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Subject: Enforcing residency order
Posted By david1972 on 01-12-2009
I have applied for a residency order for my 7 year old twin girls. I was last in court on 22nd November when an order was made setting out contact times for my ex-wife. The order also included two conditions for this contact. The first and main condition was that her current partner cannot attend any contact she has with the children. She was to have contact 3 afternoons per week and if the conditions where adhered to, the contact would increase to include an overnight contact on a friday. Two weeks ago my children told me that her current partner met them after school and they all walked home together, and my ex-wife made no attempt to stop this. I have since advised I am not willing to let the overnight contact take place yet because the conditions for this have not been met. My ex's solicitor has now written to me threatening to take me back to court because I am breaching the order if I dont make the children available for this overnight contact. I have two questions. Firstly, am I being unreasonable to ask for it to be defered, or would the judge see it as petty and frown on this request? Secondly, am I actually breaching a court order if the conditions have not been met?
Thanks,
Dave.
Follow up comments
Added By Kat007 on 02-12-2009
You say it is written in the order that her partner is not to have any contact with your kids. Well if he met them after school then she has breached the order not you. The conditions where to be adhered to and she didn't which inturn means she has forfitted the overnight stay.
Will a judge see it as petty, well to have those conditions added on a contact schedule and agreed by a judge shows they obviously had concerns about her partner and they will see those conditions haven't been met by her or her partner as said she breached. Yes you can take this back to court but probably best to ask your sol to just write a polite letter explaining the order to her in simple English and point out that until she can adhere to the 3 afternoons without her partner being there then overnight contact can not be considered at this time.
Added By Jools123 on 02-12-2009
I agree with Kat. Except you do need to have proof of this. And it sounds like the only way of proving this is to involve your girls.... - not ideal :-(
Added By sometimesitdoesn'twork on 02-12-2009
It really depends on the circumstances. Were the conditions imposed by court for welfare reasons or was it agreed as part of a contact order? If it was imposed by the court then welfare concerns are a reasonable excuse for not complying with a contact order. However if the conditions were agreed as a compromise to make the whole agreement work then you might appear overanxious and/or inflexible.
Added By Stuart on 02-12-2009
Why do you object to the partner being present?
Added By Kat007 on 02-12-2009
Valid question Stuart but maybe it is serious enough that david is unable to discuss on an open forum site just incase somebodies watching. Either way she has breached the order thus forfitting the overnight stay.
He may need proof PI could follow them but expensive or just a friend with a camera and a car although outside a school is very dodgy ground to be spotted in a car with a camera. So how does he get proof without involving his children that is another question that maybe someone can answer here.
Added By david1972 on 02-12-2009
Thank you for your input everyone. I do not want him present because he has a violent relationship with my ex, not just him hitting her, but her hitting him also. They both drink to excess and the police have been called to my ex's address several times. It seems when she wants him to leave he refuses. In answer to a another comment, the overnight contact was agreed as a compromise to make the whole agreement work, but welfare concerns have prevented an overnight contact taking place since june
Thanks again.
Added By Stuart on 03-12-2009
sounds like you have grounds to ask the court to look at it again.....
Added By why? on 03-12-2009
do you know any other parents at the school who are walking home who know your children? they would be witness and could eventake a photo with their phone without it being obvious.
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