Dormont Family Law Attorney
PFA Orders Trump Right to Own Guns
In Pennsylvania, Protection From Abuse (PFA) Orders obliterate a person’s constitutional right to possess firearms. A person served with a PFA is immediately ordered to:
–Relinquish to the sheriff any of the defendant’s firearms;
–Relinquish to the sheriff any other weapons or ammunition of the defendant that were used or threatened to have been used in an incident of abuse against the victim or the victim’s children;
–Relinquish any firearm license that the defendant may have;
–Not acquire or possess any other firearm for the duration of the PFA;
When relinquishment is ordered, the defendant must surrender any firearm, weapon, ammunition, or license ordered within 24 hours after service of the temporary PFA order or 24 hours after entry of the final PFA order.
The defendant has the option to relinquish for safekeeping to a third party, who has signed an Affidavit of accountability with the sheriff’s office.
Served with a PFA? We strongly defend your rights and reputation. Call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Is Divorce Bad for Children?
Is divorce bad for children? “Yes, obviously,” may be your knee-jerk response, but a recent article in Scientific American points to studies showing that in the long run divorce adversely affects only a small percentage of kids.
There are many conflicting studies about the long-term consequences of divorce on children. According to University of California professor Judith Wallerstein, most adults who were children of divorce experience depression and relationship issues. But research by University of Virginia professor E. Mavis Hetherington shows that only 15 percent of adult children of divorce experience greater problems than those from stable families.
There seems to be a consensus, however, that many children experience short-term negative effects from divorce, such as anger and anxiety. According to Hetherington’s study, such effects typically diminish or disappear by the second year post-divorce.
At Spivak Law Firm, we believe strongly in protecting children through the divorce process. We handle many high-conflict divorces with issues of child custody, child support, and protection from abuse (PFA). To speak with a Pittsburgh family law attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Getting Ann’s PFA Dismissed
For the first time, Ann went several days without seeing her child. The reason? Ann’s husband filed a Protection From Abuse (PFA) restraining order against her. The PFA booted Ann from her home and granted temporary custody of their child to her husband.
Ann’s husband said she hit him after discovering that he was having an affair. He claimed to be afraid of her.
In domestic violence cases, women typically seek protection from their boyfriends or husbands. But Spivak Law Firm has also successfully defended many women accused of abuse by their male partners.
At Ann’s PFA hearing in downtown Pittsburgh, her husband didn’t back down. He wanted to permanently evict Ann from their home and to get primary custody of their son. Both parties testified before a judge.
We aimed to show that Ann’s husband was abusing the PFA system to gain leverage in their imminent divorce and custody disputes. We argued that Ann’s actions did not rise to the level of a PFA because it was a single incident and there were no injuries.
The hearing lasted more than two hours. In the end, the judge dismissed the PFA.
“Thank you so much for everything,” Ann wrote us later that evening. “I couldn’t have done this without you. I am home with my son, I couldn’t be happier.”
Spivak Law Firm provides strong defense at PFA hearings throughout the Pittsburgh area in Allegheny County, Westmoreland County, Washington County, Beaver County, and Butler County. To speak with an experienced PFA defense attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Alimony and Adultery Historically Linked
In Pennsylvania, a spouse guilty of marital misconduct such as adultery cannot obtain alimony, except in rare cases of extreme hardship.
There has long been a link between alimony and adultery. Historically, husbands were only forced to pay alimony to their wives if they committed adultery.
“It was almost a form of damages: the financial penalty the law imposed upon husbands as a result of their wrongful conduct in breaching the permanency clause of the marriage contract,” writes attorney Laura W. Morgan in an article entitled “Current Trends In Alimony Law” published by the American Bar Association.
“The amount of the remedy – the amount needed to attain the marital standard of living – was roughly equivalent to the financial harm inflicted on the wife by the husband’s wrongful conduct, another rule strongly reminiscent of contract or even tort law,” Morgan writes.
Today, Pennsylvania courts may award alimony even when there are no allegations of adultery. Pennsylvania embraces no-fault divorce, allowing courts to grant a divorce in the absence of fault where a court found that the marriage was irretrievably broken.
To speak with a Pittsburgh family law attorney, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Child Custody for Rapists?
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has published our article on how Pennsylvania law handles child custody issues in rape cases.
Pennsylvania has received national attention for offering rape victims protection against rapists who later seek child custody privileges. But even Pennsylvania’s protections are limited because judges have discretion over all child custody matters.
“We’re not going to be stupid and give custody to a rapist,” Allegheny County Common Please Judge Kathleen Mulligan told us.
But it can happen, says Chicago-based attorney and women’s rights advocate Shauna Prewitt.
“For instance,” our article states, “a rape victim may be forced to interact with her rapist for months or even years if a custody hearing precedes a rape conviction. By the time the father is eventually convicted of rape, Ms. Prewitt says, a court may find that it is in the child’s best interests for the father to have custody rights because he has established a parental presence with the child.”
To read the entire article, please click here.
Spivak Law Firm handles all family law and criminal defense matters. To make an appointment, call us at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.
Child Custody Rights in Pennsylvania
It is widely believed that in child custody disputes courts favor giving primary custody of the child to the mother.
But the law rejects this notion.
Pennsylvania law states: “In any action regarding the custody of the child between the parents of the child, there shall be no presumption that custody should be awarded to a particular parent.”
Thus, under the law, both parents are presumed by the court to have equal custodial rights over their child or children.
In some limited situations, a person who is not the child’s parent – a grandparent, for instance – may also assert custodial rights over the child. But even in these cases, the parent’s custodial rights take precedence.
Pennsylvania law states: “In any action regarding the custody of the child between a parent of the child and a nonparent, there shall be a presumption that custody shall be awarded to the parent.”
To learn more about your child custody rights, call Spivak Law Firm at (412) 344-4900 or toll free at (800) 545-9390.