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Archive for Parenting time expeditor

Custody Neutrals

Posted by Gerald Williams 
· January 11, 2010 
· 1 Comment

Custody evaluations, guardians ad litem, early neutral evaluators, parenting consultants and parenting time expeditors.  They are all objective and impartial. Here are the distinctions:

Custody evaluators are appointed by the court or contracted with privately by the parties. The evaluator will meet with the parents, meet with or observe the child (depending on how old the child is) with each parent, and speak with collateral contacts to arrive at recommendations for what is in the child’s best interests. The custody evaluator issues a written report that can be entered as evidence in a contested custody hearing, or used as a basis for negotiated a stipulated parenting plan. The evaluation typically takes 90 to 150 days to complete.

Guardians ad litem are appointed by the court to assess the child’s best interests in a manner similar to custody evaluations, but in many counties they are limited to children in particularly troubling circumstances, such as abuse or neglect. The guardian ad litem’s process can be shorter than a custody evaluation, particularly if the court requests interim recommendations from the guardian. The family court judge may enlist the services of the guardian ad litem to assist in determining both temporary and permanent custody arrangements. The guardian’s recommendations may be the basis for the court’s decision, or a custody stipulation.

Early neutral evaluations have the potential to be shorter terms than other processes. The evaluators (one male, one female) meet with the parents, and typically do not meet the child. Rather than communicating with collateral contacts, the evaluators attempt to facilitate an agreement based upon what the parents themselves raise as concerns about the child and the other parent. The evaluation process transpires early in the proceedings, and is not shared with the family court; so if the parties are unable to reach an agreement, the case will typically proceed to a full-blown custody evaluation.

Parenting consultants are appointed by the parties, and approved by the court, but are not appointed by the court. Typically, they make decisions
(rather than recommendations) which are binding on the parties unless reversed by the family court. As long as a party is satisfied with the parenting consultant’s decision, the process can streamline the resolution of a dispute.

Parenting time expeditors are appointed by the court, and have decision-making authority, but the scope of that authority is narrower than the other neutrals mentioned above. Issues other than parenting time fall outside the scope of a parenting time expeditor. The PTE’s decision is binding on the parties, unless one of the parties seeks review by the family court.

1 Comment
Categories : Child Custody, Guardian ad litem, Parenting time expeditor

Child Custody Neutrals

Posted by Gerald Williams 
· November 4, 2007 
· No Comments

If divorcing or separating parents disagree about child custody or parenting arrangements, it is likely necessary for a neutral professional to be involved in resolving the dispute.  The most common neutral professionals are custody evaluators, guardians ad litem, parenting time expeditors, custody mediators and parenting consultants.

Custody evaluators investigate the facts and circumstances surrounding the child’s situation, and render a written report with observations, comments and recommendations.  Typically the custody evaluation takes three to four months.  The custody evaluator will interview each parent; meet with the child (usually at least once in each parent’s care); and contact collaterals such as family members, teachers and medical professionals.  The custody evaluator does not have the authority to make a final decision, but his or her recommendations are given substantial weight when the court makes that decision.  The custody evaluator does not stay involved in the case beyond the point that the custody report is issued.

Guardians ad litem are appointed to represent the interests of the child.  A guardian ad litem is not literally the child’s attorney, and may or may not be a practicing attorney.  The guardian ad litem becomes familiar with the child and the child’s circumstances so as to be able to inform the court of what is in the child’s best interests.  The guardian does not have the authority to make the custody decision, but the guardian’s comments and observations are given substantial weight.  The guardian may be involved in the case over the course of weeks or months (and less commonly, years).

Parenting time expeditors are described in a separate post.  Custody mediators meet with the parents to attempt to facilitate an agreement.  The mediator typically will not meet with the child directly, and has no authority to make a decision, and no opportunity to speak directly to the court.

A parenting consultant has broader authority that is usually defined in the agreement that provides for the consultant’s appointment.  The consultant will meet with the parties and will determine to what degree it is necessary and appropriate for the consultant to meet with the child.  The consultant typically will attempt to mediate the dispute, as a mediator would.  But if there is an impasse, unlike a mediator, a consultant often has the authority to make a decision.  Depending on the terms of the consultant’s appointment, the consultant’s decision may be binding on the parties and subject to review by the family court.

Different child custody cases can benefit from different child custody neutrals, depending upon the facts and circumstances of the custody dispute.  The purpose of the neutral is to bring the dispute to a conclusion relatively quickly and inexpensively, and to avoid the high conflict of family court litigation.

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Categories : Child Custody, Divorce, General Family Law, Guardian ad litem, Parenting Time, Parenting time expeditor

Parenting Time Expeditor

Posted by Gerald Williams 
· August 2, 2007 
· No Comments

A parenting time expeditor is a neutral third party who is brought on board after a custody arrangement or parenting plan is in place to assist parents with the parenting schedule. The family court appoints the parenting time expeditor, but in many cases, the court’s appointment is a result of the agreement of the parents.

The parenting time expeditor (I’ve also seen it spelled expediter) can help in situations such as this: Mom is entitled to spend her birthday with the children. Dad is entitled to spend Memorial Day Weekend with the children. Once or twice every few years, Mom’s birthday occurs during Memorial Day Weekend. The first time this occurs after the parents are no longer living together, the parents are at an impasse as to how they allocate their time with the children throughout the holiday weekend.

Before parenting time expeditors existed, parents in this situation might have to arrange a family court hearing before a judge if they were unable to reach agreement on the issue. With a parenting time expeditor involved, there can be a discussion at a conference table, and the parenting time expeditor can help facilitate an agreement, or even make a binding decision, to resolve the dispute.

I have served as a parenting time expeditor in the past, and often was able to handle the process by communicating with the parents by electronic mail. Handling things that way made the dispute resolution process even more time-efficient and less expensive than it would otherwise have been.

Most of the time the parenting time expeditor’s services are paid for by the parents in equal shares. Many parents find it to be money well spent.

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Categories : Child Custody, Divorce, Parenting time expeditor

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