No one has the right to verbally abuse you or your children, and that includes your spouse. If you have finally gotten fed up enough with this abuse that you want to leave your spouse and take your child with you, then you are making a great decision. However, if you simply flee the home and take your child with you, you will risk losing custody of your child in the end. Instead, follow these three steps to getting you and your child out of the abusive home quickly while still obeying all laws and improving your chances of obtaining full custody of your child after your divorce.
1. Find a Safe Space and File a Motion for Temporary Child Custody
When dealing with an abusive spouse, you don 't want to keep you and your child in the situation
…show more content…
Use discretion when making phone calls to family and friends, and erase your phone history regularly to avoid your spouse finding out what you are doing.
Once you know where you will take your child that is safe, file a motion for temporary child custody with the local family court. When filling out the form, you will have to state why you feel having temporary sole custody of your child is in your child 's best interest, so be sure to include full details of the abuse going on in the home. You may be granted immediate custody upon completion of this form, although some states require a short hearing that you must attend and again voice your reasons to a judge.
Once you have this order in place, you are free to go to your safe place with your child and begin working on getting your lives back together away from the abuse. If needed, you can then file a motion for temporary child and spousal support. If you are considering not filing for this support, remember that you are entitled to it and it will help reduce the burden of temporarily caring for your child alone along with paying for a lawyer and paying legal fees during the upcoming
…show more content…
He or she may suggest that you begin sending your child to counseling and that you begin attending it yourself. Not can this help prove that you were both emotionally damaged by your spouse, but it is also an important step for both you and your child to help recover from the abuse. If you don 't want to make your child testify to the court, then his or her psychologist may be able to testify for them and also provide an expert opinion about who should have custody of your child after the