When the custody of a minor child has to be determined in a court of law, it represents an extremely stressful and tense time for all parties involved, and that’s especially true for the children themselves. The Colorado courts are extremely invested in doing what’s best for the care and development of all minor children in the state. However, with so many voices and opinions involved in a custody case, it can be difficult to determine exactly where a child’s best interests lie.

If both parents can work together effectively, or with the help of a Colorado Springs child custody lawyer, they may be able to come to agreements relating to the care and co-parenting of their children. When this is possible, it’s in everyone’s best interests. The case spends less time in court, making it less costly for everyone involved. Additionally, the children gain reassurance by seeing that their parents are still working together to provide for their care even though their relationship has ended. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Collapsing marriages and deteriorating relationships can be extremely volatile situations, leading to high conflict cases.

While we would like to believe that every parent is capable of acting in their child’s best interests, unfit and narcissistic parents exist. Some of them are more than willing to use their child as a tool to hurt their ex-spouse. This can quickly transform a divorce or custody proceeding from merely difficult to completely toxic. If you have decided to represent yourself in your divorce and your ex begins attacking you in court with false allegations of child abuse or other wrongdoing, you may quickly become overwhelmed. Even in a case without overt conflict, child custody laws can be extremely complex to navigate for someone without legal training.

The fact that it is a crime to lie to a judge in a Colorado court is unfortunately not always enough to dissuade someone harboring malicious intentions. A parent may obsess over a desire to hurt an ex-partner through gaining sole custody of a shared child, or they may feel a sense of entitlement to seek sole custody through any means necessary. These parents are capable of making any number of unethical or cruel decisions because they believe the ends justify any means. A person acting out in this way can represent a dangerous adversary in a court of law. Their claims may be merely exaggerated or completely untethered from reality. However, they can still do real, material harm to your relationship with your children if not met with an effective legal strategy of your own.

When you need to protect yourself from false allegations in divorce proceedings or family law court, the first step is to seek a no-pressure consultation with the experienced child custody attorneys at the Johnson Law Group. We will review all aspects of your case with empathy and without judgment to determine the most effective legal strategy for moving forward in the Colorado Springs, CO court system.

Even when matters are fairly routine or a case seems to have a standard solution, child custody disputes are some of the most tense and difficult cases in our entire legal ecosystem. Everyone involved is bound by law and basic morality to seek the best possible outcome for the minor children involved in a divorce or separation. However, visions of the “best outcome” can vary from parent to parent and even from judge to judge. The parents, officials, and experts involved in a child custody case can have a range of different opinions about what a child needs. Depending on their age, the child will also have opinions of their own for the court to weigh and consider. Your Colorado Springs child custody attorney will be an invaluable asset in ensuring your side of the story is heard and considered.

• Resentment – sometimes merely feeling slighted is enough to put someone on the path to manipulative and malicious courtroom behavior. When someone feels that their abilities as a parent are being unfairly attacked, either directly or through implication, it can be difficult to process effectively. Someone in this situation may lash out with counterattacks of their own.
• Moving Away – when one parent wants to move away to pursue a new job or relationship, they must follow the legal requirements set forth by the state. Long-distance moves can require changes to existing custody or visitation orders, and this can leave parents feeling defensive. A non-custodial parent feeling that their child is being unfairly moved away from them may use the legal procedures designed to protect and ensure a child’s best interests as a platform to attack their ex instead.
• Existing Orders – when one parent disagrees with existing visitation and custody orders, they may bring false allegations to the court. This is in an attempt to have the orders reopened and modified to better suit their own interests. A judge will usually not reopen such an order without some level of actionable evidence. However, the courts are predisposed to take any allegations of child abuse or endangerment very seriously, so the tactic can still represent a serious threat to the other parent.

When false allegations of abuse, neglect, or endangerment are used in child custody cases, it is part of a tactic called parental alienation. Parental alienation is when one parent targets the other in an effort to harm their relationship with their shared children. Threats, blackmail, and gaslighting of the children are some common ways for a spiteful parent to create parental alienation outside of court proceedings. When this tactic escalates to making false allegations before a judge in a court of law, an extreme attempt at parental alienation is taking place.

The false allegations brought to court will often be serious and have to do with issues like neglect, physical harm, sexual abuse, endangerment, or problems with illegal substances. Legally, a parent is innocent until proven guilty, but it’s important to remember that the court takes any matter of child safety or endangerment extremely seriously. If your ex attempts to engage in parental alienation by slandering you and your parenting abilities in court, do not allow yourself to be baited into dramatics. You will need a sound and level-headed strategy to defend against their false allegations if you wish to effectively protect yourself and your children.

Lies designed to alienate a parent from their children or to harm the other parent’s chances of gaining favorable custody or visitation orders can be extremely stressful, frustrating, and hard to deal with. There are a few ways you and your Colorado Springs child custody lawyer can fight back.

• Expert Witnesses – psychiatrists, child development professionals, and other qualified experts can be an important part of an effective legal strategy. Even when a child has been effectively brainwashed by the gaslighting of a manipulative parent, a child psychology expert may have insight into what is really happening.
• Be Honest – extreme allegations of wrongdoing are humiliating, and even more so when they have to do with your children. It is important to be direct when speaking with your attorney, the judge, and other state officials. Meet false allegations with the plain truth, not with “he said, she said” escalations that will only further harm your children.

Q: Is Colorado a mother state for custody?

A: No. There is no legal instrument in place in Colorado which directs a court to favor either the mother or father by default. All parents have equal parental rights in Colorado courtrooms. Some courts and judges are statistically predisposed to award custody to mothers. However, fathers still have the legal right to present their concerns before a court of law, up to and including seeking sole custody.

Q: What can be used against you in a custody battle?

A: A custody case, like any other legal proceeding, relies on evidence and testimony. If your ex has evidence that you have neglected, abused, or endangered your child in any way, you should expect that evidence to come forward in your child custody proceedings. This may include hard evidence like video footage, testimony from medical experts or child protective services personnel, or more abstract evidence such as previous criminal history or expert testimony from a child development professional.

Q: How can a mother lose custody of her child in Colorado?

A: A mother (or father) may lose custody or other parental rights if a court of law determines that they are an unfit parent. An unfit parent is anyone who harms or endangers their child or who has been proven unable to meet their child’s physical and emotional needs. A judge can issue a court order revoking an unfit mother’s custody and assigning it to the other parent, some other relative, or a state agency.

If you’re facing unhinged and untrue accusations in family court from a vindictive ex, don’t let yourself be bullied or threatened any longer. Contact the expert family law team at Johnson Law Group working out of Denver, CO. Myles and Genet Johnson and their world-class legal team are standing by to help disprove false allegations to protect your family and your reputation.