Category Archives: Child Custody
How Parental Gatekeeping Can Impact Your Child Custody Case
Parental gatekeeping describes a situation in which the custodial parent unilaterally decides to block or restrict the children’s access to the other parent. Parental gatekeeping can appear in many forms. These range from one parent attempting to shield the child from real harm to other forms of more insidious gatekeeping that involve parental alienation…. Read More »
What is the Best Interests of the Child Standard in New York State?
When determining child custody, judges have to base their decision on some standard to determine how custody arrangements will be made. Prior to the “best interests of the child standard,” most states favored mothers in custody disputes and would assign them the bulk of the custody rights and parenting time. Today, we use a… Read More »
Appeals Court Vacates Custody Judgment After Attorney Withdraws from the Case
In the case of Brandel v. Brandel, the parties were married in 2008 and had one child together who was born in 2012. The plaintiff initiated a divorce in April 2015, seeking sole custody of the couple’s child. During a family court proceeding in May 2015, the parties agreed to a resolution in court…. Read More »
Do Mothers Still Get Preference in Child Custody Disputes in New York State?
Traditionally, mothers were given preference when determining custody by family courts across the country. Today, state courts have shifted to a “best interests of the child” standard that favors neither the mother nor the father when deciding who has legal rights over the child or where they should live. It’s true that, in many… Read More »
Mother Deprived Custody of Her Child on the Basis of Refusing to Vaccinate for COVID-19
While the COVID-19 quarantine is safely in our rearview mirror, issues related to COVID-19 still persist. In one custody hearing filed in the state of New York, two parents differed on whether or not to vaccinate their children. The father, who was vaccinated, advocated that his children should be vaccinated against the virus. The… Read More »
Understanding Child Custody Rules in New York State
Of all the issues surrounding a divorce, child custody and visitation is the most emotionally charged. Arming yourself with knowledge of how New York State courts make decisions concerning child custody can help better prepare you for the process. Whether you mediate your divorce or the matter goes before a judge to decide, you… Read More »
How Do the New York Courts Determine the Best Interests of the Children in a Child Custody Case?
All states employ some standard to determine child custody in disputed cases. New York is no different. In New York, the courts employ “the best interests of the child” standard. In other words, they prioritize the welfare of the children above all else. In order to make this determination, the court employs several factors… Read More »
Elements of Child Neglect in New York State
Child neglect is defined as the failure of a parent or guardian to provide care and supervision to a child in such a manner that it compromises the child’s safety, well-being, or health. New York State considers child neglect to be a crime, but it can also factor into custody disputes when two parents… Read More »
What is an Attorney for a Child, and Why Might One Be Appointed in New York State?
It’s important to understand that in any court hearing related to child custody, the courts will render decisions that are in the best interests of the children. While most parents believe that they are acting in the child’s best interests, the court has the final say when there is a dispute. In these cases,… Read More »
The Rise of Foster Parent Adoptions & Biological Parents’ Rights
We have previously described instances where a county or city intervenes and interferes with a biological parent’s rights when it comes to child custody and how this is, in some circumstances, illegal, warranting the intervention of a skilled Rockland County child custody attorney. Foster-parenting intervention is another somewhat new circumstance involving denying biological parents’… Read More »