Who does custody evaluations? Well, it depends on who is being evaluated.

In some states, veterinary animal behavior specialists serve as the experts who advise which separating “pet parent” should have “custody” of the family pet.

One such pet custody evaluator explains her methodology in a process which takes about an hour and a half. Part of the evaluation is based on responses of the pet parents to questions at an interview. The remainder of the evaluation is based on observation of the pet’s interactions with the pet parents.

“Calling contests” are not considered reliable indicators.

Ultimately, the pet custody evaluator seeks to determine which pet parent the pet has a stronger bond to and preference for, and who the evaluator thinks would better care for the pet.

Equal timesharing is not usually recommended because many pets find such an arrangement emotionally challenging.

Read more in this Boston Globe article: Lawyer for the dog.

A Kentucky appellate court has reversed the termination of a teen parent’s parental rights because the ruling was based on the parent’s age and immaturity, rather than her parenting skills and capabilities.

In this case, the teen mother voluntarily placed herself and her child into foster care in 2003. She never abused or neglected her child.

At the time of the termination hearing, the mother had finished 11th grade, had a job, and had completed various parenting classes.

There was every indication that she was becoming ready to parent her child.

Termination of parental rights was premature at best.

The mother’s visitation should be reinstated with a view toward reunification.

Read more in this Lexington [KY] Herald Leader article: Court: Teen parenthood terminated too quickly.

A South Carolina man embroiled in a drawn out divorce was not very happy with how his case was going.

The court had ordered him to pay temporary alimony and attorneys’ fees to his wife.

And he didn’t want to.

So he devised a way around it – or so he thought.

He allegedly torched his wife’s lawyer’s office.

But that turned out not to be the best way to handle the situation.

In addition to his other troubles, he was charged with stalking, burglary and arson – and held in jail without bond.

This is not a recommended strategy for success in family court.

Read more in this [Columbia, SC] WIS TV News 10 article: Bond denied for man accused of setting Columbia law firm on fire.

A Pakistani court has ordered Pakistani police to locate a 7 year old French-Pakistani boy and produce him in court.

The little boy’s mother, a French national, brought a habeas corpus action in Pakistan to regain physical custody of the child.

The boy’s parents divorced in France and entered a written custody agreement there which was adopted in a French divorce decree.

The mother alleged that the father, without her permission, removed the boy from France to his native country, Pakistan, in violation of their agreement.

Pakistan is not a party to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction and, therefore, was not required to produce and return the boy to his mother in France under international law.

However, the Pakistani court’s order indicates that it was at least considering enforcing the agreement adopted in the French divorce decree.

Read more in this [Pakistan] Daily Times article: Police told to find French-Pakistani boy in 7 days.

It took until July of this year. But since that time, the Cherokee Nation has had its own child support enforcement program.

And the program has gotten off to an impressive start.

A case opened on July 31st culminated in the program’s very first child support payment, which was made within just two weeks of the opening of the case.

There aren’t many state support enforcement agencies (and custodial parents) that wouldn’t envy that quick a turnaround time.

And the Cherokee child who benefited had not previously received any support from her father.

Read more in this Tanasi [Southeast American Indian] Journal article out of Oklahoma: New Cherokee Nation Office Enforces Child Support.

Sadly, we have grown accustomed to hearing of one parent’s abduction of children from the other parent.

But recently there was a different kind of parental abduction in Ohio.

A woman allegedly abducted her own four children – together with her husband, the children’s father.

How is that abduction?

A local court reportedly awarded temporary custody rights of the children to the local children’s services agency.

The biological parents were apparently trying to block the agency from asserting its rights.

The father was reportedly recently released from prison for domestic violence.

Now both parents face charges for felony interference with custody.

Read more in this Logan [OH] Daily News article: Woman, ex-husband arrested after fleeing.

Child support enforcement has a powerful new weapon in its arsenal: the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, which requires travelers returning to the US from Canada, Mexico, the Carribean, Bermuda and central and South America possess passports.

The new laws require many people who did not previously have passports to obtain passports for travel outside the US.

Only they can’t if they owe more than $2,500 in child support arrearages.

So people who really want to travel outside the country must pay up – or stay home.

Connecticut, as an example, has seen support collection rise dramatically as a result of the implementation of the new rules.

And it’s not just Connecticut.

Whatever the benefit to national security, these new passport rules surely benefit someone – children owed child support.

Read more in this Government Technology article: New Passport Rules Boost Connecticut Child Support Enforcement.

Digging for dirt is in.

I posted recently on Female Private Eye’s Businesses Booming with Divorce and Custody Surveillance Work.

But surveillance by a private investigator is only one of the options available today.

Another popular (and often less expensive) option is extracting data from a computer or mobile phone or similar device.

Amazing advances in technology make many things possible – and affordable.

Of course, what’s found isn’t always admissible. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that it isn’t useful.

From financial information to affairs, bad judgment to crimes, the information can be pertinent to the matters before the court.

Or otherwise at hand. Sometimes people just need to know the truth. Whether they can use it or not.

The one type of computer file that should be protected from disclosure is communications between attorney and client.

Read more in this New York Times article: Tell-All PCs and Phones Transforming Divorce.

A West Palm Beach father was taken to task in an Ohio court for attempted criminal nonsupport of his four children.

The man was extradited and jailed for an arrearage of approximately $61,000.

The man was convicted and sentenced to six months of confinement to be followed by 5 years of probation.

After being sentenced, the father somehow managed to come up with $25,000 toward his arrearage.

If he keeps up his payments, he will avoid more jail time.

In the words of the Ohio prosecutor assigned to the case “[h]e got the message” and began complying with the court’s orders to pay.

A most effective incentive, which struggling custodial parents all eventually come to hope for when their ex refuses to pay on an ongoing basis.

Read more in this Cleveland Plain Dealer article: Father of four coughs up past due child support.

A Washington state woman was denied unsupervised visitation with her daughter after absconding with her daughter to Los Angeles during visitation last year.

Undeterred, the woman more recently allegedly absconded with her daughter again, during a visitation supervised by her parents. This time they reportedly went to Las Vegas, where they remained for a month.

This time around the mother suffered more severe consequences for her actions.

On the criminal side, the was charged with felony custodial interference, but pleaded guilty to misdemeanor custodial interference. She will be “sentenced” to psychological treatment and probation, but no incarceration. Her daughter will be spared having to testify against her.

The mother didn’t fare as well in family court though. She is barred from any contact with her daughter (except for a written apology for her actions) without prior court approval.

Both she and her daughter would have been better off had she learned her lesson after the first custodial violation.

Read more in this Tri-City [WA] Herald article: Finley pleads guilty to taking her child to Las Vegas.