Child Visitation & Parenting Time Lawyer in Fairfield County
Detailed Connecticut Legal Advice for Parenting Time Decisions
Because divorce is relatively common, you probably know several friends or relatives who are divorced. Perhaps you are even the child of divorce. One common and unavoidable aspect of divorce is child custody determinations and the visitation or parenting time plans that follow.
Giustino Capodilupo is an experienced Westport family law attorney who is adept at helping parents with visitation or parenting time plans, and the modifications that sometimes occur to child custody agreements.
"People get caught up in divorce sometimes and forget about the kids. Maybe they want a visitation arrangement that is like another family's, but each family is unique. It's all relative." — Connecticut parenting time lawyer Giustino Capodilupo
An experienced Westport visitation attorney can help you develop a visitation plan that works for both parents and, most importantly, works for the children.
Stamford, Connecticut, Parenting Time Attorney Helps Avoid Pitfalls
Occasionally, a spouse will try to hurt the other parent through the children. Family law judges have seen acrimonious disputes and vengeful visitation tactics many times before. Those behaviors frequently backfire.
Our law firm's approach keeps your goals in mind without losing sight of the children.
- Children deserve a relationship with each parent. That is the court's official position and it is our law firm's as well.
- If a suitable parenting plan is not reached outside of court, Connecticut Family Relations will make a recommendation you may not like.
- Access for each parent to the children is usually desired, but frequent exchanges may leave the children feeling like ping pong balls. We work with you to find an agreeable solution.
- We provide you with the pros and cons of every decision you must make. Decisions are always yours.
- While we are always committed to our clients' goals we sometimes act as neutral observers. If either you or the other party is behaving badly, we will work to correct the situation. Judges frown on bad behavior.
After the divorce, changes may need to be made in the parenting plan when work, living or health conditions change. Connecticut family law attorney Giustino Capodilupo has helped many parents arrange for post-divorce modifications of visitation arrangements.
Strong Advocacy for Your Legal Needs
Our law office represents those in divorce as they work out visitation or parenting plans. Please call our law office at 866-463-5144, 203-403-6659 or send us an E-Mail. Giustino Capodilupo is a Stamford visitation attorney who will work diligently to solve all your legal issues.
Child Support Attorney in Fairfield County
Legal Help for Child Support Determinations
One way to look at child support determinations is that there are state child support guidelines, and if you follow them, everything else will fall into place. However, it is not that simple.
Giustino Capodilupo is a Westport child support lawyer with significant experience and effectiveness in helping a divorcing couple determine the appropriate child support determination.
onnecticut has firm guidelines for how child support is calculated. Spouses can privately agree to a higher or lower amount of child support. In most cases the court must agree to a deviation from the child support guidelines.
Under the child support guidelines, the amount of child support is calculated based on the net incomes of both parents. Then, each parent's share of the total amount is calculated based on their respective incomes. Child support orders include agreements about:
- Health insurance payments
- Out-of-pocket or non-reimbursed medical expenses
- Child care expenses
Child support is available for unmarried parents and guardians. You may need to make a paternity determination through DNA testing to establish the biological father. When paternity is established, the custodial parent may ask the court to order child support and the child's father may ask the court to order reasonable parenting time or visitation.
Stamford, Connecticut, Support Violation Lawyer for Enforcement or Modifications
There are instances in which child support enforcement may become an issue and also times when a modification is required. Our law firm has experience and success in resolving the following issues:
- Child support or non-payment violation — If child support payments are due to you, we can file a motion for contempt and bring your spouse back to court to enforce payment. The court may garnish wages or send the offender to jail. In that case the offending party may be required to pay opposing counsel's legal fees and court fees.
- Child support modification — If the payor is behind in child support payments due to the loss of a job or other financial reasons, a child support modification would be needed so that the paying parent is not in contempt of court.
Strong Advocacy for Your Legal Needs
If you need child support modification or your former spouse is behind on child support payments, please call our law office at 866-463-5144, 203-403-6659 or send us an E-Mail. Connecticut child support violation attorney Giustino Capodilupo is a Westport child support lawyer who will work diligently to solve all of your legal issues.
Paternity Attorney in Fairfield County
When Is a DNA Test Needed?
Parents who have never been married typically want to establish paternity if they separate. It provides the mother with the ability to receive child support from the father, and it provides the father with the ability to pursue shared child custody or visitation rights. With parental rights come parental responsibilities.
DNA testing has been very well established as a reliable means to determine paternity. Contact our law office for help with paternity determinations. We serve Stamford, Westport and the surrounding areas.
Giustino Capodilupo is a family law attorney with significant experience in all family law matters including paternity determinations, same sex relationships and child custody disputes.
DNA testing for a paternity determination is conducted for two basic reasons:
- To prove that you are not the father
- To prove that you are the father
On the surface, that seems like a simple determination, but quite often it becomes more complicated. A Ridgefield paternity lawyer may be needed to guarantee access to children.
Stamford, Connecticut, Father's Rights Attorney Working for Mothers or Fathers
A few short scenarios may demonstrate how paternity issues can become complicated.
- A woman becomes pregnant during a courtship and a child is born shortly after their marriage. The couple raises the child jointly and then divorce six years later. The ex-husband may have a paternity test to determine if the child he raised is his, is actually his. What rights will he have if the child is not his biological offspring?
- A man is notified that a 22-year-old child is his biological child. A paternity test reveals the child to be his. Does he have any rights or responsibilities?
- A man is notified that a 10-year-old child is his when the mother attempts to collect child support. A paternity test proves that he is the child's father. Does he owe child support? If so, how much and when?
- A man and woman are married with three children. A paternity test during the divorce process determines that the youngest child is not his biological child. What are his rights and responsibilities to the youngest of the three siblings?
The answers to these scenarios vary. Giustino Capodilupo is an experienced Westport paternity lawyer who can guide you through the process of pursuing your paternity goals.
Strong Advocacy for Your Legal Needs
If you have a paternity question, whether married, divorced or unmarried, please call our law office at 866-463-5144, 203-403-6659 or send us an Contact . Giustino Capodilupo works diligently to solve all legal issues regarding paternity.
Fairfield County Child Custody Dispute Lawyer
Resolving Custody Disputes in Connecticut
Divorces are often most difficult — and most emotional — when the parents disagree about custody of their children. In divorces involving child custody disputes, a knowledgeable divorce lawyer can help you establish and fight for a child custody plan that is in the best interests of your children.
The Law Office of Giustino Capodilupo Ridgefield, Connecticut 1-866-463-5144 ∙ E-Mail
Attorney Giustino Capodilupo is an experienced and caring Stamford child custody lawyer. You will find our office to be extremely compassionate toward our clients involved in challenging child custody disputes. We also take an uncompromising stance toward ensuring that our clients' best interests — and the best interests of your children — are protected.
In addition to working as a divorce lawyer on behalf of husbands or wives facing child custody disputes, Mr. Capodilupo also serves as a guardian ad litem in the Connecticut court system. A guardian ad litem is appointed by the court in some family law cases to act as the advocate for a child.
Mr. Capodilupo brings his experience as a guardian ad litem to his work as a divorce attorney in cases where child custody is contested — including a thorough understanding of how the Connecticut court system will interpret the broad phrase "the best interests of the child."
The Process of Determining Child Custody
If two parents cannot agree on child custody and visitation, then they must follow the proceedings for a contested divorce. Eventually, if the disagreement stands, a hearing will be held and a judge or hearing officer will make the child custody decision based on evidence presented by both parents and by a neutral evaluator from the Family Relations Office of the court.
- Joint custody is preferred: Under Connecticut law, a joint custody arrangement is usually preferred, unless evidence presented at a hearing shows that joint custody would be detrimental to the child.
- Custody orders for a non-parent: In situations where a grandparent or other relative is seeking custody of the child, the burden is on the non-parent to prove that the child's physical or emotional well-being would be threatened if the parent continues to have custody.
Consultations Flexible Scheduling Options
If you are involved in a child custody dispute — whether you are in the beginning stages of a divorce, are already divorced, or were never married — it is critically important to get practical and effective legal advice.
Because child custody disputes are often so emotional, a knowledgeable family law attorney can help you think through the conflict in a rational manner and with an eye towards what practical outcome may actually be possible to achieve.
At The Law Office of Giustino Capodilupo, we offer all new clients an initial consultation. We are always available to answer your legal questions and provide practical and effective legal representation. To schedule an appointment, contact our offices. Call toll-free 1-866-463-5144 or send us an e-mail.
Connecticut Attorney Handling Hague Convention Abduction Cases
International Child Abduction — Getting Your Child Back
In today's global economy, people are traveling, working and emigrating as never before. When two people from different countries marry and have children — and then divorce — they may want to take the children back to their home country. If they do not have physical child custody and they take the children to another country, that is international child abduction.
Giustino Capodilupo is a Westport Hague Convention lawyer with extensive experience with divorce and child custody matters. International child abduction by a parent who does not have child custody is covered in many nations of the world by the Hague Convention treaty.
The Hague Conference on Private International Law reports that, "The Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction is a multilateral treaty, which seeks to protect children from the harmful effects of abduction and retention across international boundaries by providing a procedure to bring about their prompt return."
Stamford, Connecticut, Child Abduction Lawyer
There are many countries in the world that have signed the treaty. As signers, these countries agree that abducted children will be returned to the custody of the custodial parent's country. Parents who have an ex-spouse with planned travel to these countries should know that the treaty provides a means to have your children returned to you, should your spouse attempt to keep them.
Please understand that even when our Ridgefield Hague Convention lawyer acts quickly to have your child returned to you from a treaty country, it may take some time to complete the transfer.
The Hague Convention treaty countries are currently: Albania, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, People's Republic of China, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, European Union, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Republic of Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Sweden, Switzerland, former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United States of America, Uruguay and Venezuela.
If your child is a victim of an international child abduction by a stranger, that is a matter for law enforcement authorities.
Strong Advocacy for Your Legal Needs
If your child has been abducted by his or her other parent, or your former spouse wishes to travel internationally, please call our law office at 866-463-5144, 203-403-6659 or send us an E-Mail. Giustino Capodilupo is a Connecticut child abduction attorney who will work diligently to solve all your legal issues.
