Nevada family law,Can father keep kids from mother if no custody has been established? Is this legal?
Mother of 2,I reside in ohio my kids in las vegas with my ex whom i never married. I decided to keep the kids toghther for finacial reasons until i was on my feet again to do custody. My son is not my exes he has legal guardianship,my daughter is ours. There has not been any custody as of yet. "We just agreed". It has changed,he controls everything and i have been to visit,he does not let our kids see their mother and i call all the time i barley get to talk to them just when the dad feels like it. My only fault here was being broke,not working as a house mom when being with him,trying to get out of a rut now. I have been told i need a lawyer in lasvegas,does anyone know how i find a lawyer that accepts payment plans? Or how i can find someone that practices nv law in ohio? Or is there anything i can do myself to save money?At this point it is hurting the kids and my ex thinks he is and will always be calling the shots. I did this only with good intentions in mind ,i thought he was too
4 Responses
MrLou
03 Mar 2010
repoman747
03 Mar 2010
the clark county district court has a self help center on their website. you can get all the forms and lots of info there.Remember when you go to court your going to have to pay child support
lil’shane
03 Mar 2010
In Texas as long as no Legal Sepration is filed – - – posession is 9 points of the law.. Sorry if its not the same in your state. Try your county attorney for legal ade.
SierraMadre
04 Mar 2010
My thought is this… go get your kids with the police in tow. You have as much legal rights to your children as he does. What you describe are classic signs of an abuser – I know, I dealt with this same problem. I didn’t stop until I got my kids. Understand that the police can only do so much, so your timing has to be impeccable; a time when you are sure to take physical custody of them.
Then go to OH with your kids and file your case there immediately – not in NV! If he files here, you’ll be stuck here and battles can get ugly and VERY expensive. Schwartz v. Schwartz is the criteria applied for out of state moves in NV, but even the NV Supreme Court has stated that District Court Judges use this case to confine mothers to this state.
Since he is already ‘alientating’ you from the children this is a demerit against him. Again, your timing has to be impeccable. I will also caution you; you need a strategy to deal with these types of people – the abuser. They will do everything in their power to make it seem like you did something wrong when you were only going by verbal agreements. He can claim you abandoned the children, but there too is specific criteria you need to know so that you can prove you have not done that.
READ. Nevada Revised Statutes. Schwartz v. Schwartz. 8th District Court Rules. Good luck.
As SOON as possible, you will need to contact a lawyer who does a lot of family law, and find out what your rights are. In theory, if he has no legal custody of either child, you should be able to get the law on your side and get them back in one fell swoop, at least temporarily. My position would be that he repeatedly refused to return them to you, which is effectively the case at this point. Since he has no custody currently, you may be able to take the kids back to Ohio, absent any court filings to the contrary.
If you do custody in Nevada, and especially if your kids are in school and have been in Nevada for some time, the court may decide that the kids will remain in Nevada permanently. This is because Nevada law provides that custody must be based on the best interests of the child. By statute, Nevada courts do not award custody to a parent simply because she is the mother or he is the father. Rather, there is a legal presumption that joint custody is in the best interest of the child.
Here is the link for the self-help forms that you should look over before talking to the lawyer:
http://www.co.clark.nv.us/district_court/self_help_center_custody_paternity.2htm.htm
Write a list of questions before you talk to anyone, so that you have them handy. Have the birth certificate info along with the dates you tried to visit/reclaim your children handy for the lawyer.
There is a good chance that you will have to move to Vegas, at least temporarily (if not permanently) if you are to regain custody of your kids.
I picked these four attorneys out of the LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell directory based on their backgrounds, in my order of preference. I have not met these lawyers, but the first two certainly look like they could get the job done for you.
Allison L. Herr
725 South Eighth Street, Suite B
Las Vegas, Nevada 89101
Phone: 702-735-4377
Fax: 702-759-0480
Email: Allison L. Herr
http://www.herranditts.com/jsp2493495.jsp
http://www.herranditts.com
Patricia L. Vaccarino
6600 West Charleston, Suite 102
Las Vegas, Nevada 89146
Phone: 702-258-8007
Fax: 702-258-8840
http://www.lawyers.com/Nevada/Las-Vegas/Patricia-L.-Vaccarino-1066846-f.html
URL: http://www.vaccarinolaw.com
Rebecca A. Miller, Esq.
Schofield Miller Law Firm
528 S. Casino Center Blvd., 3rd Floor
Las Vegas, NV 89101
Office: 702-474-4444
Fax: 702-474-4449
RMiller@Schofieldlaw.com
http://www.nvbar.org/Sections/FamilyLaw/miller.htm
Law Offices of Brian J. Steinberg, Ltd.
2250 Rancho Drive, Suite 215
Las Vegas, Nevada 89102
Phone: 702-436-5363
Fax: 702-436-5364
http://www.lawyers.com/bsteinberg
or you could try the Lawyer Referral & Information Service of the State Bar of Nevada – You also may qualify for a reduced fee attorney… http://www.nvbar.org/lris/lris.htm
Best of luck. Remember, this is for the long haul, so it will require an investment of time and money.