A Law Firm Specializing In New York Family Law
THE LAW OFFICE OF
STEVEN P. FORBES | Practice Areas
Custody and Visitation
An order of custody gives one person, usually a parent, the responsibility for the care, control and maintenance of a child. The parties to these proceedings are generally parents, but they need not always be. There are a limited number of circumstances in which a non-parent will be able to petition for the custody of a child. Ultimately, the best interests of the child or children will be the most important factor in determining whether a person should be granted an order of custody. It is important to note that what is in a child’s best interests can and often does change as time goes by. Therefore, orders of custody are never final, but instead can be modified under the appropriate circumstances. To the extent that a prior court has declined an application for custody in the past, is not necessarily conclusive as to whether or not a subsequent application would have a better chance of success.
An order of visitation is far less expansive than an order of custody and merely delineates periods of time that a parent (or in some cases a non-parent) can spend time with the subject child. While some of the same factors used to determine a custody petition are employed here, the most important, obviously, is whether the proposed visitation is in the child’s best interests.
Child Abuse / Neglect
Child abuse and neglect cases are those in which the State has intervened in the relationship between a parent (or person legally responsible for a child) and the child upon the ground that the parent or other person has impaired a child’s physical, psychological and/or emotional well being or placed that well being at risk of becoming impaired. Needless to say, this encompasses an extremely broad spectrum of activities that could adversely effect a child, such as, but not necessarily limited to parental drug or alcohol abuse, excessive corporal punishment, sexual abuse, educational or medical neglect, failure to thrive and parental mental illness. Time is of critical importance in these proceedings as the failure to act properly and decisively in these matters could result in a subsequent termination of parental rights petition. It is vital that, when indicated, that the appropriate services are identified and engaged in immediately. It is equally important that when children are removed from a parent’s care, a prompt and informed decision be made regarding whether to contest that removal. Ultimately, the primary goal of these proceedings from the perspective of the accused parents is almost always family reunification. All other considerations are secondary.
Termination of Parental Rights
Generally, but not always, termination of parental rights cases are an outgrowth of child abuse and neglect cases where the foster care agency and/or the State is alleging that the parent has failed to address the issues that led to the filing of the child abuse or neglect or that the parent’s mental illness permanently and significantly inhibits the parent’s ability to ensure their child’s safety or that the parent has abandoned the child. In either of these cases, if the evidence is sufficient, the parent’s rights are terminated and the child can be freed for an adoption. The rights at stake in these proceedings are both self evident and vitally important. It is vitally important from the outset of these proceedings that a service plan be identified and complied with as soon as possible. It is equally important that the parent appreciate that time is of the essence.
Juvenile Delinquency
In these cases, the State has intervened in the parent child relationship, but here the focus is on the conduct of the child rather than the parent’s. Here the child (less than 16 years of age at the time of arrest) is charged with the commission of a crime. (Children 16 years and older are brought to the Criminal Court). Like their criminal counterparts these cases have two primary parts, trials where guilty or innocence is determined and dispositions where once guilt has been established an appropriate resolution is determined. However, unlike in the criminal system which deal with adults and youthful offenders, the Family Court is bound to reach a disposition which is the least restrictive alternative to meet the needs of the child and community. This is an important and fundamental difference with the Criminal Court which is more focused on punishment of the adult criminal. However, because placement away from the family is a real possibility, careful planning and identification of services is vital in any successful defense.Equally vital is the early identification of evidentiary issues which if not raised promptly are often waived. Trial preparation is equally imperative in these matters as is the retention of investigators, where appropriate. In short, juvenile delinquency cases are often processed very quickly, and require that both advocates and litigants be diligent and zealous in their preparation and defense of these cases. The right at stake, a child’s liberty, is too important to address halfheartedly, but rather, demands a full and consistent commitment.
Orders of Protection
Orders of Protection are available to family members, as well as others with an intimate relationship, when someone has committed a family offense against them. A family offense is one of a number of criminal acts such as harassment, stalking aggravated harassment (on the phone or via email), assault, etc., which can serve as the basis for the issuance of an order of protection from the Family Court. It is irrelevant if the perpetrator is also being prosecuted in Criminal Court for the same offense. In Family Court, the standard of proof is lower than the Criminal Court, in other words, there is no need to prove the allegations “beyond a reasonable doubt”. Orders of protection in Family Court can be issued for a period of two (2) years but can be extended to five (5) years if the petitioner is able to demonstrate aggravating circumstances, such as a long history of physical abuse.
Orders of Support
Parents who have legal custody of a child are entitled to support from the non-custodial parent to assist in the day-to-day expenses commensurate with caring for a child. The amount of that support varies significantly from family to family, but is, as a general rule, governed by percentages of a non-custodial parent’s income depending on the number of children as set forth by the Child Support Standards Act. These cases can be fairly straight forward in the instances where the parties are W2 employees and there is no other income. On the other hand, these cases can become extremely complicated in the instances where the amount of income to be assessed to the non-custodial parent is difficult to ascertain either because it is inconsistent or because the non-custodial parent is less than forthcoming about his or her income. In the more complicated cases, extensive pre-trial preparation and often the retention of an expert is vital to the success of these cases. Cases involving spousal supports support require the same levels of preparation butare not governed by any specific statute which sets percentages as to the amount of support that should be afforded a spouse.
Appeals
There are times that in spite of the best efforts of litigants and their attorneys, the decisions reached by the Family Court are not supported by the evidence and/or the law. My firm is equipped to handle complex family law appeals in the State of New York. I have handled hundreds of appeals both directly and on behalf of other attorneys. If you believe that your case was not handled properly or you are the victim of an unjust decision, you can schedule a consultation with me discuss your rights and options. If following your consultation, we mutually conclude that it is in your best interests to appeal the Family Court’s decision, I will file an appeal on your behalf so that a panel appellate judges can review your case and determine whether the law was correctly applied.
I have been a member of the Second Department Appellate Panel for over 12 years and as such have handled numerous appeals and appeared before both the Appellate Division and the State’s highest court, the New York State Court of Appeals.
