Understanding Family Law Emergencies in California: Part I
Family law emergencies in California are complex situations that require immediate intervention in order to safeguard family members from one another. In California, the law has developed in a way to be particularly mindful of protecting children from potential harm.
Family law emergencies might emerge in any number of circumstances. Unfortunately, domestic life leads to innumerable interactions between various individuals. Life gets hard. Emergencies often manifest in ways that involve domestic violence, child endangerment or child abduction, or situations involving an immediate and significant threat to the physical or emotional well-being of an individual, particularly a child’s well-being, such as severe neglect and abuse.
Domestic violence cases can involve threats of immediate harm, or an act meant to inflict immediate harm, that necessitate urgent protective orders. These orders are meant to ensure the safety of those involved. Child abduction scenarios require swift legal action to best ensure the safe and immediate return of a child to their rightful guardian.
Readers should understand: not all pressing concerns qualify as actual emergencies in a legal, court context. To qualify as an “emergency” the situation must qualify under stringent criteria, and present a clear and present danger that will warrant immediate court action in order to avert harm or severe legal repercussions. This means that the court must be convinced that if it does not swiftly intervene, then the individual at risk is put in significant danger and legal rights could be permanently compromised. The courts do not want to over-insert themselves into situations that do not warrant their immediate action and attention. But for those cases that require it – particularly those in which a child’s well-being is put at risk – the law has developed to allow the court to act.
Types of Urgent Family Law Issues
Understanding the nuance of the types of situations that may constitute a family law emergency in California family courts can help individuals assess their own situation. Consider the following to help better understand if immediate action might be appropriate or necessary in your own situation. It is, of course, always advised to seek legal counsel to understand the nuance of your own case, and to receive official advice and counsel in your own situation.
Urgent family law emergencies might include instances of:
- Domestic Violence: Cases of domestic violence involve the immediate threats or actual event of harm or abuse – both physical and/or emotional in nature. The threat or actual harm must be coming from a family member or intimate partner. Protection in domestic violence cases can include protective orders, restraining orders, court orders that prohibit contact between individuals.
- Child Abduction: If a parent or guardian unlawfully takes a child, it can be categorized as an abduction. The urgency in these cases is present and real.
- Child Custody Emergencies: If a child is at significant risk due to abuse, neglect, or other significant, immediate dangers, the court may act to quickly modify custody in order to protect the child’s best interests.
- Financial Emergencies: Urgent financial issues might also constitute a family law emergency. This could happen, for instance, if there is an immediate need for child or spousal support in order to avoid significant hardship. This might include sudden unemployment, or injury/illness that leads to a severe impact on the family’s ability to meet basic needs.
Contact Cardwell, Steigerwald Young
For advice and official legal counsel on any of your urgent family law needs, contact the experienced San Francisco family law attorneys at Cardwell, Steigerwald Young.
Sources:
geriatrics.ucsf.edu/sites/geriatrics.ucsf.edu/files/docs/8domesticviolence.pdf
sf.courts.ca.gov/divisions/unified-family-court
