California-based parents who are a party to custody, care or juvenile cases will be in need of a lawyer representing them in Children's Court. If necessary, the court can assign one. This usually means Los Angeles Dependency Lawyers when the case is in LA County.
Dependency court locations in LA are in Lancaster and Monterey Park, CA. The latter is the Alfred McCourtney Juvenile Justice Center. The one in Lancaster is the Edmund Edelman Court.
The court has a duty to appoint a lawyer to parents who need help getting legal representation. This is true even if the parent concerned is not accused of abuse or neglect and/or is a non-custodial parent. Whether the lawyer should be paid or not will depend on whether the client can afford to pay.
It's possible the child or children in question may have been left in the custody of the parents, but they're more likely to have been temporarily placed by the social worker at the home of a close friend or relative until the first hearing. If so, the hearing has to be held within three days and the parent has the right to speak with their children by phone in the interim.
Parents will typically land up in court only if the social worker has already tried to offer the parent a way out and has been refused. So the case is now in court, and parents can once again accept or refuse the same settlement. Many also try to dispute the DCFS' claims and will try to win back custody of a child. Note that a court bench officer may not be as sympathetic as the social worker, and the end result could be very serious.
The lawyer will need to see all the documents associated with the case before the hearing in order to devise and suggest a strategy that both the lawyer and client agree on. A parent attending the hearing should also bring a list of potential witnesses who can help make their case and verify their version of events. This is critically important in the first hearing where temporary custody of the children is decided, pending the results of the investigation.
It's a huge win if the bench officer agrees to reunite the children with their parents immediately. But the more commonplace decision is to place the children with a close friend or relation for the duration. If this happens, the hearing will also include the process of establishing visitation rights. The parent may also be asked to enroll for programs deemed necessary.
The most important thing that happens at the initial hearing is that the judge or bench officer will decide the seriousness of the case, and the future course of action. So the second hearing, whose date will be set, could end up as a time and place for a settlement. It could just as well be a trial hearing. In any case, first impressions count for a lot, so clients must dress for court and treat the bench officer with utmost respect.
Dependency court locations in LA are in Lancaster and Monterey Park, CA. The latter is the Alfred McCourtney Juvenile Justice Center. The one in Lancaster is the Edmund Edelman Court.
The court has a duty to appoint a lawyer to parents who need help getting legal representation. This is true even if the parent concerned is not accused of abuse or neglect and/or is a non-custodial parent. Whether the lawyer should be paid or not will depend on whether the client can afford to pay.
It's possible the child or children in question may have been left in the custody of the parents, but they're more likely to have been temporarily placed by the social worker at the home of a close friend or relative until the first hearing. If so, the hearing has to be held within three days and the parent has the right to speak with their children by phone in the interim.
Parents will typically land up in court only if the social worker has already tried to offer the parent a way out and has been refused. So the case is now in court, and parents can once again accept or refuse the same settlement. Many also try to dispute the DCFS' claims and will try to win back custody of a child. Note that a court bench officer may not be as sympathetic as the social worker, and the end result could be very serious.
The lawyer will need to see all the documents associated with the case before the hearing in order to devise and suggest a strategy that both the lawyer and client agree on. A parent attending the hearing should also bring a list of potential witnesses who can help make their case and verify their version of events. This is critically important in the first hearing where temporary custody of the children is decided, pending the results of the investigation.
It's a huge win if the bench officer agrees to reunite the children with their parents immediately. But the more commonplace decision is to place the children with a close friend or relation for the duration. If this happens, the hearing will also include the process of establishing visitation rights. The parent may also be asked to enroll for programs deemed necessary.
The most important thing that happens at the initial hearing is that the judge or bench officer will decide the seriousness of the case, and the future course of action. So the second hearing, whose date will be set, could end up as a time and place for a settlement. It could just as well be a trial hearing. In any case, first impressions count for a lot, so clients must dress for court and treat the bench officer with utmost respect.
No comments:
Post a Comment