How Do I Get Full Custody of My Child in California?
How Do I Get Full Custody of My Child in California?
Many former spouses share custody of their children when their marriage comes to an end. However, it’s possible for a parent to receive full custody of their child when their child’s well-being is at risk. This process can be complicated, which is why having our Beverly Hills child custody lawyers on your side is essential. The child custody attorneys at S.L. Pitts PC have helped families all over Southern California with complicated and contentious custody disputes.
Below we’ll explore why a parent may receive full custody of a child, what the process entails, and other potential issues you may experience when trying to protect your child and their best interests.
Is Your Child in Urgent Danger? Contact Us About an Emergency Custody Order
If you fear that your child is in imminent danger while they are with your ex, contact our Beverly Hills family law firm today. You can also reach our office serving the greater Los Angeles area by phone at 424.799.2940.
Our family lawyers can tell you the immediate steps to obtain an emergency (ex parte) order and discuss the potential for seeking full custody. We will go into more detail about temporary emergency orders later in this article.
Defining the Types of Sole Custody in California
Full custody means having both legal custody and physical custody of your child.
- Sole Legal Custody – Legal custody refers to the ability to make important decisions about your child’s upbringing. This includes choices about education, medical care, and other matters related to a child’s well-being.
- Sole Physical Custody – Physical custody refers to your child physically living with you at your home.
If full custody is granted, your ex will no longer have legal or physical custody regardless of any past co-parenting or joint custody arrangement.
You Can Get Full Custody If It’s in Your Child’s Best Interest
When determining if full custody should be granted, the court will always consider the best interests of your child.
Key factors when considering a child’s best interests include:
- Happiness
- Safety
- Security
- Emotional well-being
- Psychological development
- Mental health
Any actions by a parent that would seriously jeopardize the best interests of a child can be grounds of granting full custody to the other parent.
When you meet with our Beverly Hills child custody attorneys, we can go over your child’s current circumstances with your ex. We will let you know if your child’s best interests are being met and whether or not you can pursue sole physical and legal custody.
Potential reasons for granting full custody to a parent include:
- Child abuse, neglect, or endangerment
- Domestic violence or spousal abuse
- Alcohol or drug addiction/abuse
- The other parent is unfit to provide care
Full Custody Due to Child Abuse, Neglect, or Endangerment
Full custody may be granted if your former spouse is abusing your child or is neglecting their well-being. The child abuse may be physical, emotional, psychological, or sexual in nature. Neglect may refer to intentionally depriving a child of food, water, a comfortable living environment, or access to medical care.
You may also consider full custody if you learn that your ex has a history of child abuse and neglect involving children other than your own.
Full Custody Due to Domestic Violence and Spousal Abuse
If you experienced domestic violence and spousal abuse while married to your spouse, this could be grounds for seeking full custody of your children. If your ex has harmed their current spouse or partner, you can similarly seek full custody of your children. Doing so will save children from living in a hostile and potentially dangerous environment.
As with child abuse and neglect, you can potentially seek full custody if you learn that your ex has past issues involving domestic violence with a former spouse or partner.
Full Custody Due to Alcohol, Drug, and Substance Abuse
Full custody may be awarded if your ex uses alcohol, drugs, or other controlled substances. This is particularly true if a parent is currently an alcoholic or drug addict or has a history of chemical dependency, addiction, or relapses. The dangers are heightened if your ex uses controlled substances while your child is present in the home and under their care.
Keep in mind that a person does not need to be an addict for their substance abuse to impact the best interests of a child. The use of narcotics impairs a person’s ability to be fully present and attentive when it comes to the needs of a child.
Full Custody Because the Other Parent Is Unable to Provide Care
Sometimes a parent is simply unable to provide proper care to a child in their current situation. Examples would be the inability to properly nurture, feed, clothe, or protect a child. Awarding the other parent full custody would be the ideal way to ensure a child’s safety and upbringing.
Being deemed unfit as a parent covers a whole host of behaviors. Here are just a few examples:
- In some cases, a parent’s struggles with mental illness may be detrimental to a child’s immediate care needs and long-term well-being.
- A parent may have difficulty maintaining a job, finding stable income, or paying their debts on time. This lack of financial stability can put your child’s well-being at risk.
- An unfit parent may permit a child to engage in inappropriate or dangerous behaviors around the home. This includes a lack of child supervision while they are in the home.
- The state of a parent’s home may also not be a suitable environment for raising a child. In these situations, the home may be dirty, infested, or in severe disrepair.
- Poor care may also involve illegal activities occurring on or around the premises. This may be due to criminal activities on the part of your ex or the neighborhood simply being unsafe for children.
Discuss Full Child Custody with Our Beverly Hills Family Lawyers
If you have serious concerns with your ex’s abilities as a parent and caregiver, you need to speak with our child custody lawyers serving Los Angeles County. The team at S.L. Pitts PC has served the needs of parents and their children since 2001. We will take time to review your options and prioritize your child’s best interests every step of the way.
To request a consultation, contact our family law attorneys in Beverly Hills. We will discuss your child custody situation in more detail and work out the best solution possible.
When to Seek an Emergency Custody Order (Ex Parte)
When a child is in a dangerous environment, a parent may seek an emergency order to remove the child from that situation. Obtaining a temporary emergency order may be the first step in the court awarding you full custody of your child or children.
The Judicial Branch of California notes that two things must be present to file a temporary emergency order:
- You Need to Have a Family Law Case – You need to file an emergency order request using your family law case number. If you do not have a family law case in progress, you will need to start one in order to file an ex parte order.
- There Needs to Be an Emergency – The Judicial Branch of California defines an emergency as the immediate danger of irreparable harm to a person (in family law cases that typically means you or your child) or the loss or damage of property.
Keep in mind that once granted by a judge, a temporary emergency order can be extended by the court at a later hearing.
How to Get a Temporary Emergency Order for Your Child’s Safety
Below are the basic steps for getting a temporary emergency order. Our Beverly Hills child custody attorneys can help walk you through the process if you need assistance or have any questions. You can reach us by phone at 424.799.2940.
Step 1: Contact Your Local Court or Self-Help Center
Different courts in the greater Los Angeles area may have different rules to follow. Be sure to contact your local court directly or use California’s online Self-Help Center tool to get this necessary information.
Step 2: Fill Out the Necessary Forms
Complete all of the necessary paperwork for the emergency order. California Rule of Court 5.151 offers a good list of these forms and other requirements.
Step 3: Include Supporting Documents with Your Forms
If you have police reports or witness accounts available, include them with your forms.
If these documents are not readily available, you can submit them later for the judge to review.
Step 4: Notify the Other Party and Serve the Request
California Rule of Court 5.165 requires that your ex (or your ex’s legal representation) be notified of your intent to ask for emergency orders and that they be served a copy of what you intend to submit.
A judge may rule on an emergency order if you did not give the other side notice, but these kinds of situations are exceedingly rare.
Step 5: Make Copies of Your Completed Forms and Documents
Make two copies of the signed and dated forms and documents. Keep these copies for your records.
Step 6: Submit Your Forms
Submit your forms based on the instructions provided by your local court.
Obtaining Full Child Custody: What Steps You Need to Take
If there is not a pressing emergency but it is in your child’s best interests that you receive full custody, you can follow the steps below. When you work with the Beverly Hills child custody lawyers of S.L. Pitts PC, we will be sure to guide you through the entire process to avoid any time-consuming errors or setbacks.
Step 1: Consult Your Family Law Attorney
Speak with your family lawyer about your child’s situation and your current custody agreement. Your attorney will let you know if full child custody is an option.
If full custody is not a viable option despite concerns over your child’s well-being, seeking modifications to the existing custody agreement may still be possible.
Step 2: Gather All Relevant Evidence and Documentation
You and your child custody lawyer can gather any evidence relevant to seeking full custody. This may include photos, video evidence, police reports, medical records, financial records, restraining orders, phone records, emails and messages, witness testimony, complaints from neighbors, news articles, and information about past family court hearings.
Step 3: Complete the Appropriate Forms
Your child custody attorney can note the forms you need to fill out and the proper court procedure for filing them.
Step 4: Serve Your Ex with the Forms
Per California Rule of Court 5.165, you must serve and notify your ex or your ex’s lawyer.
Step 5: The Court Hearing
Your case for full custody will be presented during a court hearing. Our family law attorneys can help prepare you for this hearing and give you realistic expectations about what to expect.
Once the judge has made a decision about granting full custody, we can go over the next steps based on the ruling.
Get Help Seeking Full Child Custody: Contact Our Family Law Firm Today
Protecting your children from harm can take a lot of work. Our skilled team of family law attorneys can carefully assess your situation and help you gather the best evidence to obtain full custody of your child.
To set up a consultation with our child custody attorneys in Beverly Hills, contact our family law firm today. S.L. Pitts PC is here to help.
Will My Ex Have Visitation Rights If I Have Full Custody?
That depends on the nature of the case, your child’s safety or comfort with the other parent, and your comfort about your former spouse being around your child.
In some situations, you may have full legal and physical custody of your child yet the court may still allow parenting time (visitation) to the other parent. There are four types of parenting time in California:
- Reasonable – These arrangements are open-ended and worked out between parents. This is an option if you are on good terms with your ex and feel their presence in your child’s life is still important.
- With a Schedule – These parenting arrangements have set dates that allow your ex to spend time with your child. For example, you may have full custody, but you work out a schedule that grants your ex time with your child on certain weekends or holidays.
- Supervised – These parenting time arrangements allow your ex to visit your child only when you, another adult, or a representative from a professional agency are present. Such arrangements are made when a child’s safety or well-being may be at risk while alone with your former spouse.
- No Visitation – Parenting time may be prohibited if your ex poses a danger to a child’s well-being even with supervision.
In addition to the above, arrangements can be made for online video calls and phone calls between your ex and your child. Should the possibility of parenting time come up after you receive full child custody, our Beverly Hills family law attorneys can offer additional guidance through this process.
Help with Interstate and International Child Custody Disputes
Seeking custody of your child is much more complicated when the other parent is located in a different state or in a foreign country. Thankfully, our Beverly Hills divorce and child custody attorneys are well-versed in handling interstate and international family law disputes. This includes custody claims that involve exes in nearby states like Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington (where our firm has a family law office in Seattle).
No matter where you are in Southern California, the team at S.L. Pitts PC can help you understand how to protect your child and the proper channels to go about securing physical and legal custody.
Contact S.L. Pitts PC to Speak with our Experienced Child Custody Attorneys
When your child is in danger, you can’t afford to make mistakes. The family law team at S.L. Pitts PC is here to give you guidance and support while fighting for your child or your children’s best interests. To get more information about getting sole custody, contact our law office in Beverly Hills, CA. We are here for the parents of Los Angeles County and their children.