How to Get Holiday Visitation Rights After a Final Judgment
Once you have a Final Judgment and are divorced, you may still have to go back to court for any number of reasons. You may have to go back to get holiday visitation rights after a final judgment, if those rights were not put into the final judgment. Sometimes, though your holiday visitation rights are outlined in the final judgment, your ex-spouse refuses to abide by the final judgment and allows you to exercise those visitation rights.
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Instructions
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Hire an Attorney
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Shop around for an attorney if you did not have one for your initial divorce or if you do not like the attorney who did your initial divorce. Use the same care and dedication for finding a post-judgment attorney as you did for your initial attorney. Post-judgment suits are much harder to deal with than the initial divorce, if the rights you want were not spelled out in the final judgment. If they were in the final judgment and your ex-spouse is denying you those rights, it is a bit easier, but your ex-spouse may try prolonging the proceedings, therefore making the proceedings difficult.
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Attend at least three consults with three different attorneys, even if you have to pay for the consults. Usually the free consults are only a few minutes, and the attorney is rushing to get you out of his office, since he is not getting paid (yet) for his time with you. If you can afford it, try to get consults with attorneys who charge a fee—they are more likely to spend the time with you and answer all of your questions.
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Choose an attorney. Once you decide on which attorney you like, meet with him again, and explain your situation. Do not leave any details out.
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Make a list of the items you think your new attorney should know. Attorneys charge by the minute, including phone calls, so you can save yourself some money by having a list of things to speak to him about, and get it all done in one session, rather than calling him back every time you think of something new to tell him.
Represent Yourself (Go Pro Se)
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Make a list of every right that is being denied to you or that is not in the final judgment. Post-dissolution matters are very difficult, even with an attorney, but if you cannot afford an attorney, you can do it without one.
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Contact a paralegal to help you fill out the forms, if your state allows this. Though a paralegal cannot give you legal advice, for a fee much smaller than what an attorney would charge, they can make sure the proper forms are filled out and are filled out correctly.
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Download the forms and complete them yourself. You can always attempt to go through this process completely on your own, but it is not advised. You will need to know which forms to fill out. If your clerk’s office does not have the forms online, you may have to visit the clerk of court to get the forms.
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Complete a supplemental petition for relief and the other forms required by your state. When you ask for holiday visitation, be sure to include a schedule. The easiest schedule to have approved is one where both parties rotate the holidays. The self-help center at the clerk of court should have a holiday visitation schedule that the court recommends.
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Tips & Warnings
Check with your clerk of court to find out if forms may be downloaded or purchased directly from the clerk for your particular county and/or state.
This is not written by an attorney and should not be taken as legal advice. You should always seek the assistance of an attorney if you have any questions regarding your case.
