If you have a custody order in place, you never want to fall in contempt of the order because of an illegal or wrongful action on your part. With that custody order in place, there are many rules that you must abide by while keeping your child in mind. So what happens if your ex violates your custody order? You have options that you should know about.
To understand violations of custody orders, you must first understand the ins and outs of a child custody and visitation order. When you have a child custody order in place, this means that you have a legal order specifically stating who has legal guardianship over a child. In most cases, this means that you or the other parent will typically have supervision of the child and can make any decisions that regard them. Of course, some cases are very different and specialized to fit the situation. So now, you may ask, what can you do if your child custody or visitation order was violated? The truth is, you have many options.
Violation of a Custody Order
There are many common situations that occur from time to time when violations take place. In many of these cases, you will see a parent who overrides their time and takes control of the other parent’s time period, or fails to pick a child up at the correct time. If your court order is violated, you may choose one of many options. For instance, you might choose to call the police if there is an order in place and you feel as if you can’t handle it on your own. You may also alert your attorney about the violations or file a motion with the court. In this case, you will be taking the other parent for contempt of court if one parent continuously violates the order.
However, the other parent should know that they could face penalties for their actions. Violating a court order is a very serious ordeal and will not be taken lightly in the eyes of the courts. A parent who disobeys the court order will have to face the ordeal in court and explain why they did what they did. If the court decides that contempt of court did indeed come into play, the parent could face jail time and lose custody rights if the problem was severe enough.
There are many violations of custody agreements that are more common than others. For instance, a parent may do one of the following:
- A parent may refuse to respect visitation rights by bringing a child back later than expected.
- A parent may take the child without alerting the other parent, which is similar to kidnapping.
- A parent may badmouth the other parent and alienate the child from their mother or father.
- A parent may engage in personal habits that are not permitted around the child, such as smoking in their presence.
Regardless of your situation, you should never take matters into your own hands. This is why it is of utmost importance that you always follow the child custody and visitation orders and speak to an experienced attorney if things go downhill. This is where we come in. Call us today at The Law Offices of Amy M. Montes so we can help you with your custody case. We will take your case seriously and help you from start to finish.
