Top 10 List for Dealing With
DOMESTIC ABUSE AND HARASSMENT
Your immediate safety is most important. If possible, do the following as cautiously as possible:
1. Keep your cell phone on your person at all times and dial 911 immediately upon any threat of abuse. Contact a shelter or a local law enforcement agency to obtain an “emergency cell phone,” which is free and can be hidden in a safe place and used to call 911 only in case your own telephone access is not available.
2. Seek medical/psychological help for any/all results of mental/physical abuse.
3. Document any/all verbal and/or physical abuse in a personal diary secured form any individual, but advise at least one (1) good friend where it is located and how to access it.
4. Leave the situation immediately if your spouse or domestic partner is causing you to feel threatened and seek a safe place with family, friends, or a domestic abuse shelter. Consider a safe exit plan to leave home in case of abuse and inform your family and/or friends of your plan. Practice the safe exit plan with your children if applicable.
5. Have a friend, relative, hospital, or ideally, the police photograph any injuries sustained from the abuser as soon as possible and preserve the photos in a secure place.
6. If anyone observes you being mentally/physically abused, you should ask the observer to take notes on what they observed and preserve those notes in a safe place.
7. Tape record any conversation in which your involved that evidences emotional/physical abuse by you or a third party. This evidence can be admitted to court.
8. If the police do become involved, do not diminish or deny the abuse, because your credibility will be tainted going forward when/if you need to report abuse again. Obtain any police records of any incident related to the abuse.
9. If there are any weapons in your home that are accessible to your spouse and you fear they will be utilized, keep them locked up or out of the home. Call the police if you have any concerns about weapons in to which your spouse may have access to.
10. Consult a lawyer as soon as you have determined that you need an order for protection or a harassment order so that the attorney can fully prepare for a court hearing to prove the allegations. Know your rights! (See attached summary of orders for protection and harassment orders).
We hope the above and attached are helpful for you, your clients and your staff. If you have any questions regarding domestic abuse please do not hesitate to contact us. Our office handles these matters on a flat fee basis of $1500.00 dollars and will gladly meet with a prospective client at a time and place of their convenience.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Monday, June 13, 2011
Leading Controversies in Family Law
The focus of this blog is to post articles for discussion on new and upcoming topics and controversies in divorce and family law. We will be discussing changes within the various Districts and Circuits in the U.S. as well as changes in technology and how they affect Minnesota family law.
Contingent Fee For Divorce Lawyers
• A contingency fee is a fee paid to a lawyer after a case is won.
Domestic Abuse Against Men
• Domestic abuse against men is very common, but due to the lack of reporting, it is not recognized to the extent of abuse against women. In Minnesota, in 2010 two men died from domestic violence, and out of 389 domestic violence victims, 19 of them were found to be men.
Domestic Partnership
• A domestic partnership is a legal or personal relationship between two individuals who reside together and share a common domestic life, but are not married or joined together by union.
Same Sex Marriage
• Same-sex marriage has been a leading controversy in various states.
Barring same- sex marriage has been found to be unconstitutional in the state of California, however, Minnesota currently bans same- sex marriage..
International Adoption
• International adoption is a form of adoption in which one legally takes the custody of a child from another country. The University of Minnesota provides one of the best international adoption medical programs.
Paternity Rights (abortion)
• Mothers have the final say in the decision for abortion when they are carrying a child; fathers are able to suggest and offer their feelings and thoughts, but in reality paternal rights don’t began to take effect until after the baby is born. .
Contingent Fee For Divorce Lawyers
• A contingency fee is a fee paid to a lawyer after a case is won.
Domestic Abuse Against Men
• Domestic abuse against men is very common, but due to the lack of reporting, it is not recognized to the extent of abuse against women. In Minnesota, in 2010 two men died from domestic violence, and out of 389 domestic violence victims, 19 of them were found to be men.
Domestic Partnership
• A domestic partnership is a legal or personal relationship between two individuals who reside together and share a common domestic life, but are not married or joined together by union.
Same Sex Marriage
• Same-sex marriage has been a leading controversy in various states.
Barring same- sex marriage has been found to be unconstitutional in the state of California, however, Minnesota currently bans same- sex marriage..
International Adoption
• International adoption is a form of adoption in which one legally takes the custody of a child from another country. The University of Minnesota provides one of the best international adoption medical programs.
Paternity Rights (abortion)
• Mothers have the final say in the decision for abortion when they are carrying a child; fathers are able to suggest and offer their feelings and thoughts, but in reality paternal rights don’t began to take effect until after the baby is born. .
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