California-based parents who are a party to custody, care or juvenile cases will be in need of a lawyer representing them in Children's Court. If necessary, the court can assign one. This usually means Los Angeles Dependency Lawyers when the case is in LA County.
The dependency court location in LA County may either be in Monterey Park or in Lancaster, CA. The former is the Edmund D. Edelman Children's Court. The other courthouse location is at the Alfred McCourtney Juvenile Justice Center that is located in Lancaster.
The court has a duty to appoint a lawyer to parents who need help getting legal representation. This is true even if the parent concerned is not accused of abuse or neglect and/or is a non-custodial parent. Whether the lawyer should be paid or not will depend on whether the client can afford to pay.
There are instances when a child may still be left in the parents' custody at this point. But the more usual process is to place them with a close friend or relative of the child or children until the initial hearing. In such cases, the parent is allowed to communicate with their children by phone, and the hearing must be held within three days.
Parents will typically land up in court only if the social worker has already tried to offer the parent a way out and has been refused. So the case is now in court, and parents can once again accept or refuse the same settlement. Many also try to dispute the DCFS' claims and will try to win back custody of a child. Note that a court bench officer may not be as sympathetic as the social worker, and the end result could be very serious.
Either way, it's crucially important that the lawyer gets to see all the documents before the first hearing. Parents meeting the lawyer must bring all supporting documents they have, along with a list of names and addresses of potential witnesses who could be helpful. The most important part of the first hearing is deciding on temporary custody while the case is being investigated.
It's a huge win if the bench officer agrees to reunite the children with their parents immediately. But the more commonplace decision is to place the children with a close friend or relation for the duration. If this happens, the hearing will also include the process of establishing visitation rights. The parent may also be asked to enroll for programs deemed necessary.
The other key thing that happens at the first hearing is that the judge decides what type of case it is and how serious it is. This will determine whether the next court date is a trial or a settlement hearing. Many of these cases are decided based on the first impression, so clients must be dressed properly for court and must address the bench officer in a respectful manner.
The dependency court location in LA County may either be in Monterey Park or in Lancaster, CA. The former is the Edmund D. Edelman Children's Court. The other courthouse location is at the Alfred McCourtney Juvenile Justice Center that is located in Lancaster.
The court has a duty to appoint a lawyer to parents who need help getting legal representation. This is true even if the parent concerned is not accused of abuse or neglect and/or is a non-custodial parent. Whether the lawyer should be paid or not will depend on whether the client can afford to pay.
There are instances when a child may still be left in the parents' custody at this point. But the more usual process is to place them with a close friend or relative of the child or children until the initial hearing. In such cases, the parent is allowed to communicate with their children by phone, and the hearing must be held within three days.
Parents will typically land up in court only if the social worker has already tried to offer the parent a way out and has been refused. So the case is now in court, and parents can once again accept or refuse the same settlement. Many also try to dispute the DCFS' claims and will try to win back custody of a child. Note that a court bench officer may not be as sympathetic as the social worker, and the end result could be very serious.
Either way, it's crucially important that the lawyer gets to see all the documents before the first hearing. Parents meeting the lawyer must bring all supporting documents they have, along with a list of names and addresses of potential witnesses who could be helpful. The most important part of the first hearing is deciding on temporary custody while the case is being investigated.
It's a huge win if the bench officer agrees to reunite the children with their parents immediately. But the more commonplace decision is to place the children with a close friend or relation for the duration. If this happens, the hearing will also include the process of establishing visitation rights. The parent may also be asked to enroll for programs deemed necessary.
The other key thing that happens at the first hearing is that the judge decides what type of case it is and how serious it is. This will determine whether the next court date is a trial or a settlement hearing. Many of these cases are decided based on the first impression, so clients must be dressed properly for court and must address the bench officer in a respectful manner.
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