Author Archives: Todd Spivak and Rebecca Canterbury

What To Expect At Child Custody Mediation

Posted on May 31 2015 by Todd Spivak and Rebecca Canterbury

In Allegheny County, any parent who files for child custody must participate in the Generations program, a two-part alternative dispute resolution program administered by the Child Custody Department. Step one is an education seminar. Step two is a mediation session.

Below is information on the Generations mediation session:

The mediation is a opportunity for parties to negotiate a detailed, workable parenting agreement outlined in an informal agreement called a Memorandum of Understanding. Only the parents are permitted in the mediation session – neither children nor attorneys may attend.
The mediation session is approximately two hours in length.
The mediation session is conducted at the child Custody Department on the first floor of the Family Law Center located in downtown Pittsburgh at 440 Ross Street.
The mediation session is mandatory. If you fail to attend the mediation session, the custody action may be dismissed or you may be held in contempt of court for not following the scheduling order. Failure to appear at a contempt hearing may result in the issuance of a custody order and/or a bench warrant for your arrest.
If you have been the victim of domestic violence, you may complete and file a domestic violence waiver and bring it to the Child Custody Department. You will then receive an order of court canceling the mediation session and scheduling a conciliation session instead.
If you and the other party have agreed to a parenting plan at the completion of your mediation session, you may: complete a Memorandum of Understanding, consult with you attorneys, or have the agreement turned into a legally binding, fully enforceable court order by a domestic relations officer, if available (this option will dispose of the custody action and you will go no further into the court system).
If you do not agree after your mediation session, you can request a conciliation date at the Child Custody Department window or pursue additional mediation sessions privately with your mediator.

Spivak Law Firm provides strong, compassionate, cost-effective representation in all child custody matters. Call us at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.

What To Expect At Child Custody Seminar

Posted on May 31 2015 by Todd Spivak and Rebecca Canterbury

Below is information on the Generations education seminar:

The education seminar is mandatory for all adults in the custody action and all children between the ages of 6 and 15.
The education seminar is approximately three hours in length. It is a parenting education program for adults and an interactive group for children.
Security is provided by the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Department.
The education seminar occurs on the second floor of the Family Law Center located in downtown Pittsburgh at 440 Ross Street.
If you fail to attend the education seminar, the custody action may be dismissed or you may be held in contempt of court for not following the scheduling order. Failure to appear at a contempt hearing may result in the issuance of a custody order and/or a bench warrant for your arrest.
To reschedule your education seminar date, you may contact the Child Custody Department at (412) 350-4311. You must complete the education seminar prior to the mediation session.
There is no childcare available at the education seminar.

To speak with an experienced child custody attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.

Understanding Family Partnerships

Posted on May 28 2015 by Todd Spivak and Rebecca Canterbury

The goal of a family partnership is to nurture family relationships even under the difficult circumstances of divorce and separation. Basic family partnership principles include:

Maintain a business-like relationship with the other parent and communicate accordingly
Focus on the needs of your children and the strengths of your relationship with them
Set boundaries and respect the other parent’s boundaries
Protect your children from adult issues
Never allow your children to become your best friends
Do not use your children as messengers
Keep your children out of the middle
Do not make negative comments about the other parent
Never ask your children to take sides
Allow your children to develop their own safe relationship with the other parent, regardless of what you feel about them
Avoid supermom / superdad syndrome of competitive parenting
Avoid conflict in front of your children

Spivak Law Firm provides strong, compassionate, cost-effective representation in all child custody matters. To speak with an experienced family law attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.

Stop False Reports To Child Abuse Hotlines

Posted on May 17 2015 by Todd Spivak and Rebecca Canterbury

People engaged in child custody battles can exploit child abuse hotlines by falsely reporting abuse in an effort to gain leverage in Court.

The public should not be allowed to make anonymous reports to child abuse hotlines, as these calls can result in innocent parents losing their kids, according to family law professor Dale Margolin Cecka of the University of Richmond.

A study of anonymous public reports found that nationally, only 1.5 percent of all reports are both anonymous and substantiated.

Professor Cecka distinguishes between the criminal justice system and Child Protective Services:

“The criminal justice system does not permit lay people to make completely anonymous reports. Before arresting or detaining anyone on the basis of an anonymous tip, police must also corroborate aspects of the allegation made by the confidential caller.”

Child Protective Services, meanwhile, “has an opposite mandate: It must visit a home after an anonymous call, if the allegations meet the legal definition of ‘abuse’ or ‘neglect.’”

The public should never be allowed to anonymously call a child abuse hotline, Professor Cecka concludes.

Spivak Law Firm provides aggressive representation in all high-conflict child custody and child abuse cases. To schedule a free consultation, call (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.

Bring Evidence to Your PFA Hearing

Posted on May 11 2015 by Todd Spivak and Rebecca Canterbury

In your Protection From Abuse (PFA) petition, write clearly and in detail what happened and when it happened. Focus your statements on how you were physically abused or threatened and whether you are afraid you will be abused or threatened again.

If you have any photos of injuries or property damage caused by your abuser, text messages or emails, or ripped clothing that show how the abuser threatened, abused, or harassed you, don’t forget to bring them to the final PFA hearing.

Because of the “he-said, she-said” nature of domestic violence, it is important to bring documentary evidence when such evidence is available.

To speak with an experienced PFA lawyer, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.

Is Stalking A Crime In Pennsylvania?

Posted on April 26 2015 by Todd Spivak and Rebecca Canterbury

Stalking is a crime in Pennsylvania. There are two basic elements to the crime:

The stalker must complete at least two acts of unwanted behavior, no matter how close or far apart in time they are, and
The victim must experience reasonable fear of serious bodily injury or substantial emotional distress.

The prosecutor’s office in your county makes the final decision whether to file criminal charges, including stalking charges.

If you are accused of stalking, Spivak Law Firm provides strong, aggressive defense in Protection From Abuse (PFA) and all criminal hearings. Call us today for a free consultation at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.

Child Custody Mediation In Allegheny County

Posted on April 13 2015 by Todd Spivak and Rebecca Canterbury

In Allegheny County, any parent who files for custody of their child must engage in mediation with the other parent, unless there was domestic violence.

Mediation is a structured problem-solving process to make informed decisions through an impartial third party. The mediation program in Allegheny County is based on the belief that parents are the best experts to make decisions about their children.

Parenting agreement decisions reached through mediation work better and last longer than decisions made by someone in the court. The goal of the custody mediation session is to give parents an opportunity to communicate cooperatively toward solutions that will best meet their child’s needs.

The mediator’s role is to remain neutral and to assist both parents in negotiating options that will work for their family. Mediators are accustomed to working with people who feel hurt, frustrated, and often angry. The mediator can assist in refocusing the parents’ issues toward their children and their family.

Mediation is an alternative to the legal process that intends to be empowering, educational, and confidential.

Spivak Law Firm handles all child custody matters. Our attorneys are skilled trial lawyers and effective negotiators trained in mediation. Call us at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.

How Family Partnerships Benefit Children

Posted on April 10 2015 by Todd Spivak and Rebecca Canterbury

You may not like the other parent, you may not trust or respect the other parent, but you should learn to work with him or her for your children.

It is easy to blame the other parent for anything that has gone wrong; you may even wish the other parent would disappear. Parenting, however, is about you, the other parent, and families learning to work in a business-like, cooperative relationship.

Good family agreements allow you to set rules about working together. Every successful business needs to have a good business plan with specific goals.

A family partnership is a limited partnership or business consisting of two parents or other family members. The goal of this partnership is to nurture relationships.

Sometimes businesses must continue to operate under difficult circumstances. Feelings do not enter into professional business negotiations. Polite, courteous, and unemotional communication is most effective.

Children need a working, respectful, and cooperative relationship between their parents and families. Although your adult relationship may no longer exist with the other parent, your family partnership will last forever.

To speak with an experienced family law attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.

Protecting Children Produced By Rape

Posted on April 8 2015 by Todd Spivak and Rebecca Canterbury

The Pennsylvania Legislature appears poised to make it easier for a woman who has become pregnant as a result of rape to have her assaulter’s parental rights terminated while maintaining his obligation to pay child support.

The bill, which has bipartisan support, requires the courts to accept requests by rape victims that their rapists not receive custody of children conceived through the assault, unless the child is old enough and agrees to the custody arrangement. The legislation at the same time maintains the rapist’s liability for child support payments if parental rights have been terminated because of a conviction for raping the other parent.

Rape causes more than 32,000 pregnancies among U.S. women each year, according to the Coalition Against Rape.

Spivak Law Firm has proven a leader in advocating for women’s rights, publishing an article in the Pittsburgh-Post Gazette back in 2012 on the issue of protecting women who conceive through rape.

Spivak Law Firm provides strong, compassionate, cost-effective representation in all family law matters, including: divorce, child custody, child support, spousal support, and Protection From Abuse (PFA).

To speak with an experienced family law attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.

Shared Custody Requires Good Communication

Posted on April 5 2015 by Todd Spivak and Rebecca Canterbury

In Allegheny County, it is presumed that parents will share legal custody of their children. Legal custody refers to major decisions involving the child, such as medical, educational, and religious.

Parents who share legal custody are encouraged to engage in unemotional communication when keeping one another informed about their children and making joint decisions about them.

This does not mean that you and the other parent will necessarily agree on issues. It does mean that making such decisions should not interfere with your ability to work together.

Old “hot-buttons” can change the focus of effective communication to destructive, unproductive arguments. Effective communication is not about winning or revenge, but rather a fundamental pathway to working cooperatively together.

To speak with an experienced child custody attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.