Referral for Family Law CPS Attorney

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not consulting a lawyer after a CPS visit is an even bigger alarm bell.

I don't know why some of you all do not realize that CPS investigations are not supposed to be routine and referrals are not supposed to be casual.

They have the power to take your child from you without much oversight or appeal. It's not a parking ticket where the worst case scenario is a small fine. The power that CPS has is more consequential, on an individual basis, than either Congress or the President.

It's a very serious matter regardless of the validity of the referral. All it takes is one bad mid-level bureacurat to permanently destroy your life.

This is way way alarmist. And most of what you say is simply not true.

Name one thing in it that's not true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not consulting a lawyer after a CPS visit is an even bigger alarm bell.

I don't know why some of you all do not realize that CPS investigations are not supposed to be routine and referrals are not supposed to be casual.

They have the power to take your child from you without much oversight or appeal. It's not a parking ticket where the worst case scenario is a small fine. The power that CPS has is more consequential, on an individual basis, than either Congress or the President.

It's a very serious matter regardless of the validity of the referral. All it takes is one bad mid-level bureacurat to permanently destroy your life.

People like you should be banned from responding to chains like these. You are an embodiment of how knowing a little about something is worse than knowing nothing at all.

People like you should be banned. You're giving objectively bad advice and minimizing the power and risks involved.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not consulting a lawyer after a CPS visit is an even bigger alarm bell.

I don't know why some of you all do not realize that CPS investigations are not supposed to be routine and referrals are not supposed to be casual.

They have the power to take your child from you without much oversight or appeal. It's not a parking ticket where the worst case scenario is a small fine. The power that CPS has is more consequential, on an individual basis, than either Congress or the President.

It's a very serious matter regardless of the validity of the referral. All it takes is one bad mid-level bureacurat to permanently destroy your life.

People like you should be banned from responding to chains like these. You are an embodiment of how knowing a little about something is worse than knowing nothing at all.

People like you should be banned. You're giving objectively bad advice and minimizing the power and risks involved.

Are you a lawyer? Obviously not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not consulting a lawyer after a CPS visit is an even bigger alarm bell.

I don't know why some of you all do not realize that CPS investigations are not supposed to be routine and referrals are not supposed to be casual.

They have the power to take your child from you without much oversight or appeal. It's not a parking ticket where the worst case scenario is a small fine. The power that CPS has is more consequential, on an individual basis, than either Congress or the President.

It's a very serious matter regardless of the validity of the referral. All it takes is one bad mid-level bureacurat to permanently destroy your life.

This is way way alarmist. And most of what you say is simply not true.

Name one thing in it that's not true.

All of it.
1. ‘Not consulting a lawyer after a cps visit is an ‘alarm bell’. Who would this be an alarm bell to exactly? Genuinely curious.

2. ‘Investigations are not routine and referrals not casual.’ This doesn’t even make sense. Of course investigations are not routine but many cases are started by mandatory reporters who have no discretion, and most of these cases are closed. With behavioral issues and mandatory reporters involved, things get reported all the time. It’s not even clear to me from OPs post that Cps decided to make a visit from the counselors report. She’s actually never said that.

3. Cps is not ‘more powerful than the president or congress’. That’s too nuts to even try to explain.

4. Cps has tons of oversight and standards and there absolutely is a court process - due process - including a robust appeals process. Courts want families to stay together and will suggest all sorts of support services.

I’ll admit that if a parent is a POC, poor and uses drugs, as example, there can be minefields to deal with- although the system has been working hard to handle these sorts of cases more humanely- but in general OP should not worry her child will be thrown in foster care. Shes obviously stressed enough without people like you chiming in with poor information

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do you need a lawyer for this? Are the family issues severe enough that you believe you might lose custody of your son? If a family hired a lawyer to act as an intermediary with CPS that would be an alarm bell.

What do you think the lawyer will be able to do for you? Do you want them to advise you of how to explain things and what to say to the worker?

For your family's sake, don't listen to this idiot. People hire lawyers to represent them in traffic court and to prepare them for immigration interviews. There is nothing fishy about hiring a lawyer in this situation.

OP hasn't said that the allegations are false. They said their son was discussing recent family dynamics and the counselor (a mandatory reporter) reported.

OP hasn't said that there will be an investigation, home visits, etc. OP hasn't given any indication of WHY they want a lawyer other than the son has behavioral issues and the situation is stressful. OP did not say they think the report was mafe too casually or unnecessarily.

Sure, OP might genuinely need a lawyer if they have a criminal record, past allegations, use illegal substances or have other past history that indicates likeliness of abuse.

CPS doesn't want OP's child. They will use due process to determine if the allegations are true or false and if true, were they illegal to the point to warrant removal. What do you think a lawyer is going to do about that?

If the lawyer is to prepare OP and their spouse to lie or hide things, you really think that's good for their kid? When CPS gets involved, it's about the child's best interests, not OP's.

How many judges have you sat and watched during child custody trials? I've observed and participated in many trials where children were victims of abuse, as file support arguing on behalf of the children. Out of all the judges I've observed, I don't know any that would see this as a positive act (as prioritizing the child's best interests). Again, OP did not say the allegations were false or made incorrectly. Think about what kind of lawyers would take a case with true allegations. Lawyers like that use tactics, not truth. A lawyer like that makes more mess, not less.

The stakes are very high to remove kids. If OP needs to know their rights during a CPS investigation, there are many ways to do that, one of which being hiring a lawyer to consult with along the way. That is absolutely appropriate diligence. Hiring a lawyer to act as an intermediary, which is what I was commenting on, is not the same thing.

Um, OP asked for a lawyer to "navigate this stressful situation." Which is the same as the bolded.

Okay, great? I was responding to the person who responded to my first response and what they bolded in my response.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Not consulting a lawyer after a CPS visit is an even bigger alarm bell.

I don't know why some of you all do not realize that CPS investigations are not supposed to be routine and referrals are not supposed to be casual.

They have the power to take your child from you without much oversight or appeal. It's not a parking ticket where the worst case scenario is a small fine. The power that CPS has is more consequential, on an individual basis, than either Congress or the President.

It's a very serious matter regardless of the validity of the referral. All it takes is one bad mid-level bureacurat to permanently destroy your life.

This is way way alarmist. And most of what you say is simply not true.

Name one thing in it that's not true.

All of it.
1. ‘Not consulting a lawyer after a cps visit is an ‘alarm bell’. Who would this be an alarm bell to exactly? Genuinely curious.

2. ‘Investigations are not routine and referrals not casual.’ This doesn’t even make sense. Of course investigations are not routine but many cases are started by mandatory reporters who have no discretion, and most of these cases are closed. With behavioral issues and mandatory reporters involved, things get reported all the time. It’s not even clear to me from OPs post that Cps decided to make a visit from the counselors report. She’s actually never said that.

3. Cps is not ‘more powerful than the president or congress’. That’s too nuts to even try to explain.

4. Cps has tons of oversight and standards and there absolutely is a court process - due process - including a robust appeals process. Courts want families to stay together and will suggest all sorts of support services.

I’ll admit that if a parent is a POC, poor and uses drugs, as example, there can be minefields to deal with- although the system has been working hard to handle these sorts of cases more humanely- but in general OP should not worry her child will be thrown in foster care. Shes obviously stressed enough without people like you chiming in with poor information

Yes, exactly all of this. So many of these posters are acting like they have no clue a) how counselors are mandated to report and b) that teenagers having any conflict with their parents leads to immediate threat of removal. Ridiculous. NOT helpful to OP or anyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ve had similar happen with a younger child which did lead to a CPS visit but nothing came of it. Lesson learned, no more school counselors or other do gooders.
If the teen is misbehaving and otherwise causing the family trouble, some CPS involvement might be a good thing. Teen learns the lesson, even if they are temporarily removed they get foster care benefits for college (but they won’t be removed because there was no abuse).
All in all, it’s much ado about nothing but don’t use school counselors again. They are inexperienced and are trying to cover their necks at all costs, always over reporting

The over-zealous counselors at MCPS don't need your permission. My friend found out that her son was seeing the counselor at Bethesda Elementary regularly without her knowledge. She called the school and was told she would only be informed on an "as needed" basis. I told her son, right in front of her, that if any adult tells you not to tell your parents something then that means they're doing something wrong. Isn't that child safety 101? Shame on MCPS for trying to get a child to keep a secret from parents. The principal at BE at that time was a nut job. I think she's still there and will be until she drops dead.

[Anonymous]

I was a foster parent a while ago. We had a placement of just a few days. The kids were put in foster care when their mom asked for emergency help from her abusive husband. The very young, very new social worker thought they should be put in foster care for 30 days because the mother was neglectful -- she had run out of the apartment during a domestic violence episode and not taken the kid's prescription skin cream tube. It IS scary that people like that are out there. To her, she was doing her job. But with zero common sense or life experience.

Those kids were returned to their mother after about a week instead of overnight, which was what she needed. At least they were returned to her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’ve had similar happen with a younger child which did lead to a CPS visit but nothing came of it. Lesson learned, no more school counselors or other do gooders.
If the teen is misbehaving and otherwise causing the family trouble, some CPS involvement might be a good thing. Teen learns the lesson, even if they are temporarily removed they get foster care benefits for college (but they won’t be removed because there was no abuse).
All in all, it’s much ado about nothing but don’t use school counselors again. They are inexperienced and are trying to cover their necks at all costs, always over reporting

The over-zealous counselors at MCPS don't need your permission. My friend found out that her son was seeing the counselor at Bethesda Elementary regularly without her knowledge. She called the school and was told she would only be informed on an "as needed" basis. I told her son, right in front of her, that if any adult tells you not to tell your parents something then that means they're doing something wrong. Isn't that child safety 101? Shame on MCPS for trying to get a child to keep a secret from parents. The principal at BE at that time was a nut job. I think she's still there and will be until she drops dead.

Why on earth would you assume that the counselor told the child not to tell their parents? Kids don't go see counselors because they're bored. They go because they need help. Kids are often referred by their teachers or educational assistants or go see the counselor on their own.

[Anonymous]

I hired a lawyer to accompany me to my fed security interview because I had a thorny financial issue due to a past marriage. Got cleared and hired. But if you want to chance custody of your DC, that's on you. Nothing weird about hiring a lawyer who knows more than you about an important issue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’ve had similar happen with a younger child which did lead to a CPS visit but nothing came of it. Lesson learned, no more school counselors or other do gooders.
If the teen is misbehaving and otherwise causing the family trouble, some CPS involvement might be a good thing. Teen learns the lesson, even if they are temporarily removed they get foster care benefits for college (but they won’t be removed because there was no abuse).
All in all, it’s much ado about nothing but don’t use school counselors again. They are inexperienced and are trying to cover their necks at all costs, always over reporting

The over-zealous counselors at MCPS don't need your permission. My friend found out that her son was seeing the counselor at Bethesda Elementary regularly without her knowledge. She called the school and was told she would only be informed on an "as needed" basis. I told her son, right in front of her, that if any adult tells you not to tell your parents something then that means they're doing something wrong. Isn't that child safety 101? Shame on MCPS for trying to get a child to keep a secret from parents. The principal at BE at that time was a nut job. I think she's still there and will be until she drops dead.

Why on earth would you assume that the counselor told the child not to tell their parents? Kids don't go see counselors because they're bored. They go because they need help. Kids are often referred by their teachers or educational assistants or go see the counselor on their own.

Not at BE. At BE they go because the principal or the counselor are bored. Sorry but first and second graders don't ask to see the counselor. How absurd.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’ve had similar happen with a younger child which did lead to a CPS visit but nothing came of it. Lesson learned, no more school counselors or other do gooders.
If the teen is misbehaving and otherwise causing the family trouble, some CPS involvement might be a good thing. Teen learns the lesson, even if they are temporarily removed they get foster care benefits for college (but they won’t be removed because there was no abuse).
All in all, it’s much ado about nothing but don’t use school counselors again. They are inexperienced and are trying to cover their necks at all costs, always over reporting

The over-zealous counselors at MCPS don't need your permission. My friend found out that her son was seeing the counselor at Bethesda Elementary regularly without her knowledge. She called the school and was told she would only be informed on an "as needed" basis. I told her son, right in front of her, that if any adult tells you not to tell your parents something then that means they're doing something wrong. Isn't that child safety 101? Shame on MCPS for trying to get a child to keep a secret from parents. The principal at BE at that time was a nut job. I think she's still there and will be until she drops dead.

Why on earth would you assume that the counselor told the child not to tell their parents? Kids don't go see counselors because they're bored. They go because they need help. Kids are often referred by their teachers or educational assistants or go see the counselor on their own.

Not at BE. At BE they go because the principal or the counselor are bored. Sorry but first and second graders don't ask to see the counselor. How absurd.

No kidding - I never said they did. I said they are referred or able to access the room on their own. Many schools, the school counselors room (who may also have a comfort space or sensory space) is accessible to anyone walking past in the hallway. If the child sees the counselor at assemblies or classroom visits saying anyone can come see them anytime for xyz reasons, they may. But majority of time would be referred or suggested by teachers, classroom assistants, or parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I hired a lawyer to accompany me to my fed security interview because I had a thorny financial issue due to a past marriage. Got cleared and hired. But if you want to chance custody of your DC, that's on you. Nothing weird about hiring a lawyer who knows more than you about an important issue.

Alarmist

[Anonymous]

Has op even said a case was opened???

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hired a lawyer to accompany me to my fed security interview because I had a thorny financial issue due to a past marriage. Got cleared and hired. But if you want to chance custody of your DC, that's on you. Nothing weird about hiring a lawyer who knows more than you about an important issue.

Alarmist

Yes, totally alarmist to do everything you can to prevent the Government from taking your child. Save the money for therapy when you lose custody.