What does a custody evaluator look for?

The purpose of all custody evaluations is to ensure that the needs of children are being met as best as possible. This assessment requires the psychologist to pay particular attention to the skills and deficits of parenting attributes in tandem with the psychological needs of the child.

What can I expect from a custodial evaluation?

A traditional custody evaluation can include interviews with the parents and children, psychological tests, home visits, interviews with other people who know the family, and a review of documents ranging from school files to health records. Full evaluations take weeks to months to complete.

How do you win a 730 evaluation?

To win a 730 evaluation in California, you ultimately want to show the evaluator that you uphold the child’s best interests. Promptly answer their calls, remain honest, and dress well in the assessment. If the evaluator is coming to your home, put away sharp objects and alcohol, and make sure your home is clean.

What is a 730 evaluator?

A 730 Evaluation occurs when the court appoints an expert to the case to assist the court in making a decision. The court’s authority to appoint an expert comes from Evidence Code 730, which provides a family court the right to appoint an expert to help the court decide a particular issue.

What is a child custody assessment?

A child custody/access evaluation is a process in which a mental health expert, usually a clinical psychologist, evaluates your family and makes a recommendation to the court for a custody and/or visitation or parenting plan that is in your child’s best interest.

When to reevaluate the child custody evaluators?

Reevaluating the Evaluators:Rethinking the Assumptions of Therapeutic Jurisprudence in the Family Courts There is an evolving and worsening mess in the systems and procedures currently in place to determine child custody and perform child custody evaluations when parents disagree.

Can a noncustodial parent lose custody of a child?

The answer is probably yes, although there may be solutions less extreme than losing custody of a child. The court may order the noncustodial parent to see the children more in the evenings and after school so that parent can attend to homework.

How can you tell if a parent is unfit for custody?

Also, both parents should be able to take care of the child on their own without any help. If they are constantly relying on assistance whether it be from the co-parent or from other family members, that may be a red flag that a change in custody is necessary.

How can child welfare services tell if a parent is unfit?

If Child Welfare Services has been involved in a parent’s household a lot, this could be a sign that custody needs to change. Child Welfare Services may have done a thorough investigation into a household to make a determination on whether abuse or neglect should be substantiated or not.

What does an evaluator do in a child custody case?

Usually, the evaluator uses methods such as interviews, surveys, observations of parent-child interactions, and examining court records and medical records to make a determination about the psychological health of the people involved in the case. The evaluator can also make a hypothesis about who should get custody and why.

How long does it take for a custody evaluation?

This is because they are time-consuming, emotionally draining, invasive, and expensive. Custody evaluations often take four months or more from start to finish. Not only is this an exhausting process to go through, it can also be extremely expensive.

What happens to false allegations in custody cases?

Making false allegations in custody cases not only negatively impacts the cases, it has detrimental consequences on the children of the marriage also. The following contains thoughts from paralegal Melissa Ashby, and from attorney William Geary, based upon observations made from a number of highly contested custody cases.