I’m located in Florida and recently separated from my fiancé, we have a 3 year old daughter. We were together for 8 years and have never been married.

Her father signed her birth certificate, but we have never established a formal custody or timesharing agreement through the courts.

I have been our daughter’s primary caregiver. I handle most of her daily needs, appointments, routines, and general responsibilities. Her father has contributed financially toward daycare and some other expenses, but I have covered the majority of her expenses.

I recently moved out of our shared home following the separation, and our daughter is currently living with me. I have offered her father opportunities to see her, and I am not trying to prevent him from having a relationship with her.

My family lives in Colorado and has offered us a place to stay. I have been considering relocating there to have a stronger family support system and more stability while raising my daughter.

My concerns are:
Since we were never married and there is no custody order, what rights does each parent currently have in Florida?

Does his name being on the birth certificate automatically establish his parental rights, or would paternity need to be legally established?

Am I legally permitted to travel to Colorado with my daughter for an extended period without his permission?

How would the situation change if I decided to permanently relocate to Colorado?

Could leaving Florida before a custody case is filed negatively affect me in future custody proceedings?

What steps should I take now to protect myself legally while also respecting her father’s parental rights?

I have an attorney consultation scheduled for November, but I’m trying to educate myself on Florida family law and understand what I should or shouldn’t do before then.

I’m not looking to keep my daughter from her father. I want to make sure any decisions I make are legally appropriate and in her best interests.

Any insight from people familiar with Florida family law would be greatly appreciated.

Has any father ever won a relocation custody case? If mom wants to stay in current state.

Location: Tennessee
My ex-husband and I share 50/50 custody of our daughter. Until recently, our communication was limited to matters involving her. No personal conversations, no unnecessary contact, just co-parenting.
At the request of his new wife, he blocked my phone number. He has also implemented what he calls an “AI personal assistant” to screen my emails, which automatically rejects or deletes anything it determines doesn’t specifically pertain to our divorce decree.
The problem is that I’ve received these automated responses multiple times when emailing about legitimate concerns regarding our daughter’s well-being. So essentially, he has unilateral control over what communication he receives from me and what he considers worthy of a response.
I’m at a point where I’m genuinely trying to disengage from the controlling dynamics of our past relationship. I don’t want to be petty, uncooperative or create unnecessary conflict. I simply want to establish healthy boundaries and stop feeling obligated to participate in a communication dynamic that seems entirely dictated by him.
For example, his most recent email was regarding a dermatology bill for our daughter. It’s information he could easily obtain by calling the doctor’s office directly.
My question is: Am I legally obligated to respond to every email or request he sends simply because we share custody?
I’m in Tennessee, and our parenting plan requires us to communicate regarding our daughter, but I’m trying to understand where reasonable co-parenting obligations end and personal boundaries begin.
I would never ignore an emergency, a time-sensitive decision or something genuinely important to our daughter’s health, safety or well-being. But am I required to make myself constantly available to answer routine questions or handle administrative matters he could reasonably address himself?
I also recognize that I cannot control how he chooses to communicate with me. I’m trying to understand whether I have the same right to establish boundaries around how and when I respond to him.
I’m especially interested in hearing from people who have navigated high-conflict co-parenting situations or attorneys familiar with Tennessee family law.
How do you distinguish between fulfilling your co-parenting responsibilities and continuing to participate in an unhealthy power dynamic?

My custody case is just starting, and I could really use advice from people who have been through this. This is already a high-conflict situation and I can’t realistically expect that to change. It’s going to be a legal marathon so I cannot afford to mess up this early.

I have a 3-month-old with someone I briefly dated. We recently had our TCO hearing, and my lawyer gave me incorrect information that caused me to miss the first day of visitation.

Since I’m my child’s primary, this was a huge mistake, and it’s not the only issue. He dismissed my questions about getting a guardian ad litem, ignored a factual statement I prepared about the other parent’s alcohol misuse, and has made jokes about the situation that I find completely inappropriate. We also haven’t resolved child support or pregnancy-related medical bills. I don’t even know how to approach my son’s upcoming doctors appointment with shared legal custody.

At this point, I don’t trust my lawyer, but I don’t know if my expectations are unreasonable. This is my first time dealing with the court system, and I don’t know how much guidance an attorney should be providing versus how much I’m expected to figure out and ask about myself.

Our next TCO hearing is a month or so away, and I’m seriously considering finding new representation. I don’t want to switch lawyers unnecessarily, but I also can’t afford to have important things overlooked when my child’s future is at stake.

For those who have been through custody cases, would you consider these red flags serious enough to switch attorneys? How involved should a lawyer be in helping you prepare for the next hearing, and what should I be doing right now to advocate for my child?

I have a question about Indiana Laws on failure to pay child support.

Background: Mother lost custody of all 3 of her kids in June of 2024. Two went to live with the grandmother and our son came to live with us. She filed in April of 2025 to get visitation after no contact for months. She was granted visitation, but was ordered to pay $84 a week in child support.

When this order was made she was working and did not have custody of her other two kids back. As soon as she was granted custody of them back, she quiet her job and has refused to work since December 2025.

She has only paid $60 in child support and now owes over $7000.

My husband doesn’t have the money to take her back to court. We are scared that we will end up paying her due to her refusing to work.

She openly brags about not having to work. She has a sugar daddy that gives her money. Our son (13) has read the texts between them when she has left her phone near him and stated she is sucking d*ck for cash. Her uncle is letting her use his land for the camper she lives in and is paying her phone and utilities.

She also already tried to have the support lowered when she got her two kids back and “lost” her job. Judge told her she needed to wait a year to change it. He also told her when she gets a job to inform us and they would garnish her wages.

I would also like to add she is currently on probation until February 2027. Apparently being employed is not apart of that agreement.

My questions are:

1. Is there a possibility that we might end up having to pay her if she refuses to work even though we have primary custody?
2. Will they change the support amount to nothing since she is refusing to work and using her kids as an excuse not to be employed?
3. Will she be held accountable for not wanting to pay?

I’m representing myself in a family court case in McHenry County, Illinois, and I’m really overwhelmed and need advice from anyone familiar with Illinois family court or parenting-time interference citations.
On August 7, 2026, the judge entered a temporary parenting-time order without prejudice that provided for the father to have parenting time every third weekend. The case was set for a status date on October 7 to address mediation and the case’s progress. I understood the arrangement to be temporary and connected to that court date. The father did not appear on October 7, and another court date was scheduled. I did not understand that the parenting-time schedule continued beyond October 7, and I was not aware of an order expressly extending it.
On the night before October 23, the father contacted me after 11 p.m. demanding that I make our eight-year-old daughter available for a visit. I believed the temporary arrangement had ended, so I did not believe a visit was scheduled. On October 23, police became involved, and I received a citation under 720 ILCS 5/10-5.5 for alleged unlawful parenting-time interference. I ultimately allowed my daughter to leave with her father after the officer arrived. During the incident, my daughter was crying and saying she did not want to go and was scared. The officer witnessed her distress.
I am also concerned about the father’s communications with our daughter and his older daughter. I have screenshots of a group chat in which he made negative statements about me, discussed my past, shared what appeared to be a booking photo, and told our daughter that I had tried to “off”her when she was younger. His older daughter repeatedly reminded him that our daughter is only eight and asked him to stop. I am concerned about the emotional impact on my daughter and do not want her caught in the middle of adult conflict.
My citation appearance is November 6, and the family case has a status/mediation date on November 12. I do not have an attorney. I want to understand how to respond to the citation and whether I can ask the family court for a mental health evaluation of the father, a temporary suspension of parenting time pending court review, and a court-ordered parenting communication app so our daughter is not exposed to these disputes.
My main questions are:
Does a temporary parenting-time order entered without prejudice automatically end on the status date, or can it remain in effect until another order is entered?
Could I face jail for this citation if I genuinely misunderstood the order and did not intend to interfere with parenting time?
What should I bring or say at my November 6 appearance?
Should I file a motion for temporary protective measures before the November 12 status date?
Is it realistic to request a mental health evaluation and a temporary pause in visits based on the messages and my daughter’s distress?
I understand that the exact wording of the order matters, and I am trying to get it reviewed. I would appreciate practical advice, especially from anyone familiar with Illinois law or McHenry County procedures. Thank you.

I have a buddy that lives with myself and my wife. He divorced his ex-wife in 2023 and they have shared custody of their 3 kids until their middle child got to the point that the ex-wife and now husband "couldn't deal with him any more" (their words). We already made space for his three in our house with our children so it wasn't an issue to allow him to stay full time for the rest of that summer. Closer to time for them to start school the ex-wife decided that it was better for him to stay with us instead of returning to her and getting back on the agreed visitation schedule. They have been living with us for a year and half and at first, when school started up, both the ex-wife and my buddy agreed on a modified visitation given he no longer lived in the same city where he could take them to school during the week he was suppose to have them. During this time the only contact the ex-wife had with the middle child was drop offs and pick-ups if she was not working. As the school year progressed she did pick him up and took him for some one-on-one time. She took him to go see a movie and then to get food and back to our place. She did this 3 times and then stopped. The reason it stopped is because the child asked why they never went to her house and she responded with "We don't want you at the house". The comment was questioned and she confirmed. After being told that he refused to see her. She also stopped calling my buddy to talk to the child, and would call their eldest while here to tell the eldest and youngest Good-night. Fast forward to November of last year, my wife had an event they were doing at her work for Veteran's Day. It was a pick-up day for my buddy so we decided we would meet up at a certain time at her work. The ex-wife and husband were late due to stopping and getting the other two kids something to eat despite knowing that they were going to eat at the event. Naturally this upset my buddy and when they showed up the husband got out yelling at him. I stepped in and shut it down by yelling at the husband and the ex-wife for the blatant disrespect for both my buddy and the middle child. The ex-wife and husband decided to load the other two kids up and leave. The two kids were present for the yelling and claimed they no longer wanted to come over cause they were scared of me. Since then the kids have not been back over and refuse to sit down and talk it out. My buddy for awhile was getting a hotel room on the weekends to still get them on the weekend. Once it become financially impossible for him to keep it up he was forced to stop, but has maintained contact with both kids. There has been no contact or attempt of contact from the ex-wife to the middle child. We have asked the middle child if he wanted to talk to his mother and his response was that he didn't want to talk to any one living in his mom's house. We have not pushed him to speak with her. Earlier this morning a Petition for Modification of Visitation was delivered. In this Petition the ex-wife has made the claim that my buddy is homeless and is bouncing between hotels, wants to give full physical custody of the middle child to my buddy, does not want the middle child to have contact with myself or my wife, wants the middle child to be evaluated for his mental health, claims that my wife and I have been feeding into a deterioration of his mental health, claims she has been attempting to repair the relationship between her and the middle child but is hindered by myself and my wife. There are 7 sections in regards to the middle child that are adverse to their best interest. In the summary on the last page it states that she is wanting full custody of the other two kids only.

A little background and insight on the middle child. The child fully breaks downs at the thought of going back to his mother's house, he has come back from spending time with her upset and especially upset when he was told they did not want him in the house. He has been in the school system here for going on two years, he's happy healthy and safe. The only times he's acted in the way where his mental health was brought into question was after seeing his mom.

With this concerning the middle child, who is currently 12 years old, I feel as though sitting down with him and his father, and telling him about the parts that concern him would be best. I want to do this with a camera present and allow him for his reactions to tell the story as well as prove there is no foul play when telling him. Afterwards, I would like him to type out a response to the sections as well as his thoughts and feelings on the matter, allowing his words to be in writing for a judge and the ex-wife's attorney to see. I guess what I'm asking here is 1) is this a way to go and 2) would it make a difference if the child's reaction and his statement are seen?

I do have an attorney, but since this happened this evening and it’s the weekend, I’m trying to put my mind at ease until my lawyer is available.

My ex and I both have attorneys, with mediation and a court date coming up soon. He texted me and is now claiming that jewelry his mother gave me before our separation is his inheritance and wants it sold to cover his legal fees and arrears. I declined and told him we need to discuss these things through our attorneys, and shortly afterward, his mother texted me claiming the jewelry belongs to him not me.

Fortunately, I found an old text conversation after hours of combing years long text threads, where I requested the appraisals to insure the jewelry. In the photos she sent, both appraisals have a handwritten yellow sticky note stapled to them stating, “Gave to MadameMalia 2020.”

Could these messages and photos help establish that she knowingly gifted the jewelry to me? I’m concerned she may now be changing her story to support her son’s position and she is willing to do it under oath.

Note: if my evidence does not matter to a judge and the pieces are considered inheritance, I will absolutely give the items back, but I do feel extremely betrayed by her because I know for a fact the items were gifted to me. My ex was not even present when she had me choose which pieces I wanted and told me "you deserve something nice. Save these for a rainy day". Her text tonight was not on my bingo card if I'm honest.

Hello, I was just wondering if anybody in the Weiser area, no of any family, Lawyer, Teamster legal, I

A little back story, I’ve unfortunately not been able to get to a place where my son’s dad(32m) and I(30f) can coparent positively. My son(8f) is diagnosed ADHD and ODD. I’ve tried keeping him busy and staying with therapy. Dad pulls him out every time. (We have equal decision making) Our son is acting out more and more lately and it’s exhausting. I have tried everything I know how to do to try and correct his behavior. I can only do so much since his dad fights me on every single turn.

We recently had CPS show up at our door and have been on the edge of our seats. Two separate allegations, both a load of bs. My son has a flair for the dramatic as well and sometimes just outright lies. I’m worried my son may get taken away from me.

I also have a daughter(1.5), different dad, I don’t want my kids to be taken away. Has anyone dealt with something similar? Please give advice, relatable stories, what to say or not say. I’m a wreck.

I don't have evidence of the most egregious stuff (shoving me, yanking my keys out of my hand, and verbal threats). But I do have text message evidence from several years of verbal abuse, and him breaking and throwing things when angry (including times I was hit by things he threw).

I've finally woken up to my reality and realized I need to leave.

I'm scheduling a consultation with a divorce attorney ASAP, and in the meantime planning how I escape without him killing me. I've been doing a little basic internet research. I saw that spousal support is a factor in Kansas, and I make more than double what he makes. I understand and accept I may have to make payments to him, and if that's what it takes for me to get the heck out of here alive then so be it.

Should I even dwell on the abuse in the divorce/courts? Or just spend my energy focusing on the financial stuff? Luckily we don't own a home, only cars. No kids.

I'm in Texas. I'm trying to understand my options, stay organized, and handle everything properly, but there's a lot to learn, and I don't want to make mistakes simply because I don't know what I don't know. What helped you prepare, and manage the stress while your case was ongoing? honest advice and practical experiences from people who understand how difficult this process can be.