The Attorneys at Dixon & Moseley, P.C.
Strong, Trial-Ready Advocates Protecting Your Rights
A common goal good family law attorneys seek to reach with any divorce or end of other parent-child relationship, as well as the judges who manage these cases, is to prepare their clients to avoid future hot-button issues. Where divorced couples have children, a new step-brother or sister or half-sibling can cause instability in subtle ways that may lead the…
Over the course of several decades of collective domestic practice, attorneys observe two reoccurring mistakes that parents make, perhaps unknowingly, that may lead to contempt or modification actions or otherwise institute ill will and make it harder to co-parent and act in the children’s best interests. This blog post explores these mistakes so divorcing or divorced parents can avoid them.…
The Line Between Abuse, Neglect and Criminal Acts in Indiana One of the strongest constitutional protections is the fundamental right to raise children without the State telling parents how to do it. However, everyone understands that freedoms and rights come with responsibilities and obligations. This is also true for children. Indiana is a conservative legal state, but has drawn lines…
Every judge in every county and attorneys observe certain cases where the parents cannot agree on anything and are constantly in court post-divorce as it relates to children. The miracle of courts is it allows a dispute to be resolved when every other institution and solution fails. But it exacts a price on the parents, judges and lawyer—and ultimately the…
Divorce and child custody cases present common issues and unique ones to every family that comes to Court. To assist attorneys in making their client’s best case, Indiana judges sometimes gather and present seminars for practitioners to give them guidance in what helps best present every case. The Indianapolis Bar Association presented a seminar with Marion County and surrounding counties’…
Making the Factual Showings in Custody Modification Almost every two people hear about a situation and come up with a different opinion. This is because second hand reporting removes the context and non-verbal communication that may be present, such as grimaces, winces, and other body language. Because of this, the Indiana Court of Appeals and Indiana Supreme Court give great…
The Divorce Act and cases that control Indiana divorce law are driven by policies that favor the parties reaching agreements. Particularly where children are involved, agreements avoid the “warfare” that sometimes ensues with contested custody cases. However, all such agreements must be in the children’s best interests. Ultimately, Indiana’s trial court judges stand in loco parentis (act as a parental…
In Indiana, the term custody includes two distinct concepts, namely physical and legal custody. Physical custody generally refers to the parent with whom the child will spend the majority of overnights with during a year. Legal custody focuses on which parent (or both) make major decisions for the children, focusing on health, education and religion. This blog post explores these…
Most divorce cases resolve before trial. However, a small number proceed to trial or have post-divorce custody modification matters. In either case, there are three ways to undermine the strongest case that are inherent in human nature. This blog explores the matters and demonstrates why they are harmful. Avoid them. First, in original divorce cases, it is easy to make…
Indiana trial court judges are charged with the difficult task of making child custody decisions in the children’s best interests. This is daunting in contested divorce cases as the actual parents cannot agree to what is best for their own children. To assist them, judges on their own or with request of an attorney, appoint trained individuals ranging from trained…