As far as court orders, I was only contacted by voicemail from the court house telling me about my court date. I am the childs legal and biological father. I have called and texted my soon to be ex-wife. She has always had an excuse for me not to see my daughter. Now that she has filed for abandonment, she is saying legally that she can't let me see her and to talk to her lawyer. Her lawyer says see you on Friday!

 

[Antigone*]

She has held her from me since July 4th. As far as court orders, I was only contacted by voicemail from the court house telling me about my court date. I am the childs legal and biological father. I have called and texted my soon to be ex-wife. She has always had an excuse for me not to see my daughter. Now that she has filed for abandonment, she is saying legally that she can't let me see her and to talk to her lawyer. Her lawyer says see you on Friday!

Of course that is what her lawyer is going to say. Not seeing your child for little over a month is not child abandonment. I suggest you make it to court on Friday and ask that the matter be continued based on the fact that you were not properly served and that you didn't have time to retain counsel.

 

[mistoffolees]

Of course that is what her lawyer is going to say. Not seeing your child for little over a month is not child abandonment. I suggest you make it to court on Friday and ask that the matter be continued based on the fact that you were not properly served and that you didn't have time to retain counsel.

I'm not sure that's the route I'd go. First, we don't know for sure that OP wasn't properly notified of the hearing.

Even if that's true, though, all he'll accomplish if he gets a continuance is delaying reunification with his child even further.

I would be working diligently to get an attorney to be there for the hearing on Friday.

 

[Antigone*]

I'm not sure that's the route I'd go. First, we don't know for sure that OP wasn't properly notified of the hearing.

Even if that's true, though, all he'll accomplish if he gets a continuance is delaying reunification with his child even further.

I would be working diligently to get an attorney to be there for the hearing on Friday.

OP said he was told of the hearing via voice mail ~ that is definitely not proper notice. It would be much better if he could retain counsel prior to Friday

 

[mistoffolees]

OP said he was told of the hearing via voice mail ~ that is definitely not proper notice.

If that's the only notice he received, I agree with you. However, something in the way he worded things makes me suspect that it's not the only information he received.

 

[justncase27]

The voicemail simply stated the reason for the call, Child Abandonment being brought forward from my seperated wife. Then the date and time of my court date.

 

[mistoffolees]

The voicemail simply stated the reason for the call, Child Abandonment being brought forward from my seperated wife. Then the date and time of my court date.

And you had absolutely no other information that there was going to be a hearing concerning custody? No notices at all?

If you really didn't have any other notice, you could challenge it on the basis of improper service, but if you mess it up, you could ruin your chances - and find yourself fighting a custody battle that you're not prepared for. Just do everything possible to ensure that you have an attorney before Friday.

 

[justncase27]

I truely did not receive any other info. Just a clerke from the court house leaving me a voucemail. I talked to her lawyer today and he notified of this himself. Is there any such thing as a pro bono lawyer for this kind of stuff? How about payments? No way I can come up with a $2500 retainer.

 

[Banned_Princess]

in the meantime print out your phone records and highlight all the times you contacted mom in the last month.


gather whatever else to show you have tried to contact them.

 

[gr8rn]

. Is there any such thing as a pro bono lawyer for this kind of stuff? How about payments? No way I can come up with a $2500 retainer.

No pro bono lawyer for this kind of stuff--you're going to want to pay for good legal counsel. You should actually want to shop around. considering you need one by friday, I would suggest frist thing tomorrow, get a hold of a yellow book and start making some calls. There are definitely attorneys out there who will work with you. I paid mine $100 a month till I had him paid off.

 

[TheGeekess]

Self-help legal resources


For those who want to consider filing an action in court on their own, below is a list of resources. These sites have forms and instructions, which include forms for legitimation and visitation.

Fulton County Family Court - Home - Family Court This is the site of the Fulton County Superior Court Family Division's Family Law Information Center. Any resident of the State of Georgia can visit the center in person at its location. The address is 185 Central Avenue, Atlanta, Ga. 30303. The phone is 404-335-2789. One can receive a free, brief legal consultation with an attorney by calling and making an appointment. However, a non-custodial parent must follow the guidelines of the county with legal jurisdiction over his/her particular legal issues.

DeKalb County Police Department This is the site of DeKalb County Superior Court's Family Law Information Center. Any DeKalb resident or person with a family law issue related to DeKalb County can visit the center at its location at 120 West Trinity Place, Decatur, Ga. 30030. The phone is 404-687-3990. Brief, legal consultations with an attorney are available for $10 by calling and making an appointment.

Cobb County Government This is the site of the Cobb County Superior Court Family Law Workshop. Any Cobb resident or person with a family law issue related to Cobb County can visit the center at 30 Waddell Street, Marietta, Ga. 30090. The phone is 770-528-1812. The workshop is free of charge and provides answers to basic questions about divorce, paternity/legitimation, contempt, and modification cases.

http://production.albany.ga.us/law_library/LL_forms_family_law.htm This is the site of the Dougherty County Superior Court Law Library. Any Dougherty resident or person with a family law issue related to Dougherty County can visit the center at its location at 225 Pine Avenue, Room 212, Albany, Ga. 31702. The phone is 229-431-2133. The library manager, who is an attorney, is available to provide assistance with conducting research, finding appropriate materials and possible legal resources, suggesting self-help resources, and answering legal reference questions in person or by e-mail. However, the library manager is not permitted to give legal advice or interpret specific legal situations.

Northeastern Judicial Circuit Family Law Information Center and Guardian ad Litem Program - Hall County, Georgia This is the site of the Hall and Dawson County Superior Court Family Law Information Center. Any Hall or Dawson resident or person with a family law issue related to Hall or Dawson Counties can visit the center at its location at 225 Green Street, S.E., Gainesville, Ga. 30501. The phone is 770-531-2463. Brief, legal consultations with an attorney are available at no cost in Dawson County. However, a financial qualification is required for attorney consultations in Hall County.

Appalachian Family Law Information Center This is the site of the Appalachian Family Law Information Center serving Fannin, Gilmer, and Pickens counties. Any Fannin, Gilmer or Pickens resident or person with a family law issue related to these counties can visit the center at its location at 1 Broad Street, Suite 102 A, Ellijay, Ga. 30540. The phone is 706-299-1444. Brief, legal consultations with an attorney are available by appointment for income-qualified individuals.

LegalAid-GA.org | A guide to free and low-cost legal aid, assistance and services in Georgia This site is a project of the Atlanta Legal Aid Society, the Georgia Legal Services Program and the Pro Bono Project of the State Bar of Georgia. It is a guide to free legal information and services including the topics of legitimation, visitation, and custody.

A list of the Georgia Superior Court Clerks for every county is on this web site: GSCCCA.org - Georgia Superior Court Clerks' Cooperative Authority.

DHS-OCSE


Child Support guidelines/calculators here: DHS-OCSE

 

[DownTime]

Off topic: Just wanted to point out the above member, The Geekess, marked as a venerated 'senior member', that just posted some of the most information packed links and genuine help I have ever seen here at these forums.

Not to say that others have not done similarly on an equal or lesser scale, but pointing out those that do well seems important given the context of this forum as a whole.

Nicely done, Geekess.