child custody, child access, divorce, child maintenance, parenting plans, Cape Tow, South Africa

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child custody, child access, divorce, child maintenance, parenting plans, Cape Tow, South Africa

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Dear Advocate Abduroaf. My child custody case is very complicated. How do I find the best child custody lawyer, attorney or advocate for my case in Johannesburg?

A great child custody lawyer (attorney or advocate) is a legal practitioner who specializes in family law and has expertise in handling cases related to child custody and visitation rights. Family law matters can be very emotionally challenging for both parents. The same applies to the child concerned. Whether you live in Durban or in Johannesburg, the law applicable would be the same throughout South Africa.

Here are some qualities and characteristics that can define a great child custody lawyer, or the best one for your case:

Experience and Expertise:

  • Specialization in family law, particularly child custody cases.
  • Proven track record of successfully handling similar cases.

Knowledge of Family Law:

  • In-depth understanding of family law.
  • Awareness of recent legal developments and changes in family law.

Communication Skills:

  • Effective communication skills to clearly articulate your case in court.
  • Ability to negotiate and mediate to reach favourable settlements.

Compassion and Empathy:

  • Understanding and empathy towards the emotional challenges involved in child custody disputes.
  • Ability to provide emotional support to clients during a difficult time.

Strategic Thinking:

  • Ability to devise a strategic legal approach tailored to the unique aspects of your case.
  • Forethought and anticipation of potential challenges.

Availability and Responsiveness:

  • Prompt responses to client inquiries and concerns.
  • Availability for meetings, court appearances, and consultations.

Client Reviews and References:

  • Positive reviews from previous clients.
  • Recommendations from colleagues or other legal professionals.

Ethical Conduct:

  • Adherence to professional and ethical standards.
  • Transparent and fair billing practices.

Courtroom Experience:

  • Comfort and confidence in a courtroom setting.
  • Skillful presentation of arguments and evidence.

Resourcefulness:

  • Resourcefulness in finding legal precedents and utilizing available resources to strengthen the case.

Problem-Solving Skills:

  • Creative problem-solving skills to navigate complex family dynamics and legal issues.

Custody and Visitation Knowledge:

  • In-depth knowledge of various custody arrangements and visitation schedules.
  • Ability to advocate for the best interests of the child.

What should you consider when meeting with a family law attorney or advocate?

When looking for a great child custody lawyer, it’s essential to schedule consultations, discuss your case, and assess whether the lawyer, attorney, or advocate possesses the qualities and skills that align with your needs and goals. Additionally, consider seeking recommendations from trusted friends, family members, or other legal professionals. Finding the best child custody lawyer involves thorough research, careful consideration of your specific needs, and evaluation of the lawyer’s qualifications. Here are some steps you can take to find the right child custody lawyer for your situation:

Define Your Goals and Needs:

  • Clearly identify your goals and priorities in the child custody case.
  • Determine the specific services you need from a lawyer, such as legal representation, mediation, or collaborative law.

Research Local Family Law Attorneys:

  • Use online legal directories and referral services to identify family law attorneys or Trust Account Advocate in your area.
  • Seek recommendations from friends, family, or colleagues who have gone through similar situations.

Check Credentials and Specialization:

  • Look for lawyers who specialize in family law and, more specifically, child custody cases.
  • Check their credentials, education, and any certifications related to family law.

Read Reviews and Testimonials:

  • Read online reviews on legal review websites, social media, or the lawyer’s own website.
  • Consider testimonials from previous clients to gauge the lawyer’s reputation and success rate.

Consult with Multiple Lawyers:

  • Schedule consultations with several child custody lawyers to discuss your case.
  • Prepare a list of questions to ask during the consultation, covering topics such as experience, approach to cases, and expected outcomes.

Evaluate Communication Skills:

  • Assess the lawyer’s communication style and whether you feel comfortable discussing your case with them.
  • Ensure that the lawyer listens actively and provides clear explanations of legal processes.

Consider Experience:

  • Inquire about the lawyer’s experience in handling child custody cases similar to yours.
  • Ask about their success rate and outcomes in past cases.

Review Legal Fees:

  • Discuss the lawyer’s fee structure during the consultation.
  • Clarify billing practices, retainer fees, and any additional costs associated with your case.

Check Disciplinary Records:

  • Verify the lawyer’s standing with the Legal Practice Council of South Africa.
  • Check for any disciplinary actions or complaints against the lawyer.

Seek Second Opinions:

  • If you have initial concerns or uncertainties, consider seeking a second opinion from another attorney or advocate.
  • Compare advice and recommendations from multiple sources.

Trust Your Instincts:

  • Pay attention to your instincts and gut feelings about the lawyer.
  • Choose a lawyer you feel comfortable working with and who understands your unique situation.

Negotiation and Mediation Skills:

Assess the lawyer’s ability to negotiate and mediate, especially if you prefer an amicable resolution.
  • Remember that finding the best child custody lawyer is a personalized process, and the right fit for one person may not be the best for another. Take the time to thoroughly research and evaluate potential lawyers to make an informed decision based on your specific needs and circumstances.
We service clients in all cities: Cape Town Rustenburg Kimberley East London Nelspruit Polokwane Pietermaritzburg Bloemfontein Port Elizabeth Pretoria Durban Johannesburg

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How much child support should you claim or pay?

[caption id="attachment_7076" align="alignleft" width="230"]Advocate of the High Court South Africa Family Law Advocate Advocate Muhammad Abduroaf – Advocate of the High Court of South Africa[/caption] It is not only mothers who want to know how much maintenance they should claim. Fathers are very much interested in wanting to know how much they should pay. It is my view that there is nothing wrong with a father wanting to know whether or not he is paying too much maintenance. This is so as it is both parent’s responsibilities to maintain a child according to their means. However, what I do have the issue with is when fathers try to avoid their maintenance obligations. Even if you are unemployed, you can still pay maintenance depending on your means. And then you have mothers who want to exploit the fathers. The same applies when the roles are reversed. This is when the father is the primary caregiver and the mother pays him child support. – Adv. Muhammad Abduroaf LL.B LL.M – Advocate of the High Court of South Africa. Purchase a Consultation with us from our Online Shop, by clicking here.

Common child maintenance questions

  • How much child support should I claim for my child?
  • How much child support should I pay for my children?
  • The father of my child is unemployed, should I still claim child support?
These are two questions which are posed to me regularly. But what is the answer? What follows are certain factors I use to determine the amount of child support my clients should claim or pay when dealing with a child support matter.

Factors to consider regarding child support amounts

There are many factors to consider when it comes to figures in child support matters. Some are common to most people. However, depending on the situation, they won’t be the same for everyone. Remember, the explanation below is provided for information purposes only. The formula I follow is as follows:
  1. What are the reasonable monthly needs of the child? If you can place an amount to it, do so.
  2. The monthly income and expenses of both parents. The assets of the parents should also be considered should they not have an income or be unemployed.
  3. What can each parent reasonably contribute towards the monthly expenses of the child?
  Want to know more about Rule 43 Applications in the High Court and Rule 58 Applications in the Magistrates’ Court? Click here.

Reasonable needs of a child – Basic Maintenance Question

advice-child-maintenance-child-custody-divorceThe reasonable needs of a child include food, clothing, accommodation, medical expenses and so on. Depending on the standard of living of the parents, or what the child is accustomed to, as seen later, it could include extramural expenses, the upkeep of a pony, and piano lessons. Once you determined what the child’s needs are, and what the parents can afford, you can determine what each parent should contribute. This amount should factor in once off yearly expenses. For example, school fees, TV and Car licenses and membership fees and so on. Let me explain this by way of example. Purchase a Consultation with us from our Online Shop, by clicking here.

Income and expenses of child and parents

  • Child’s expense: R 1 000 – 00.
  • Custodian Parent’s income: R 10 000 – 00.
  • Custodian Parent’s monthly expenses: R 5 000 – 00.
  • Paying parent’s income: R 20 000 – 00.
  • Paying parent’s monthly expenses: R 10 000 – 00.
Considering the above example, the paying parent earns double that of the custodian parent. And his or her monthly expenses are proportionately the same as that of the has parent. Therefore, if all else being equal, his or her contribution should be double of that of the custodian parent. If the paying parent becomes unemployed, his maintenance obligations does nott come to an end. He may have other means. If he has a flashy car, he needs to downgrade and use some of that money for maintenance.

Final child maintenance amount:

The Paying parent would pay two thirds of the child’s expenses which equates to R 666 – 00 per month. And the custodian parent would thus cover the balance of R 334 – 00 per month. The R 666 – 00 would be less should he pay any of the minor child’s expenses directly. For example, medical aid or school fees.

The challenge regarding child maintenance amounts

The golden rule in all matters regarding children is that their best interest be upheld. However, in child maintenance matters it is not as easy as saying that the child needs to have the best of clothes, education, and food available. By taking this view, it would be as saying that during the parents’ marriage, or while the parents lived together, the child went to the best school in the area, wore the best of clothes and ate the best of food. This is so, notwithstanding the parents earning a far below average income. Such a legal approach would be nonsensical. Another challenge is when the paying parent is self-employed or unemployed. In the case of self-employed parents, their income varies. However, what we look at is the average they earn each month. For an unemployed parent, as stated, we look at their means.

Factors the Court considers in Child Maintenance Matters

Each child maintenance case is determined on its own merits by weighing various factors. There are certain overlapping factors. The factors to consider are:
  • The reasonable needs of the minor child;
  • The reasonable expenses of the parents;
  • The standard of living the child was accustomed to while the parties were married or living together (if applicable);
  • The earning capacity of the parents; and
  • The assets of the parents.
Therefore, it does not mean every 5-year-old child will require a child maintenance contribution of R 500 00 (five hundred rands). A contribution of R 500 – 00 for a specific 5-year-old child might be reasonable or even too high, depending on the circumstances. Let me provide you with two scenarios: Purchase a Consultation with us from our Online Shop, by clicking here.

Scenario A – Child Maintenance

A 5-year-old child’s parents each earns R 500 – 00 per month. They were bringing up the child perfectly under the circumstances with their modest standard of living which is the norm in the area they live in. Furthermore, this is the same standard the parents were accustomed to when they were raised by their parents. If they are to estimate the costs of the child, it would be about R 200 – 00 per month which goes to food, shelter, clothes etc. Should the parents separate or divorce, and, let’s say in this case, the mother claims maintenance from the father for child support, she would not have a case for more than R 150 – 00 per month. You might wonder why I don’t say R 100 – 00 per month seeing that the parents earned the same salary? The mother in this scenario had to find alternative accommodation, and therefore the child would require more maintenance (it could even be less).

Scenario B – Child Maintenance

Let’s say the parents of a 5-year-old child each earns R 50 000 – 00 per month. The child has an au pair, own room, policies in his or her favour, expensive clothes, medical aid, expensive creams, attends ballet and violin classes etc. The monthly costs of this child are about R 25 000 – 00 per month. Should the parents separate, a claim for maintenance could easily be in the region of R 15 000 – 00. R 14 850 – 00 more than the 5-year-old child in the previous scenario above. The amount to pay therefore all depends on the facts, circumstances etc. To make things more complicated, if the mother in this scenario have assets worth millions and the father only owns a car of R 100 000 – 00, his contribution could be far less than R 15 000 – 00, even if they have the same monthly salary. It is even possible that his contribution could be R 150 – 00 (and not R 15 000 – 00) as in the case of scenario A above. All these factors have to be discussed with your maintenance lawyer or advocate. I hope this gave you a feel for how child support or child maintenance is calculated. Therefore, in answering the questions posed above, i.e. How much child support should you claim for your child, and how much child maintenance should you pay; the answer is, it depends on the facts.

Other maintenance calculation views

You or your attorney or advocate might have one view on what the amount should be, however the other parent or the maintenance court might have a totally different view. I therefore strongly advise that you first consult with a maintenance lawyer or advocate, or the maintenance court before submitting your amount to the court. In complicated cases, an advocate may be approached by your attorney for an opinion. Sharing is Caring This and other articles and posts found on this website are written by Adv. Muhammad Abduroaf to assist people with various family law related issues they may have. If you find any of our articles and posts interesting, or possibly useful to others, please link and share it on Social media.advice-child-maintenance-child-custody-divorce Should you require any other legal services and advice, not related to family law, visit Private Legal or Business SA.
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Relocation with my minor child to the United States of America, New York (Consent and Refusal) – Advocate Muhammad Abduroaf

The world is becoming a much smaller place, and technology plays a huge role. People are moving across the world for employment, love and happiness, something that was not the norm a few decades ago. There is no reason why you should remain in South Africa if you can find a better life for yourself and your family overseas. Moving overseas may provide you with the quality of life you want or the possibility of experiencing things you always wanted.

Relocation of your minor child to New York, the United States of America

If you are single and do not have any minor children, then moving around the world would not be too complicated. All you need to do is ensure that you have the necessary travel documentation and travel ticket (and spending money), and off you go. However, if you want to travel with your minor child or relocate to another country, things may not be that simple. Firstly, if there is another parent, and he or she has parental responsibilities and rights, then his or her consent is required. For example, let us say you live in Cape Town or Johannesburg, and you want to relocate to Miami or New York, the United States of America, you would require the other parent’s consent to leave South Africa with your minor child. This can cause challenges, especially if the staying parent does not agree to the relocation.

What about Passport Consent to travel or relocate to New York, the United States of America?

The same applies when it comes to your minor child applying for a South African passport to relocate to the United States of America, or any country. Both parents who have parental responsibilities and rights of guardianship will have to consent to the minor child’s passport application. In this regard, both parents have to be at the Department of Home Affairs when making the Application with the minor child. This can be challenging if you have a disinterested parent who does not want to co-operate with the passport application.

What are the steps to follow when I want to relocate to New York, the United States of America with my minor child?

To simplify the process for relocation, the first step would be to receive the other parent’s consent in principle for the relocation and that he or she will co-operate in this regard. Once that has been resolved, the parent relocating would need to make the appointment for the minor child’s passport application as well as the application for the relevant VISA. Each country has different requirements; however, seeing that it is a relocation, you need to apply for the correct VISA. For that, you need the Passport. Once the visa and travel arrangements have been finalised, the parent remaining behind will sign a parental consent letter for the international travel. That letter can be found on the Department of Home Affairs website. Basically, the parent remaining behind would state that he or she gives consent for the minor child to leave the Republic of South Africa.

What can I do if the other parent does not want to consent to the minor child’s relocation to the United States of America?

If the parent remaining in South Africa does not want to consent to the minor child’s passport application and/or his or her relocation to New York, the United States of America, then you would need to approach the Court. The Court, as upper guardian of the minor child, may order that the parent’s consent for the passport application and relocation be dispensed with. What this entails is submitting Court documents explaining why you want to relocate to New York, the United States of America. The other parent would also have an opportunity to give reasons why he or she objects. At the end of the process, the Court would determine what is in the minor child’s best interests. If it is in the minor child’s best interests to relocate, the Court would make it possible despite the issue of consent.

What is the first step I should take if the other parent does not want to consent to the minor child’s passport application and/or relocation to New York, the United States of America?

If the other parent does not want to consent to the passport application and/or the relocation of the minor child to New York, the United States of America – in that case, we suggest you approach an attorney or advocate (trust account) to assist you with the legal process. He or she would then contact the other parent explaining the reasons for the relocation and request the necessary consent. If the parent remaining in South Africa does still not agree to the passport application and/or to the relocation to New York, the United States of America, then the attorney or advocate will proceed to take the matter to court. The legal route can be expensive. However, it is necessarily to make the relocation of the minor child possible.

Posted on by Telelaw

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