Multi-State Fathers' Rights & Divorce Law Blog

On behalf of Stange Law Firm, PC posted in Child Custody on Saturday, October 30, 2010. Although many men work off the assumption that they will not get a fair shake in the legal system, there is actually no presumption in Missouri that a mother is automatically entitled to sole custody.  The tender years doctrine (a doctrine that provided that custody of children under 13-years of age should be awarded to mothers) has long been abolished in Missouri. Instead, Missouri law has a presumption of joint custody. When the facts of a case call for it, courts can and do award joint or sole custody to men based

On behalf of Stange Law Firm, PC posted in Child Custody on Friday, October 29, 2010. With national data showing the out-of-wedlock birth rate somewhere around forty-percent, paternity cases are on the rise and almost as common as divorce these days.  When a child is born, but the parents were not married at the time of birth, and marriage was not an option for whatever reason, the appropriate case for a father to file to determine if he is dad and, if so, how child custody and support should work is by filing a paternity action filed in the circuit court in which the mother

On behalf of Stange Law Firm, PC posted in Child Custody on Thursday, October 28, 2010. If you get divorced in Missouri and you have children, or were part of a prior paternity case where a custody judgment was entered, the mother is to provide notice to you before she can move with your children. This is required by Missouri law according to 452.377 RSMo. This statute gives a procedure by which you must give notice that you are moving and what the notice must contain. This applies whether she is moving nearby within the same county or wants to relocate outside the State of Missouri. Temporary moves

On behalf of Stange Law Firm, PC posted in Child Custody on Thursday, October 28, 2010. After a final decree of divorce or other order establishing custody and/or visitation is filed with a court, it is not always the last word on custody. If a father wants to change an existing, he may file a motion requesting the court modify it. Usually, courts will modify an existing order only if the parent asking for the change can show a “substantial change in circumstances” that affects the welfare of a child. What is a substantial change in circumstances? Courts differ on what they consider a substantial