Graham.Law Blog

“Alimony is like buying oats for a dead horse” A now-retired “Father’s Rights attorney” in Colorado Springs used to have this quote from American journalist Arthur Baer in his advertising. Most of his fellow family law attorneys thought it was mildly amusing, albeit while perpetuating negative stereotypes. And ironically, while…

Lying To A Parental Responsibilities Evaluator Is Crime in Colorado Don’t lie! That means no lying to the custody evaluator (or any other court-appointed experts, for that matter). And don’t submit false or forged documents. Not only will it hurt your divorce or parenting case, but a wrongdoer may even…

A Colorado court must have jurisdiction before terminating parental rights. But a court can grant an adoption without UCCJEA jurisdiction. How do you reconcile these two conflicting rules when an adoption also involves the termination of parental rights? The Colorado Court of Appeals addressed that very issue in a new…

“Standard” Parenting Orders Regard Badmouthing as Parental Alienation When relationships end, things have the potential to get ugly, and that may mean parental alienation. A big part of any family law attorney’s practice is dealing with the child custody arrangements for a couple in the process of a breakup. If…

OK, the title doesn’t perfectly capture the essence of a brand-new ruling that the Colorado Supreme Court issued today, but web titles have limited space constraints. A proper summary of the holding would be “When a parent has filed a motion to restrict parenting time alleging with particularity its grounds,…

What is Relocation of Children? Simply put, relocation of children means that, after a divorce or other parenting decree, a parent with primary or co-equal custody “is intending to relocate with the child to a residence that substantially changes the geographical ties between the child and the other party.” (2)(c)….

Covid-19 & Parenting Even before Colorado issued statewide stay-at-home orders, Covid-19 was causing parents across Colorado to have fears about the impact on child custody. The news was increasingly filled with stories about how the pandemic was affecting parenting time and child custody exchanges as more and more stories about…

What is Jurisdiction? For a case to be decided in Court, that court needs to have jurisdiction over the people in the case (“personal jurisdiction”), and the type of case at issue (“subject-matter jurisdiction”). These rules can be complicated, especially in the area of child custody jurisdiction, and are the…

April 3, 2020 Update – Parenting Exchanges Must Continue On April 3, Chief Judge Bain of the 4th Judicial District issued Chief Judge Order 20-16 Regarding Court Operations Under The Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Advisory, Para. III.C makes clear, in bold print, that Covid-19 does not affect parenting exchanges: “All Parties are…

What Is Child Abuse? Child abuse will get a parent in trouble, not only in child custody cases, but with the potential for action from the Colorado Department of Human Services (DHS) or even law enforcement (child abuse is a crime per (1)(a)). However, (1)(a) also recognizes that physical force may…