Frequently Asked QuestionsWhy a Father's Rights Law Center?Attorney Peter Mueller has been practicing law for 35 years. He was licensed in 1972 Illinois and in 1974 in California. His background as a trial lawyer allows him to apply his trial lawyer skills to provide a service to fathers facing divorce. He has also served as Professor at Corporate Law at Loyola in Chicago and served as Assistant Dean of the Business School. In 1977, Mr. Mueller began practicing in the domestic field and founded the FRLC in 1984. He founded the center for several reasons. First, he recognized a need for fathers and men in the divorce system to assist them with custody, visitation and support. His own relationship with his family gave him greater sensitivity for the issues confronting fathers in divorce. As the father of four young children, he confronted the divorce system first hand. From the struggles and mistakes made during those crucial years, he developed the concept that fathers should not have to go through what he went through to obtain reasonable contact with my children. That was the time that the initial rumblings in the psychiatric world began involving parental alienation issues. They were not recognized fully until the late '80s when Dr. Richard Gardner published "The Parental Alienation Syndrome." Dr. Gardner appeared and testified for Mr. Mueller as an expert witness in 1996 in one of the landmark cases for FRLC. The rapport that was developed with Dr. Gardner allowed Mr. Mueller to develop advances and techniques in issues involving custody. Since becoming a certified family law specialist 10 years ago, Mr. Mueller has represented over 1,000 fathers and has developed a rapport with courts and colleagues. What is divorce going to cost me? Can I afford it?Here at the Father's Rights Law Center, we work on a retainer basis. We started a modest means program 5 years ago because we want to make our services affordable. We maintain retainers that are affordable for clients who are of modest means as well as to provide a service for professionals. Modest Means – Retainers start at $2,750. Our hourly fee starts at $250. Professionals – Retainers start at $3,000. Our hourly fee starts at $350. It our experience, a typical divorce in California can cost from $2,750 - $10,000 spread over a period of approximately 1.5 years. Divorces of greater complexity can cost more. What should I know about divorce?There is help and hope where there is a plan. We strive to develop a strategy depending on the affordability of the plan as well as one that is tailored to the needs of each case. In California, divorce is 'no fault,' meaning that sins during the marriage are not counted against either party. Divorce is viewed by the courts as starting fresh, and the children are the most important aspect of that fresh start. Behaviors of the past except for domestic violence are generally irrelevant in the custody & divorce proceedings. What should I know about my children?California courts consider children their highest priority. They are protected through the court proceedings and are not exposed to the litigation or other aspects of the process. Mediation is required for all custody & visitation matters, and mediators are available at no cost from the court. At the FRLC, our philosophy is to develop parenting partnership rather than a prisoner of war mentality when it comes to issues involving children. Our motto is to develop a foundation for the future on all custody and visitation plans. Frequently, the best plans that evolve are the plans that are individually developed by the parents rather than by the court system. Our goal is to develop an interim plan with court orders; the interim could be anywhere from two weeks to a year before the parenting partners start developing a rapport and a need to share as each of them goes on with their new lives. We at FRLC have also been successful at various strategies including psychological evaluations in cases of parental alienation. What should I know about support?Support is known as alimony and includes both spousal support and child support. In California, as in most states, we have a guideline that is an arithmetic formula that takes into consideration time share, after tax income, and ability of a nonworking spouse to work where that nonworking spouse refuses to work. We have a system at the FRLC of obtaining court orders for a vocational assessment for nonworking spouses/mothers who tend to want to rely on child support and spousal support for too long. We recommend enhancing the time share because it is a part of the arithmetic formula for support. We also try to enhance the ability of the nonworking spouse to work full time. When is my case going to be over?Once the divorce is underway, the initial hearings have passed, and the parties understand that it divorce is not about which party has the better lawyer but how soon can each of the lawyers work together to bring the matters to a conclusion, the divorce will be underway. We try very hard to bring each case to a conclusion through a mediated settlement that can either be with or without court assistance. Typically we have opportunities to have four way meetings with the two attorneys and two parties in an effort to come to partial or complete resolution in settlement of contested issues. Failing that, the court provides for a formal settlement conference, where a judge and the parties try to resolve the case. In those 5-10% of the cases where there is no settlement of all issues, we can either go through a short or long trial. A short trial can be over within 3 hours, whereas a trial on more complex issues can go on a week or longer. You can anticipate your divorce will be complete in one year, or a little bit longer, in the average cases. We have been able to resolve some uncontested cases in as quickly as 30 days. What if I am in the military?Here in San Diego, we have represented military clients and their families for the past 30 years. Family lawyer Peter Mueller graduated from the Federal Maritime Academy graduate with honors and is a retired member of the United States Navy (formerly an officer). He is especially capable of working with clients with a military background. The FRLC has been able to coordinate parenting plans for military clients while they are on deployment in a manner that has facilitated contact with the children while at the same time taking into consideration that the father or mother in the military is going to be serving their country. We help minimize support during deployment and take parenting time into consideration. We are familiar with the Federal Uniform Services Former Spouse Protection Act with regard to retirement issues and the 10 year rule as it impacts retirees and making payments to former spouse with regard to pension. We are especially staffed here at FRLC with our paralegal Don Park, a retired naval enlisted member of the United States Navy. Don served in the U.S. Navy for 25 years and has worked for the FRLC for over 3 years. He has knowledge to assist each father with regard to special problems and to counsel them as issues and problems arise. Where should I call for an appointment?Our San Diego headquarters is now in San Marcos, California. We also have the ability to meet with clients in Rancho Bernardo, Del Mar Heights, and Mission Valley, and Chula Vista. Typically the phone calls are made to our toll free number, 1-800-4-LAW-HELP. The initial consultation is without charge, during which we will be able to handle your questions. |
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