Boise Divorce Attorney - Family Law Lawyers in Idaho

Decisions Decisions - Who Decides; Judge, Divorce Attorney or Parties?

As a Boise Divorce Attorney I am often involved in divorce cases where the parties simply cannot come to an agreement regarding the split of their property or as to the custody of their children.  Why would a family law lawyer expect there to be an agreement and what do you do when there isn't?

Agreement by the Parties With the Help of Their Attorneys or Mediators or Why Family Law Lawyers Would Expect Agreement

Agreement is a very important tool to the smooth resolution to a divorce and custody case.  Basically, when the parties agree they get what they want.  When people get what they want, they are happy.  It is basic psychology.  When the parties agree, they are able to communicate to their divorce attorneys the terms of the divorce and custody which they are happy with.  The attorneys then present the matter for judicial approval and order.

If the parties are having difficulty agreeing.  A  a judge will simply order mediation or the divorce attorney or the judge might suggest for the parties to smooth things out with the help of their divorce attorneys.  In the first scenario, the parties present their respective sides to a mediator who helps them work through their issues, negotiate and compromise to come to a mutually acceptable agreement.  In the second case, the judge may suggest that the parties step out in the hall before the case goes to trial and work things out or the attorneys will suggest a settlement conference. Either way, the parties decide.

What Happens When the Parties, by Their Own Consent or With the Help of Their Divorce Attorneys or Mediators, Can't Agree?

When the parties to an action don't agree, the judge does.  What this means is you may not be very happy with the outcome.  Your family law lawyer will present to the judge the reasons, for example, that you should keep the house, have primary physical custody and the like, but if the judge, after seeing the other side's argument, doesn't agree with you, the judge will decide who gets the house or who gets custody or what that custody order will look like.

Now, it is possible that you have a very strong case and you are able to get exactly what you want, at least on some issues.  However, by way of example, if you both want the house the judge will often act according to the Wisdom of Solomon; split the baby in half.  Not literally, of course, but the judge may very well order that the house be sold and the proceeds or the debt be split equally.  Who wants a debt without anything to show for the effort?

So now you can see the importance of agreement in a divorce and custody case.  If you are seeking a divorce or custody and are looking for a Boise Divorce Attorney or Idaho Family Law Lawyer, give us a call, 208-472-2383 and see what we can do for you.  You can also visit us at our Divorce website or our main Boise Divorce Attorney website by clicking on the highlighted links.

Boise Divorce Attorney - 208-472-2383 - Child Custody Across State Lines

Child Custody Issues
Child Custody is a major issue involved in divorce law in Idaho.  As a Boise Divorce Attorney I see a range of child custody issues.  These issues range from which parent will have primary physical custody to whether Idaho can exercise jurisdiction over a child who is not living in the state of Idaho.

Child Custody Across State Lines
The custody of children who don't live in Idaho is regulated by the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act.  This is a law that has been adopted by all 50 states.  It looks at several factors to determine whether a state can exercise jurisdiction over a child who does not live in a particular state.

There are three basic scenarios that I see regularly.  Firstly, when a child has lived in Idaho and it is their home state.  One parent moves out of state with the child.  The parent who remained in Idaho can assert that Idaho has jurisdiction over the child and therefore Idaho should hear the custody case.  The second situation is when a family has resided in a state other than Idaho.  They move to Idaho as a family.  After a short period of time one parent moves back to the original state where the family lived.  This is a tougher situation.  The question Idaho has to address is, "had Idaho become the child's home state?"  To determine this, a court will look at relationships to the state.  If the child wasn't "established" in Idaho (school, doctor, friends, family, relationships) then Idaho will have a difficult time establishing jurisdiction and the other state may assert it's jurisdiction over the child.  The third situation results in complete lack of jurisdiction in Idaho.  If a child has never lived in Idaho but a parent does, that parent cannot ask Idaho to establish custody there.  They must return to the child's home state.

In all these situations, you can seek a divorce in Idaho if you have lived here for a period of time greater than six weeks.  However, even though Idaho will grant you a divorce the Idaho court may "bifurcate" your case.  That means that if your property is not located here and/or your children are not located here, the court will not hear that portion of your divorce.  Often people who need to get divorced fast, say to get remarried, choose this option.

If you are seeking a divorce or child custody and need to speak to a Boise Divorce Attorney, give us a call, 208-472-2383.  You will be glad you did.

Boise Divorce Attorneys - Idaho Criminal Lawyers - Custody and Safe Haven

Idaho Safe Haven Law
Some years ago Safe Haven Laws did not exist.  If you left your child, at say a church or a hospital, you could be prosecuted for the criminal charge of abandonment.  If you had a baby you didn't want you would have to go through an adoption and termination process to relinquish your parental rights.  If you did anything else, such as drop the baby off, neglect the baby or otherwise fail to act appropriately as a parent, you could face criminal charges and require the services of a criminal lawyer.  In addition you would have to wait for the adoptive parents' Family Law Attorney to file the appropriate paperwork on behalf of the adoptive parents, get the termination of parental rights paperwork and hearing and have the adoption completed before your parental responsibility was relieved.  This process, because it involves home studies and other evaluations, can take a long time.  Your desire to care for the child and your ability to do so may very well be compromised in that length of time especially if you didn't wan the child in the first place.

The Idaho Safe Haven Act allowed parents to lawfully "abandon" their child.  The act requires that the child be left at a safe haven and that it be done within the first 30 days of the child's life.  The child has to be delivered by the custodial parent and they must express the intent not to want the child back.  The safe haven will take temporary physical custody of the child and the parent won't be subject to the criminal charge of abandonment.  

Once a child has been abandoned to a safe haven, the facility must notify the police who will then take protective custody of the child and deliver him or her to the care and control  of the Department of Health and Welfare.  A shelter care hearing is held to place physical custody with the Health and Welfare.   Health and Welfare is required to to place the child with potential adoptive parents as soon as possible so that the child may bond normally with parents.  During the first thirty days, the Department does investigative work to ensure the child was not wrongfully abandoned or kidnapped and abandoned.

Termination of Parental Rights
Once the Department of Health and Welfare has physical custody of the child  and they have gone through the investigative process in the first thirty days, the department will move to the stage of termination of parental rights.  As a Boise Divorce Attorney I have seen the following scenario.  A young mother gives birth to a child and doesn't want it.  She doesn't want to deal with having a Family Law Attorney set up a an adoption or a Custody Lawyer filing for paternity tests or setting up visitation or the like.  Usually, out of fear, she abandons the child.  As a custody lawyer I hear from the the father or the father's parents who want to keep the child and not have their son's parental rights terminated.  Is there any thing they can do?  The Idaho Code provides for a registration of parental rights.  The parent must go to the Department of Vital Statistics and fill out the appropriate paperwork.  Before the Department of Health and Welfare proceeds with the termination, they will check the registry to see if anyone is claiming parental rights and who therefore has an interest in the termination.  It is critical that a claim of parental rights be done immediately because if it is not done in a timely fashion both parent's parental rights will be terminated.

Liability
When a child is abandoned to a safe haven, the Idaho Code protects the employees of the facility where the child is left from civil and criminal liability.  It also protects the police officer who arrives to place the child in protective custody.  What this means is if something happens to the child, no criminal charges or civil suit may be made against the employee or the police.

Adoption
Once the child has been placed with prospective adoptive parents, the parental rights have been terminated and all the requirements for the adoption process have been complied with, the Department of Health and Welfare will terminate its custodial rights and the child will be allowed to be adopted.  The Department has its own attorneys dealing with the custody and termination of their rights and the adoptive parents will have their lawyers who will actually file the adoption paperwork.  At this point, the real parents have no further interest or say in the child, nor do they have a right to bring in their own attorney to have a say in the matter.

If you have questions regarding adoption, termination, custody, parental rights, divorce or any other family law issue and would like to speak to a Boise Family Law Attorney, give us a call
(208) 472-2383 and see what we can do for you.