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- Beethoven

Minor Children - Parental Rights and Responsibilities

We counsel parents through the often harrowing and emotionally exhausting process of planning how, after divorce, they will raise their children from separate homes. This includes parenting plans, parental rights and responsibility agreements, settlement agreements and/or litigation.

We bring to the practice of family law, intense sensitivity to issues between divorcing parents with regards to their children and take into account the Children’s Act 38 of 2005, the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act 108 of 1996, and other applicable legislation, as well as the latest developments in law.

We navigate parties through the process of dealing with the Family Advocate’s offices and processes.

We consider the entire family dynamic, as well as the best interest of the children. This may include, in certain circumstances, applying for rights and responsibilities, and/or guardianship to be granted to stepfathers, stepmothers, grandparents, or other third parties.

We represent fathers, same sex fathers, mothers and same sex mothers in disputes involving children and parental rights and responsibilities including, care, guardianship, permanent residence, contact and the relocation of children.

Parental alienation, gate keeping and or malicious motherhood syndrome can have and immense impact in the life of the specific parent and child / children. Unfortunately, this does exist and are real and painful. We represent fathers and in the event of the roles being reversed, mothers, in dealing with this very real but very difficult part of law.

We discourage battles over children's issues in court. We believe that parents working cooperatively can almost always arrive at a better resolution for their children, than a judge who does not know the family, but when that cooperative resolution is not possible, we approach litigation surrounding children exactly as we do the litigation of other issues – with thorough preparation, all the necessary appointed experts, and the most realistic assessment of likely outcomes.

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