Motion for Modification

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pjujubee

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Hello...i will try and keep as short as possible... here are the big important pieces....I lived with him for 5 yrs ...he became very verbally and emotionally abusive during my pregnancy. he is a very insecure person.. was very jealous through out the whole relationship...what i didn't know at the time, is he had multiple children an similar relationships with all the mothers... 5 kids with 4 different mothers...all the mothers have had multiple restraining orders against him for physical abuse. also have now had 2 restraining orders against him...the last one was in Feb. 2011 and expires in Feb 2013...during this hearing the judge took away his time sharing... without me even having to ask... told him to get an attorney if he ever wanted to see his son again... i was surprised, but so very thankful.
it has been a few months now, and i just received a copy of a request for hearing from his attorney... they checked off the box that says "Evidentiary (requires) and also checked off that they were unable to confer with opposing counsel or pro se party?

what does that mean?? do i need to call them and get a copy of the motion he filed? i don't have the money he does...i cant afford to get an attorney again....should i try and get legal aid? or is this something i can fight on my own?

there was a lot of mental & emotional abuse during the 5yrs...alot to write down...I'm afraid to go w/out an attorney, because he has done this so many times, he knows exactly how to manipulate the system...

what do i do? please help...
 
(You need to tell us where you're located)

But basically, assuming you're in the US, if he wants parenting time with his child he's likely going to get it eventually - even if it's supervised.

If you don't know how to represent yourself (representing yourself is not impossible, but you'll need to start reading your local court rules, the rules of procedure, etc.,), you will need an attorney.

We can't walk you through the process, I'm afraid.
 
Thank u for responding....I am in Florida... they checked off the box that says "Evidentiary (requires) and also checked off that they were unable to confer with opposing counsel or pro se party?

No one has tried to contact me, so thats not accurate....can i call them and ask for a copy of whatever he filed? so i know what he is looking for?
 
forgot to ask..am i allowed to bring all the paperwork in regrds to previous restraining orders with the other mothers....to show the pattern of behavior?
 
You REALLY need a lawyer.

Yes, they can be expensive.

But, what will losing this case cost you????
 
pjujubee said:
forgot to ask..am i allowed to bring all the paperwork in regrds to previous restraining orders with the other mothers....to show the pattern of behavior?
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It won't matter - if he wants visitation with his child, he WILL get it. It is very, very rare for the courts to deny visitation completely - and that tends to be the CHILD is the victim of extreme abuse and neglect by the parent seeking visitation.

Or when the parent doesn't know any better.
 
Army Judge.... that was a lame response...i was assuming the purpose of this site was for help in the legal world.
 
pjujubee said:
Army Judge.... that was a lame response...i was assuming the purpose of this site was for help in the legal world.
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There was absolutely nothing wrong with his response. We can't walk you through your case - and even I've given you only very general information.

There are some cases (like yours) where NOT getting an attorney is likely to cost you much more in the long run (in one way or another). We're allowed to tell people the truth - and the truth is, you're likely going to get steamrollered in court if Dad has an attorney and you don't.
 
Wow not what i expected from this site.... Now I will get steamrolled huh? .... ok....Just remember... its not what u say, but how u say it... its not that i dont want to spend the money...i dont have it! and i thought coming here would be a helpful tool in trying to protect my son best i can... Maybe a better answer would have been for one of u to direct me where i could get some legal aid ... or what other options there are....

Thanks for your time..i will find another source of information
 
I'm not sure what you expected from the volunteers here, to be honest.

It would EXTREMELY irresponsible for us to misinform you. And sometimes in family court, who wins often boils down to who has the best counsel - and if your ex has an attorney and you're representing yourself, you can guess how that's likely to turn out, surely?

It is not impossible to represent yourself in family court, but it takes a whole lot of willingness to learn and a much thicker skin than you're showing. This is a message board, where nobody - not one person - was even slightly rude to you! How on earth do you think an actual attorney, in a family court room, is going to tear your argument apart?

They're not going to be anywhere near as nice!

The truth is that Dad could, with a pitbull attorney, even walk away with something close to a 50/50 timeshare unless you know how to fight your case!

You can absolutely try to get Legal Aid to represent you, but they might be too underfunded/understaffed to take a case like this.

Time to learn how your local court does things - the rules of civil procedure, the local rules, everything.
 
Sometimes law schools will offer up students that can point you in the right direction. Obviously the students can not do more than that, but could be helpful to check into it at least if there is a local law school close to you.

You could also try to find a couple lawyers who offer free consultations in your area. Yes, they do exist and maybe could, if nothing else, help you know what you are looking at as far as the case goes and so on.

The advice given already has been spot on and AJ and Proserpina would gladly give you further advice if it were possible.
 
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