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CHAPTER 9CHAPTER 9

CHILD CUSTODYCHILD CUSTODY

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• What’s Best for the Children?

• The Battling Baxters: One Family’s Custody Struggle • The mediation alternative

• Role of the mediator

Child Custody

Chapter 9Chapter 9

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• The Court’s Role in Determining Custody • Custody

• Visitation

• Support

• Best interests of the child

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Child Custody

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• Judicial Decisions Should be Gender Neutral • Patria potestas

• Tender Years Doctrine

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Child Custody

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• Reaching for Uniformity: The UCCJA is Born • UCCJA

• UCCJEA: Offspring of the UCCJA • UCCJEA

– Home state and continuing jurisdiction

– Significant connection with the child (forum non conveniens)

– Some kind of emergency situation

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Child Custody

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• UCCJEA: Offspring of the UCCJA (continued)

• Two newer federal statutes – Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act (PKPA)

– Violence Against Women Act (VAWA)

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Types of Custody

• Sole custody • Legal custody

• Split custody

• Joint custody • Physical custody

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Child Custody

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• The Many Options of Child Custody • Discuss the mechanics of all types of child custody

• Court Provides Joint Custody Over Parents Objections • Beck v. Beck

• The Battling Baxters Exhaust J.D.

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Weighing Child Support Factors: Where’s King Solomon When You Need Him? • Best interests of the child

– Investigating the emotional ties of the child to each parent

– Amount of child care each parent provided

– Wishes of the child

– Lifestyle and moral beliefs of each parent

– Any other relevant factor

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Child Custody Factors Analyzed • Primary caregiver

• Supervised visitation

• Allen v. Farrow

• Parental Alienation Syndrome

• Court Asked: What’s Best, Grandma’s Babysitting or Daycare?

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Religion’s Role in Custody: In the Name of Faith • Quiner v. Quiner

• The Issue of Sexual Orientation in Custody Disputes • Nadler v. The Superior Court of the State of

California, In and for the County of Sacramento

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Role of the Stepparent In Custody Disputes • In Loco Parentis Doctrine

• Courts Create Responsibility for Stepparents • Equitable estoppel

• Implied contract

• Defacto parent

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Stepping up to Responsibility • Stepparent rights

– Psychological Parent Doctrine

• Parental Rights Doctrine: Biological Connection Verses Stepparent • In Re the Marriage of Andrew W. Simmons v.

JoEllen C. Simmons

• Joint Custody Awarded to Stepparent • Stamps v. Rawlins

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Grandparents Role in Custody and Visitation • Bowers v. Matula

• Dolman v. Dolman

• Troxel v. Granville

• The Baxters: A Family Struggles to Determine the Best Interests of Their Children

• Asking Your Client the Right Questions • Review the sample interview questions (Exhibit 9.2)

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Depositions Follow Interrogatories • Deposition

• Preparing for a Custody Trial

• Advocating for the Children: The Guardian Ad Litem’s Role • Role of a Guardian Ad Litem (GAL)

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• The Psychological Expert’s Role • Defining the expert’s role

• Confidentiality waiver

• Shapiro v. Shapiro

• Baxters Declare Truce • Review the proposed custody and visitation clauses

(Exhibit 9.3)

• Living with the Final Custody Order• Motion for modification

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Requesting a Modification in Custody: One Court Slow to Change • Palmore v. Sidoti

• Effect of Sexual Orientation’s on Custody Modification • M.J.P. v. J.G.P.

• The Child’s Role in Modification: The Smallest Voice Heard • Goldstein v. Goldstein

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Enforcement of Custody and Visitation Orders

• Visitation Dispute Lands Mom in Jail

• Ignoring a Custody Order: Facing the Fear of Parental Kidnapping • Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act

• Barndt v. Barndt

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Dealing with International Parental Kidnapping

• Applying the Hague Convention • The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of the

International Child Abduction

• In the matter of David S. v. Zamira S.

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• New Questions in Custody • Keeping up with the 21st Century

– Assisted reproductive technology – Surrogacy – In vitro fertilization – Artificial insemination

• How Does the Law Keep Up with Science? • Direct certification • Uniform Status of Children of Assisted Conception

Act (USCACA)• In the Matter of Baby M

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Genetic verses Gestational Mothers: Defining Parental Rights in the New Millennium • McDonald v. McDonald

• Birth Mother Seeks Custody • Surrogate gestational mother

• Genetic parents

• Johnson v. Calvert

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Assisted Reproductive Technology and the Law• Disposition of stored embryos

• What Do We Do with the Pre-Zygotes? • Kass v. Kass

• Who Gets the Embryo? • Cryogenic preservation

• Davis v. Davis

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Procreation Postmortem: Gone, But Not Forgotten • Cryobank

• Vel non, executrix, and contra bones mores

• Hecht v. Superior Court of the County of Los Angeles

• Hall v. Fertility Institute of New Orleans

• Is Artificial Insemination Natural? • C.M. v. C.C.

Chapter 9Chapter 9

Child Custody

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• Ethics Alert:• Stroke of luck or ethical problem?

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Child Custody