A parent in California who needs to attend a hearing in Children's Court over a care, custody or juvenile case has to get legal help. If it's not possible, then the court is able to assign a lawyer to assist each of the parents involved in the case. If the court is in LA County, it will mean getting help from Los Angeles Dependency Lawyers.
Dependency court locations in LA are in Lancaster and Monterey Park, CA. The latter is the Alfred McCourtney Juvenile Justice Center. The one in Lancaster is the Edmund Edelman Court.
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.
It's possible the child or children in question may have been left in the custody of the parents, but they're more likely to have been temporarily placed by the social worker at the home of a close friend or relative until the first hearing. If so, the hearing has to be held within three days and the parent has the right to speak with their children by phone in the interim.
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.
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.
Dependency court locations in LA are in Lancaster and Monterey Park, CA. The latter is the Alfred McCourtney Juvenile Justice Center. The one in Lancaster is the Edmund Edelman Court.
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.
It's possible the child or children in question may have been left in the custody of the parents, but they're more likely to have been temporarily placed by the social worker at the home of a close friend or relative until the first hearing. If so, the hearing has to be held within three days and the parent has the right to speak with their children by phone in the interim.
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.
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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