Parents can petition the court for a review and modification of their child support order at any time if they feel there is a change in circumstance that may affect the amount of the child support order.
Additionally, every three years the Domestic Relations Section will send each parent a notice asking if they want their support case reviewed.
The review is to make any appropriate increase, decrease, modification or termination of the support order.
Spivak Law Firm provides strong, compassionate, cost-effective representation in all family law matters, including: divorce, child custody, child support, and Protection From Abuse (PFA).
To schedule a free consultation, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
If you or your child is the victim of domestic abuse, a PFA will provide significant protections. It may also significantly increase your child support award.
When obtaining a PFA, you may request a child custody arrangement. If you are granted primary physical custody of your child through the PFA process, it will often entitle you to additional child support.
Pennsylvania guidelines provide for an increased support award to parents who exercise primary physical custody. It should be noted that child custody and child support may be modified.
To learn more about how a PFA may affect child custody and child support, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
PFA and Child Support In Allegheny County
In Allegheny County, many PFAs are resolved without need for a hearing. Attorneys for each party work together to negotiate a resolution.
One common way to resolve disputes is to vacate the PFA Order and replace it with a Civil No-Contact Order. This benefits the Defendant by avoiding the stigma and harsh consequences of a Final PFA while also helping the Plaintiff by continuing to restrict contact.
A Civil No-Contact Order may include additional provisions on which the parties agree, including:
Child support awards;
Child custody schedules;
Property exchanges; and
What to do about a shared residence or vehicle.
Spivak Law Firm handles all areas of family law, including: divorce, child custody, child support, and PFA. To speak with an experienced Pittsburgh family law attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
If you’ve been served with a Protection From Abuse (PFA) order, you may be restricted from seeing your children. In some cases, the PFA will allow no contact. In other cases, the PFA will allow limited contact.
If your PFA allows for limited contact with your children, please be very careful to avoid any conflict or mention of the PFA at custody exchanges. If you engage in argument or attempt to discuss the PFA at the custody exchange, you are placing yourself at serious risk of arrest for violating the PFA. Even if you are permitted custody of the children while the PFA remains active, it may be safer to decline in order to avoid false accusations that you violated the order.
Spivak Law Firm handles all areas of family law, including: divorce, child custody, child support, and PFA hearings. For more information, call us at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Many child custody cases are complicated by allegations of substance abuse. In response to the opiate crisis, Pennsylvania has expanded opportunities for grandparents and other third parties to pursue custody of non-biological children.
If you are accused of substance abuse, expect to be drug tested when you go to court. If you have a history of substance abuse, you will likely undergo a drug and alcohol evaluation and be expected to follow all treatment recommendations.
Although marijuana is legal in many states, it remains illegal in Pennsylvania unless specifically prescribed by a medical professional. In many jurisdictions, having cannabis in your system can still create obstacles for asserting child custody rights.
Spivak Law Firm has extensive experience handling child custody matters involving substance abuse. For more information, call us at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Helping Parents Overcome Substance Abuse
If you have a substance abuse problem, Family Court may impose additional hurdles for you to clear in order to ensure your children’s safety. You may have to submit to random drug screening over a period of several months or attend an outpatient rehabilitation program.
Judges tend to understand the difficulties of overcoming alcoholism and substance abuse. If you show good faith by fully complying with court orders and demonstrate your sobriety, you will likely see your custody schedule expanded and normalized.
At Spivak Law Firm, we work closely with clients to encourage their sobriety for the sake of their children. We have helped parents with restricted custody to obtain unsupervised shared custody schedules.
To speak with an experienced Pittsburgh child custody attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
“Mass shootings garner attention and frighten the public much more than episodes of domestic violence,” according to a recent article in The New York Times. “But domestic violence has a much higher death toll in the United States.”
Each year, some 900 women in the United States are murdered by their current or former intimate partners.
That single-year tally is more than nine times the number of people killed in jihadist attacks on American soil in the past decade.
At their most basic level, both mass terrorism and intimate terrorism of domestic violence are attempts to provoke fear and assert control. Many experts have expressed concern about the rise of domestic violence incidents during stay-at-home orders related to the coronavirus pandemic.
Spivak Law Firm handles all areas of family law and criminal defense with a focus on domestic abuse and child custody. For a free consultation, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Spivak Law Firm helps victims of domestic violence and child abuse get the legal protection they need to recover a sense of security in their lives. We provide strong, compassionate representation and connect you with valuable resources to help get your life back.
For immediate safe shelter, help is available through one of the following Hotlines or Domestic Violence programs which service Allegheny County:
Women’s Center and Shelter of Pittsburgh
(City of Pittsburgh)
(412) 687-8005 www.wcspittsburgh.org
If you or your child needs the protection of a PFA, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
PFA and Criminal Charges in Pittsburgh
It is common for people who obtain a PFA Order to also pursue criminal charges against their abusers. Charges typically include: assault, terroristic threats, harassment, stalking, and reckless endangerment of a child.
It is important to remember that violating a PFA can also result in the criminal charge of Indirect Criminal Contempt (ICC), punishable by up to six months in jail and a $1,000.00 fine.
To speak with an experienced PFA and criminal defense attorney, called Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Spivak Law Firm handles all areas of family law and criminal defense with a special focus on high conflict child custody cases. High conflict child custody cases often involve parents with serious communication problems and significant levels of anger and distrust.
We encourage our clients to shield their children from any hostile communication to protect their mental and emotional health. We also have extensive experience helping families with issues of domestic abuse, parental alienation, and substance abuse.
At Spivak Law Firm, we are effective negotiators who help parents craft their own child custody orders. We are also trained trial lawyers experienced at aggressively litigating cases to reach our client’s goals.
To schedule a consultation with an experienced child custody attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
High Conflict Child Custody Tools
If you are engaged in a high conflict child custody battle, below are some tools to help:
Our Family Wizard: OFW is a communication tool to ensure your ex does not bombard you with texts, emails and phone calls. It also provides easy access for the Court to monitor your communications to ensure that they are civil.
Co-Parenting Counseling: Working with a skilled co-parenting counselor may help you communicate and cooperate better with your ex for the best interests of your children.
Protection From Abuse (PFA) Orders: If your ex engages in harassing or threatening behaviors, you may consider trying to obtain a PFA Order. Also known as a restraining order, a PFA order is a powerful tool for victims of domestic abuse.
Spivak Law Firm handles all family law matters, including: child custody, PFA, child support, and divorce. Call us today at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Child support is money a parent pays to help provide for the care of his or her children. If you are seeking child support, it is important to file a Complaint for Support with the Court as soon as possible, as any child support owed begins on the date the complaint is filed.
In most Pennsylvania counties, including Allegheny County, there is no fee for filing a complaint for child support. Once the complaint is filed, the Domestic Relations Section will schedule a support conference and send notices with the date and time to the parents.
Spivak Law Firm handles all family law matters, including: child support, child custody, divorce, and Protection From Abuse (PFA). We handle child support filings, child support calculations, child support negotiations, child support hearings, child support enforcement, and child support appeals.
To schedule a consultation, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
What to Bring to Your Child Support Hearing
Bring the following documentation to your child support hearing:
Your most recent Federal Income Tax Return, including W-2’s;
Your last six (6) months of paystubs;
Any other documentation reflecting your income;
Documentation reflecting expenses related to child care, your children’s special needs, extracurricular activities, and/or private school tuition;
Proof of medical/dental/vision coverage for your children;
Receipts for payments made for your children’s expenses from the date of filing to the date of the hearing; and
If your doctor has determined that a medical condition affects your ability to earn income, you must obtain and have your doctor complete the Physician Verification Form which is available at the domestic relations section.
It is important to bring to Court as much of the above information as possible, as it may not be considered in the support calculation if it is not presented to the Court.
To speak with an experienced family law attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
The criminal charge of Endangering the Welfare of Children (EWOC) is defined under Pennsylvania law as when a parent, guardian, or supervisor knowingly endangers the welfare of a child under 18-years-old by violating a duty of care or protection.
The EWOC charge may also be brought against a person who prevents or interferes with the making of a report of suspected child abuse to Children Youth and Families (CYF).
An EWOC conviction is generally graded as a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to five years in prison, though a person who demonstrates a course of conduct of endangering the welfare of a child or puts a child at substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury may a felony charge with a stiffer maximum prison sentence.
Spivak Law Firm handles all areas of domestic violence defense, including: EWOC, child abuse, simple assault, aggravated assault, and harassment. To schedule a free consultation, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
EWOC and Child Custody In Allegheny County
If you are a parent facing EWOC charges, you may also be facing a child custody action by the other parent. The resolution of your criminal case will likely affect your child custody rights.
Spivak Law Firm is one of the few law firms in Pittsburgh to focus on family law and criminal defense. Unlike some criminal defense attorneys, we understand how an EWOC conviction could hurt your ability to exercise unsupervised visitation of your child.
To schedule an appointment with an experienced criminal defense and family law attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Parents can petition the court for a review and modification of their child support order at any time if they feel there is a change in circumstance that may affect the amount of the child support order.
If you or your child is the 
If you’ve been served with a Protection From Abuse (
The Pennsylvania Child Support Enforcement System (PACSES) is the statewide computer system used by the domestic relations section in each county.
Many child custody cases are complicated by allegations of substance abuse. In response to the opiate crisis, Pennsylvania has expanded opportunities for 
“Mass shootings garner attention and frighten the public much more than episodes of domestic violence,” according to a recent article in The New York Times. “But domestic violence has a much higher death toll in the United States.”
Spivak Law Firm helps 
Spivak Law Firm handles all areas of family law and criminal defense with a special focus on high conflict child custody cases. High conflict child custody cases often involve parents with serious communication problems and significant levels of anger and distrust.
Child support is money a parent pays to help provide for the care of his or her children. If you are seeking child support, it is important to file a Complaint for Support with the Court as soon as possible, as any child support owed begins on the date the complaint is filed. 
The criminal charge of Endangering the Welfare of Children (EWOC) is defined under Pennsylvania law as when a parent, guardian, or supervisor knowingly endangers the welfare of a child under 18-years-old by violating a duty of care or protection.