How To File For Custody In Philadelphia

7 Steps to Getting Kid Custody in a Pennsylvania Court

In Pennsylvania, some aspects of the child custody process differ from one county to the next. The following are the almost common steps.

Earlier you lot decide to go to court, consider your circumstances.

If you have a working system with the other parent, you lot don't have to open a custody example, but yous should if y'all want violating the understanding to have legal consequences.

You should also open up a case if you can't concur with the other parent, peculiarly if they have been violent toward you or your child or won't allow you to see your child.

Keep in mind that you can use mediation and other alternative dispute resolution methods to reach an agreement.

Whenever parents hold on a parenting plan, they tin can file a settlement and leap to Step 7 of the court procedure.

Step i: Preparation

Do your enquiry and consider your options. Which type of custody will you request? What does your platonic parenting schedule wait similar?

Consider hiring an attorney or at least scheduling a consultation for professional person advice.

Check your courtroom's website and its Rules of Civil Procedure for county-specific information, including local deadlines and fourth dimension frames.

Step ii: Filing for custody

Open up your case through the Courtroom of Common Pleas in the county where your child has lived for the past six months (or since birth, if they're less than half-dozen months old). If your kid recently moved, file in their previous canton.

Afterward, accept the other parent served. (In other words, have the court documents delivered.)

Possible: Emergency or expedited hearing

Anytime during your case, you can request an emergency or expedited hearing. Do it as shortly as the demand arises.

Request an emergency hearing if your child faces immediate danger. The hearing — in which the guess decides whether to issue an emergency order — tin can happen within hours or days, and may be done "ex parte" (without the other parent's involvement).

Philadelphia County parents have an extra option: request an expedited hearing to address non-emergency issues that need quick review. These hearings event in temporary orders, at the approximate's discretion. They are more than common than emergency hearings, but may not happen for several weeks.

Possible: 30-solar day requirements

Some counties require both parents to participate in a parenting seminar and/or arbitration orientation in the thirty days later on opening a case.

Parenting seminar

These seminars focus on how to co-parent and spare children from disharmonize.

Focus on Children and Course for Parents are available to all Pennsylvania parents. Nonetheless, counties offering their own seminars may non recognize outside programs.

If y'all're required to take a seminar, failure to do so could event in dismissal of your example, contempt charges or loss of custodial rights.

Mediation orientation

In many counties, parents in custody cases must attend an orientation, where a mediator helps them make up one's mind whether to endeavour mediation or skip it to get direct to the steps below.

If your family has a Protection from Abuse Gild or a recent history of domestic violence, y'all're exempt from this requirement.

Step 3: Conciliation conference

At least 45 days after you open a instance, you'll attend a conciliation briefing (also chosen a custody masters hearing) with the other parent. You'll explore options for avoiding trial, and the conference officeholder may speak with your kid privately.

The officer can corroborate an agreement made before or during the conference. If the agreement is for temporary orders, continue through the remaining steps. If it's for final orders, spring to Step seven.

If parents don't achieve an understanding, the officer writes a recommended custody order. The officer may too suggest the judge to order an evaluation, a guardian advertisement litem, etc.

In some counties, the recommendation becomes a concluding club if neither parent requests a pre-trial conference within 20 or thirty days of its issuance.

Possible: Hearings

The courtroom may summon you lot to a hearing to gather more case information.

For instance, Allegheny County has partial custody hearings, which requite parents another opportunity to reach a settlement later unsuccessful conciliation or mediation. These hearings occur by a gauge'south guild, which a parent tin can motility for.

If parents don't agree during the partial custody hearing, the hearing officer writes a recommendation that becomes a final order if neither political party files a request for a trial within xx days of its issuance.

Footstep 4: Discovery

Discovery is the exchange of information earlier trial. Information technology begins when either parent files a Motion to Compel Discovery, and it ends at the pre-trial conference (explained beneath).

Information you have to plough over might include texts, emails, fiscal records and medical records. Depositions, out-of-court proceedings where the parties or their witnesses respond questions under oath, also take place equally role of discovery.

All this data helps each side prepare their arguments thoroughly.

Possible: Custody evaluation

Complicated cases may need a forensic custodial evaluation. Either parent can ask the judge to society one, or the judge can order ane of their own accord. Bucks Canton requires an evaluation in about all custody cases.

During the evaluation, a mental wellness professional reviews relevant documents and interviews children, parents and others connected to the example. They may besides acquit psychological testing on the family.

They put their findings into a study that includes recommendations for custody. The judge considers the report when making a custody conclusion.

Alongside evaluations, Philadelphia County uses home investigations to decide whether a parent's home is safe for a child.

Possible: Judicial conference

When parents with lawyers disagree on simply a few remaining bug, they usually have a judicial conference.

At the request of a parent or the judge, the parents come together to hear the judge'south thoughts on the case, which oftentimes leads them to settle. If parents don't settle, the judge schedules the case for trial.

Step 5: Pre-trial conference

Thirty days before trial, the parents run across with a judge or conference officeholder to exchange concluding discovery information and clarify trial procedures. They also discuss settlement one last fourth dimension to see if they can forgo trial.

At least five days before the conference, each party must file a pre-trial argument and serve it on the other party. They tin can modify their argument up to seven days before trial.

The pre-trial argument must include:

A proposed parenting plan and custody schedule
Names and addresses of each witness you'll call to evidence, plus your relationships to each lay (not-skillful) witness
Confirmation that you have contacted each witness
Descriptions of the exhibits (documents, photos, other evidence) you'll present at trial

Attach the bodily exhibits to the argument you serve on the other parent only not to the re-create you give the court.

Step 6: Trial

If parents are unable to achieve an understanding, they will ultimately end up in trial.

In a trial, both parties have the opportunity to explore their evidence in its entirety and question witnesses in front of the judge.

Generally, trials begin nigh a month after the pre-trial conference. Most resolve after a unmarried day of testimony. At the end of the trial, the judge announces their decisions.

Possible: Child's private testimony

Children who are old enough evidence privately in the approximate'south chambers on a nontrial day, unless both parents concur it'd be harmful to the child.

The judge, each parent'south attorney, a guardian ad litem and a courtroom reporter are unremarkably present. Parents tin request to read the transcript, but the judge may deny their motion.

Footstep vii: Final custody orders

The custody procedure ends when the judge signs a last custody order later a trial, after approving a settlement or afterward the borderline to object to a recommended order passes.

The concluding order mandates a parenting plan and custody schedule for parents to follow. Information technology remains in event until the child turns 18 or the court grants a modification.

If a parent has a valid reason to competition a courtroom'south determination, they can appeal to a higher courtroom (following the Children's Fast Rails appeal rules) and begin the legal process again, or file a motility to change or cancel the court order.

Throughout your instance

During the child custody process, you may need to create a parenting plan, draft custody schedules, track your time with your child, continue a log of interactions with the other parent, and more.

The Custody X Change app enables you lot to do all of this in one place.

With a parenting plan template, custody calendars, a digital journal and beyond, Custody X Alter makes sure you're prepared for whatever arises in your journey to custody.

Have reward of our technology to stay on peak of all the moving parts of your instance.

Source: https://www.custodyxchange.com/locations/usa/pennsylvania/process.php