Parents in California who are involved in care or custody battles or juvenile cases involving their children need legal representation in the Children's Court. For those who need help, the court will usually assign a lawyer who can assist parents and appear on their behalf for the hearing. In LA County, this means getting help from Los Angeles Dependency Lawyers.
The LA dependency court locations are in Monterey Park and in Lancaster. To be specific, it will either be the Alfred McCourtney Juvenile Justice Center in Monterey Park or the Edmund Edelman Children's Court which is in Lancaster. The social worker handling the case will have provided documents which should indicate which court will hold the hearing.
The court appoints lawyers for parents who do have legal representation and are not able to secure their own lawyer. This right is available even to a parent who is not accused of neglect or abuse, and also for non-custodial parents. The client's ability to pay is taken into consideration when figuring out if and how much the lawyer should be paid.
Sometimes, the child may still be in the care and custody of a parent. But the social worker will more often than not have detained the child in question at the home of a close relative or friend. If this is true, the hearing is held inside of three days. Meantime, the parent is allowed to call by phone to talk to the child.
The case only goes to court after the social worker has failed to convince the parents to agree to voluntarily accepting a plan to keep the children safe. Since it's already in court, this means the parent has one more opportunity to settle the matter by agreeing to the case plan. It's also a chance to disprove the DCFS claims and get back custody. This carries a risk because a loss in court means that the chances of securing a settlement that includes custody will be a lot lower.
The lawyer will need to see all the documents associated with the case before the hearing in order to devise and suggest a strategy that both the lawyer and client agree on. A parent attending the hearing should also bring a list of potential witnesses who can help make their case and verify their version of events. This is critically important in the first hearing where temporary custody of the children is decided, pending the results of the investigation.
The bench officer or judge presiding over the matter may sometimes provide temporary custody to the parent. However, the more common solution is to detain them with a close relation or a family friend who is capable and happy to take care of the child for the duration. At this point, visitation rights will be formulated and a parent involved in the case may also be asked to sign up for some programs the judge feels are necessary.
The most important thing that happens at the initial hearing is that the judge or bench officer will decide the seriousness of the case, and the future course of action. So the second hearing, whose date will be set, could end up as a time and place for a settlement. It could just as well be a trial hearing. In any case, first impressions count for a lot, so clients must dress for court and treat the bench officer with utmost respect.
The LA dependency court locations are in Monterey Park and in Lancaster. To be specific, it will either be the Alfred McCourtney Juvenile Justice Center in Monterey Park or the Edmund Edelman Children's Court which is in Lancaster. The social worker handling the case will have provided documents which should indicate which court will hold the hearing.
The court appoints lawyers for parents who do have legal representation and are not able to secure their own lawyer. This right is available even to a parent who is not accused of neglect or abuse, and also for non-custodial parents. The client's ability to pay is taken into consideration when figuring out if and how much the lawyer should be paid.
Sometimes, the child may still be in the care and custody of a parent. But the social worker will more often than not have detained the child in question at the home of a close relative or friend. If this is true, the hearing is held inside of three days. Meantime, the parent is allowed to call by phone to talk to the child.
The case only goes to court after the social worker has failed to convince the parents to agree to voluntarily accepting a plan to keep the children safe. Since it's already in court, this means the parent has one more opportunity to settle the matter by agreeing to the case plan. It's also a chance to disprove the DCFS claims and get back custody. This carries a risk because a loss in court means that the chances of securing a settlement that includes custody will be a lot lower.
The lawyer will need to see all the documents associated with the case before the hearing in order to devise and suggest a strategy that both the lawyer and client agree on. A parent attending the hearing should also bring a list of potential witnesses who can help make their case and verify their version of events. This is critically important in the first hearing where temporary custody of the children is decided, pending the results of the investigation.
The bench officer or judge presiding over the matter may sometimes provide temporary custody to the parent. However, the more common solution is to detain them with a close relation or a family friend who is capable and happy to take care of the child for the duration. At this point, visitation rights will be formulated and a parent involved in the case may also be asked to sign up for some programs the judge feels are necessary.
The most important thing that happens at the initial hearing is that the judge or bench officer will decide the seriousness of the case, and the future course of action. So the second hearing, whose date will be set, could end up as a time and place for a settlement. It could just as well be a trial hearing. In any case, first impressions count for a lot, so clients must dress for court and treat the bench officer with utmost respect.
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