How to Dispute a Custody Evaluation
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An agreement between parents may make a custody assessment irrelevant.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
Negotiate custody and visitation for your child with your co-parent and present that plan in writing to the court. The court may have ordered a custody investigation only because of you and your co-parent's failure to reach an agreement on these matters, so a written agreement on these questions may remove the need for that evaluation. - 2
The court wants to provide a stable environment for the child.Goodshoot/Goodshoot/Getty Images
Challenge the court on whether the custody evaluation was able to reach its goals. The purpose of the custody evaluation is threefold. First, it should reduce the acrimony between the parties. Second, it should develop an agreement to assure the child of close and continuing contact with both parents. Third, it should effect a settlement of any issues of visitation. Failure to reach one or more of these goals would be grounds to question the worth of any findings. - 3
A custody evaluator needs to have a lot of specific knowledge.Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images
Challenge the court to prove the custody evaluator's specific abilities to evaluate your case. Mere competence in assessing children, adults and families is not enough. The evaluator must also understand family development, child and family psychopathology, and the legal standards and practices for custody decisions in the state. Creating at least some doubt as to the custody evaluator's abilities on any of these points may affect the court's willingness to accept the person's findings. - 4
The custody evaluator's testimony may not hold up in court.Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images
Cross-examine the custody evaluator as to the specifics and completeness of the report. The custody evaluator will have to give you a copy of the report at least 10 days before your hearing, and you do have the right to cross-examine the evaluator on the correctness of the facts and any failure to include relevant data in the report. - 5
Custody evaluators have to follow many specific regulations.Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images
Challenge the custody evaluator's adherence to your state's guidelines for evaluating children. State law may require the custody evaluator to protect the confidentiality of children and other parties in the evaluation, maintain the confidential relationship between children and any psychologists treating them, and avoid pressuring any children toward preferring one party for custody over another. Violation of any of these guidelines may be a reason to request a different evaluator.
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