Child Support

Published on: May 6, 2012

Mother Takes Child Out of State Due to Abuse Suspicions

by Stephen Bilkis

The father, who is thirty-two years of age, and the mother, who is thirty years old were married in New York. A New York Family Lawyer said while married, the father worked as a first grade teacher and the mother worked as a mandarin interpreter. The couple knew each other for only a short time prior to their marriage, at which point, the mother became pregnant with their child. The mother gave birth to a son and at the time of the son’s birth the couple was living separately. However, during the early days of the marriage, the couple lived at the mother’s relative’s residence in Brooklyn. A great amount of the couple’s marriage can be characterized as tumultuous and there were incidents of domestic violence.

The father commenced a divorce action alleging cruel and inhuman treatment. Initially, the mother appeared without a counsel but later retained one. The mother was allegedly served with the summons with notice in an action for divorce at a Family Court.

In support of her request that she be awarded full legal child custody, the mother alleges that the father is merely trying to avoid paying child support and that he does not really care about child custody. A Nassau County Family Lawyer said she argues that, until recently, the father lacked involvement with the child since the child was conceived. The mother contends that the father demanded a paternity test to prove his relationship to the child, but even after paternity was established, the father had little to do with the child. The mother avers that, as recently as 2005, the father was willing to forego child custody, in favor of the mother.

Published on: May 2, 2012

Court Grants Divorce Based on Constructive Abandonment

by Stephen Bilkis

A couple was married in Albania. The couple had five children and all of the children are free from restraint. The children are ages are thirteen, eight, seven, five and four. A New York Family Lawyer said the four youngest children reside with the mother at a shelter in a confidential address, while the eldest child resides with the father at the marital residence, a rented apartment in New York. The couple is both in good health. An Albanian interpreter was provided for the wife throughout the litigation since she does not speak English. Although the husband testified in English during the child custody and visitation trial, he requested the use of an interpreter for the financial trial. The husband’s former attorney was relieved as counsel for the husband shortly after the child custody and visitation decision was rendered. The counsel was substituted.

During the marriage, the husband worked in the construction industry which enabled him to financially support the family and send funds to Albania. A Nassau County Family Lawyer said the wife is as a stay-at-home mother as established during the child custody trial. The couple and their children traveled to Albania. The husband returned to the United States after two weeks, however, the wife and children were left in Albania at the parents’ house of the husband for two years. The wife and youngest child left the husband’s parents’ home and went to live with the wife’s family in a nearby village over the objections of the husband and his family while the four eldest children remained with the husband’s parents. Thereafter, the marriage fractured and the husband returned to Albania to bring the four eldest children back to the United States. The wife and youngest child returned to the United States and moved directly into a domestic violence shelter, where the wife and the four youngest children resided. The events of the couple’s life in Albania and their return to New York are the subject of the court’s extensive child custody and visitation decision.

The husband testified to grounds for divorce. He testified that his wife ceased having sexual relations with him. The abandonment took place at the marital residence in New York. The husband further testified that he has requested that the wife resume sexual relations with him. He testified that the wife had no cause or justification for her actions and that there are no physical impairments to him having sexual relations with the wife. He did not condone or consent to her actions. A Nassau County Child Support Lawyer said the parties were married in a civil ceremony therefore there is no barrier to remarry. The wife remained silent, neither admitting nor denying the husband’s testimony. The court reserved its judgment pending the resolution of the supplementary issues.

Published on: April 30, 2012

Court Discusses Jurisdiction Issue

by Stephen Bilkis

The Facts:

A “husband” (also referred to as decedent or deceased) and his wife were married for forty years at the time of his death. They had four children together, and she had two from a previous marriage. A New York Family Lawyer the husband was Jewish and his wife was not. They celebrated some religious holidays with the family, but they did not belong to a temple, nor did the children regularly attend services. The husband never had a bar mitzvah ceremony. The husband’s family had a family plot in Mount Hebron Cemetery, a Jewish cemetery in New York, purchased by the husband’s grandfather. All of the husband’s family and their spouses were buried there. The husband and his wife lived in New York until 1998 when they moved to Florida.

After relocating to Florida, the husband began to have health problems. Around 1999, the husband told his wife that he wanted to be buried in his family plot in Mount Hebron with her. However, in May of 2001, when the husband went into the hospital, he and his wife first discussed being buried together in Florida.

Published on: April 27, 2012

Court Determines Visitation and Custody Issues

by Stephen Bilkis

A man and a woman met in New York. The man was a resident of Florida. The woman got pregnant and gave birth to a son on August 9, 2007. A New York Family Lawyer said the father stayed in New York at the mother’s apartment for a fortnight after the baby was born. But the father left New York and returned to Florida. He did not disclose any plans to return to New York nor did he have any plans to bring his son to Florida.

Two months after the child was born, the mother filed a case in the Family Court of New York for the sole child custody of her son. A Nassau County Family Lawyer said five months during the pendency of the mother’s petition for sole child custody, the father appeared and filed an application for sole child custody or at least visitation rights.

During the pendency of the mother’s action for child custody, their son remained with her but the father was able to have one-day visits with their son nine times. He was able to get one overnight visit and one weekend visit with their son in New York. And the child was able to stay with his father for one week in Florida.

Published on: April 24, 2012

Court Looks to Will to Determine Burial Plan

by Stephen Bilkis

Cressie Carlyle and Ivan Cohen are the appellants in this case and the appellee of the case is the Guardianship of Hilliard Cohen.

The Appeal

The siblings of the departed, Hilliard Cohen are appealing an order from probate court that requires the deceased to be buried in a Florida graveyard next to his spouse of 40 years instead of being buried in the family plot in a cemetery located in New York.

Published on: April 23, 2012

Court Determines if Insurance in Effect at time of Accident

by Stephen Bilkis

The appellant of the case is Betty Ann Russell, who is a minor and is represented through her father and her next friend, Fred R. Russell. The appellees in the case are Charles A. Eckert and E.R. Heard and Hartford Accident and Indemnity Company, a corporation, Garnishee-Appellee.

The Appeal

Betty Ann Russell, who is a minor, is appealing a final judgment that was issued by the Hillsborough County Circuit Court after a trial without jury. A New York Family Laywer said the issue of the case was between the plaintiff and Hartford Accident and Indemnity Company, a corporation.

Published on: April 20, 2012

Court Hears Motion to Relocate

by Stephen Bilkis

A New York Family Lawyer said the issue of relocation first came in to the lower court previously when the father’s motion to hinder his wife from moving was rendered unsettled when a job opportunity that had precipitated her interest in moving did not come to completion.

However, after an extensive evidentiary proceeding, the court granted the mother’s motion to relocate and the mother moved to other country with her daughter. The father’s motion to stay the relocation pending an appeal was denied by the appellate division as the mother and child then remained in the relocated area. In a decision and order, the appellate division reversed the decision and directed the Supreme Court to fix a date for the production of the child in New York.

A Nassau County Family Lawyer said subsequently the Supreme Court, with the consent of the parties, determined that the interests of the child would best be served by permitting her to complete the school year in the relocated area. At a court conference, the parties acknowledged that the child was unhappy with her father about being forced to return to his custody in New York. For that reason, it was agreed that the child would return to New York in early July and that thereafter she and her father would participate in a series of therapeutic visitation sessions under the supervision of a clinical psychologist. The plan was to hold two sessions during the week following her arrival and two more sessions during the following week.

Published on: April 18, 2012

Court Determines if they Have Proper Jurisdiction in Family Law Matter

by Stephen Bilkis

A New York Family Lawyer said the mother, respondent, and the father were married in 1980, which marriage was dissolved by a Florida Judgment of Divorce in 1986. At the time of the divorce, the mother was awarded primary custody of her three children. In 1988 an acquaintance of the mother entered her Florida home and abducted, raped and brutally attacked the two daughters, killing one of them and seriously injuring another. The father petitioned the Florida Court for a change of physical custody, which was granted in an Order and Judgment dated 7 June 1989. That order, inter alia, granted the mother liberal contact and access with the children including an extended summer and Christmas visitation. The father was also required to facilitate continued counseling for the children in Rochester which he failed to do. Counseling for one of the children was discontinued in 1992 and the other child in 1993 upon the father’s contention that it was no longer needed.

The children visited with the mother in Florida during summers of 1990, 1991, and 1993, and for the three Christmas holidays in those years, while residing the remainder of the year with the father in Monroe County, New York. Summer visitation did not occur during the summer of 1994, as the parties agreed to postpone visitation so one of the children could participate in a softball clinic. The mother drove to Monroe County to visit with the children during Christmas 1994, after the father refused to send them to Florida pursuant to their prior agreement. No visit occurred during the summer of 1995. Despite the attempts of the mother and her attorney to arrange a Christmas, 1995 visit, the father refused to allow the mother to speak with the children when she telephoned and refused to permit that visit to occur.

Subsequently, on 18 December 1995, the mother filed a Motion for Contempt against the father in the state of Florida. On 28 May 1996, the father was found in willful contempt of the Florida order. Counseling with the mother and the children was ordered by the Florida Court, as well as visitation during the summer of 1996.

Published on: April 15, 2012

Physician Accused of Performing Illegal Abortions

by Stephen Bilkis

The appellant of the case is the United States of America. The appellee in the case is Milan Vuitch.

Appeal

Milan Vuitch, the appellee is a licensed physician and was indicted by the District Court in the District of Columbia for the United States District Court. Milan Vuitch was accused of attempting to produce and producing abortions that were in violation of the District of Columbia code Ann 22-201, from the year 1967. A New York Family Lawyer said before the case went to trial the district judge of the case ruled in favor of the defendant and granted a motion to dismiss the case on the bases that the abortion laws in the District of Columbia are to vague. It is this motion for dismissal that is being appealed.

Published on: April 14, 2012

Court Decides if Child Support Obligations can be Waived

by Stephen Bilkis

Anna O’Connor is the respondent and James G. Curcio is the appellant in this case.

The father is appealing to recover child support payments.

The issue became whether or not child support payments that are due can be waived because of an order of judgment. As long as the obligation to make those payments hasn’t occurred, they can be waived.