[MrPayne]

Now that my 6th Custody Case has been finalized. Yes! My 6th. The children are now 18, 16, 14 and 13, and - I've been enduring courtroom battles for over a decade! Anyway, on the onset of this most recent child custody case, the children were appointed an attorney by the court. From the beginning, he sided with mom - both in and out of the courtroom. Initially, he interviewed each of the four children, separately, for about 20 minutes each. For the first hearing, he went straight into court and told the judge the children were potentially "suicidal" and he "feared" for them. When he and I were alone (outside the courtroom), he looked me in the face and said, "Look, f#*er, you have children that are on the verge of suicide - and, if something happens to one of them, what are you going to do then?" When I responded by saying that was untrue. He said, "Don't give me that s#(@"... and I ended up walking away...

The Judge ultimately ordered a full-blown child custody - and they did an extensive job. That process took nearly 11-months! Ultimately, when the report was finalized, the findings were incredibly in my favor - the therapists, psychologists, and the evaluator involved all agreed the children were "high-functioning, well-mannered" and "clearly" in the hands of a "very good" parent. They praised my parenting skills and found the children to be "delightful" and "extremely well-rounded"... The quoted teachers and other adults who had made those same findings over the years. The Judge ultimately awarded me sole physical custody and, with the exception of me having to make "joint" MAJOR medical decisions with my ex, I have the right to solely make all other decisions on their behalf.

For some reason, even though this case is over, I'm still haunted by that man and the idea that he is representing other children. Once we were in court, and he literally had 2 cases in court on the same day. As I watched him stand before the judge representing a child in another custody case, I heard his allegations and harsh words against the father in the case and I couldn't help but wonder if he was lying. Had he not even really spoken with the children involved but for a few minutes as he did mine? Was he making this stuff up as he went along - because that's what he did in my case. After his initial 20-minute chat with each of my children, he never spoke to any of them again. EVER. PERIOD. Yet, he represented them, in court, during 3 hearings over a 1-year period.

Should I just leave this alone?? Why am I so bothered by it! I hate the idea that he represents children!! Does he get a huge paycheck from the State for his job? I would love to know how much he billed out for representation of my children. Hmmmmmm... Any feedback??

[ScottGem]

Frankly, I would not leave it alone. I would report him to the state Bar association. Get a copy of the transcript from when he spoke to the judge, and send that along a copy of the evaluation. Add to that your account of encounter outside the court and what you witnessed in another hearing (if you could get that other father to join you in the complaint that would be even better).

Even if nothing is done, you will feel better.

[excon]

Should I just leave this alone??? Why am I so bothered by it!?

Hello Mr.

Of course, you should leave it alone. Primarily, because there's NOTHING you can DO about it. Bothered?? I don't know what for. You kicked his a$$. THAT, all by itself, should give you pleasure.

excon

[GV70]

Now that my 6th Custody Case has been finalized. Yes! My 6th. The children are now 18, 16, 14 and 13, and - I've been enduring courtroom battles for over a decade!

Lucky you;)

Anyway, on the onset of this most recent child custody case, the children were appointed an attorney by the court.

Yes. The Latin term is Guardian ad litem and a guaridan may be appointed in custody cases.

Initially, he interviewed each of the four children, separately, for about 20 minutes each.

Yep-it is almost the norm.

The Judge ultimately awarded me sole physical custody and, with the exception of me having to make "joint" MAJOR medical decisions with my ex, I have the right to solely make all other decisions on their behalf.

Wow-it is your treat:)

Should I just leave this alone??? Why am I so bothered by it!? I hate the idea that he represents children!!! Does he get a huge paycheck from the State for his job? I would love to know how much he billed out for representation of my children. Hmmmmmm....Any feedback????

Yes-every state has its own Guardian Ad Litem fund to pay for the services of GALs in child custody cases .
Some states have provisions for the proportionate share of the liability, but OCC is in charge of making determinations of ability to repay the State when the GAL fund has paid for or guaranteed the GAL's bill. These determinations are made individually as each case is different.
Unlike indigent defense in criminal matters, the total cost of GAL services is a function of the complexity of the custody issues in each case. However, the court rules and the specific orders of appointment limits the GAL fee to $1000 unless a motion to exceed that limit is filed by the GAL and approved by the court. In complex cases, the GAL may file such a motion, so it is important that the parties be aware of the costs.

[MrPayne]

ScottGem: Thanks for the reply. I do genuinely feel the need to do something, and I do have the proof of a very lengthy, indepth, and extensive Child Custody Evaluation to prove that everything he was saying at the beginning of the hearing was completely FALSE and that he simply was siding with my ex-wife. Thanks again for your response.

[ScottGem]

Good luck and keep us posted.

[MrPayne]

I'm completely amazed right now. I received an email from this "Corrupt Attorney" just moments ago stating, "A conformed copy of the final order was placed in today's mail. There are no future scheduled hearings. Best of luck!"

WOW!

[Fr_Chuck]

Custody battles can go on for the entire time. From the time my oldest two boys were 1 and 3 till they were 15 ( when their mom died) we were back in court every year or two for the entire time

[ScottGem]

I have to ask, who are MeAnthony and Joshua209 and why are they using your computer?

[MrPayne]

Lol lol. MeAnthony is my friend, Anthony, who is staying with me for the next two weeks. He is going through his own set of legal troubles. And, once I discovered this site, he and I have been seeking answers to his issues as well.

[ScottGem]

OK, And Joshua? We have had issues with people playing games with us in the past. It just seemed odd that three separate accounts would all log on from the same computer with very similar questions. So it needs to be clarified.

[MrPayne]

Yeah. Another friend. Unfortunately, all three of us have some personal issues - Mine, pretty extensive and has been on-going for more than a decade - theirs fairly recent - so, having at least some knowledge of filing paper work (especially when it comes to custody issues)... I've been helping both - and, when I discovered this awesome site, we've been pretty much navigating through it together. It's been quite helpful. In the past, I spent more than $25,000 on attorney's fees - I just can't afford an attorney any longer. My ex-wife has spent more than $50,000. All that money would have been great sitting in a bank somewhere as we will have a college-bound child quite soon... thanks for all your help.

[ScottGem]

Not a problem. As I said, some past experiences we've had make us a bit leery. Sharing a computer is not as common as it used to be. I think we've helped your friends as well. Thanks for the nice comments about us.