Domestic violence is a crime – it doesn’t just impact the victim but can have a long-lasting effect on the people you love, including their friends, family members, and colleagues.

Here are eight things you probably didn’t know about domestic violence:

1. Domestic violence (also referred to as intimate partner abuse, spousal abuse, dating violence, domestic abuse, and intimate partner violence) is a form of mistreatment that takes place in a homosexual or heterosexual romantic relationship between adolescents or adults.
2. Establishing and maintaining the victim’s safety is how domestic abuse is treated, offering relevant legal consequences o the batterer, addressing the problems of the abuser (especially if one of the problems includes substance abuse), and the emotional impact on the victim.
3. Unfortunately, healthcare professionals only screen for intimate partner abuse in about 1/5^thof the patients seen. The most effective way to assess domestic violence is to ask open-ended questions that call for more than a one-word answer and don’t directly ask about domestic abuse.
4. Coworkers, family members, and friends can look for warning signs if they think their loved one is the domestic abuse victim. These signs may include stress-related physical symptoms, isolation from others, blaming themselves for the problems in the relationship, passive-aggressive behavior, fear of conflicts, a change in their personality, low self-esteem, various injuries the victim wants to explain and frequent absences from school or work.
5. Warning signs for people to consider if they suspect they’re the victim of domestic violence include feeling assaulted, demeaned, or unreasonably controlled by their partner.
6. While domestic abuse strikes partners of all sexual orientations, social-economic status, religions, and races, risk factors for both men or women becoming abusers or victims include substance abuse, attitudes of male domination, having a low sense of self-worth, witnessing family violence as a child, lack of high school education, and poverty.
7. Intimate partner abuse continues to be endorsed in every society through the lack of legal protections for bisexual, gay, lesbian, and transgender (LGBT) victims and legal sanctioning of the subjugation of women.
8. Since intimate partner abuse affects more than 800,000 men and 2 million women, it’s a major public health problem. Plus, this abuse results in injury/death of victims, homelessness, lost work productivity, and billions of dollars in healthcare costs.

The Lincoln Law Group’s family lawyer in Baltimore offers experienced support and guidance

The Lincoln Law Group‘s divorce lawyer in Baltimore will aggressively advocate for your rights and do so with understanding and compassion.

Reach out to us for more information; we also have some of the best child custody lawyers in Baltimore County!

If you have recently gotten divorced and have children with your partner, you need to decide who will get the children’s custody. Unfortunately, the choice of who will get will complete control is difficult to make between partners who disagree on decisions of their child’s welfare.

Full custody is awarded to one parent, and they’re in charge of their child’s legal and physical matters. So let’s discuss how you can get full custody of your children after your divorce.

Scenarios In Which You Can Get Full Custody of Your Child

The most common scenario in which courts award full custody of the child to one parent is if the other parent cannot properly raise or supervise the child. In addition, if there’s substantial proof that the other parent has abused, neglected, or abandoned the child, then full custody is awarded to the other parent.

Similarly, if you have a more flexible work schedule and you’re more capable of taking care of your child, then you’ll likely be awarded full custody. Likewise, if your child has special needs and you’re more equipped to handle them or if the child has a better bond with you than the other parent, in such cases, you’ll also be awarded full custody.

The courts also judge whether one parent has the ability to help their child attain educational success and have more financial stability in their lives. If a parent can provide a child with a stable home environment, including food, shelter, and attention, then full custody is awarded to that parent.

Lastly, if the other parent has a history of domestic violence, alcohol or substance abuse, other mental disorders, or if you have taken a restraining order against them because they pose a threat to you and your child, then you will be awarded full custody of your child.

If you can prove that the child thrives under your care and you’re their primary caregiver while the other parent has had little involvement in their child’s upbringing, then the courts will provide you with full custody.

Taking Help from a Family Lawyer

Suppose you think your chances of getting full custody are compromised due to certain circumstances. In that case, it’s better to get help from a family lawyer who has experience dealing with child custody cases.

You should ideally seek a lawyer who can represent your case with compassion and who has the legal expertise to help you gain full custody of your child.

To hire the best family attorney for your child custody case, get in touch with The Lincoln Law Group. We practice family law in Baltimore and Silver Spring, and our attorney is a former US military commander who commands undisputed respect at the table. Contact us today to get the guidance and support you need while you navigate your child custody case.

A parenting plan, also known as a child visitation schedule, serves as a calendar for parents with joint custody about how they’ll share responsibility for their children. The plan outlines exactly how the parents will divide physical custody of their children.

In general, the best way to set up a comprehensive visitation schedule is by hiring a child visitation lawyer. The lawyer works with the parents to design a schedule that appeases both parties and resolves any disagreements regarding visitation. Expert lawyers can also help fix visitation agreements that are ambiguous or no longer work for the parents.

Child Visitation Schedule Problems

Some parents prefer to negotiate a child visitation schedule themselves, with the help of a mediator, or ask the court for assistance. When parents create the schedule themselves (either in the presence of a third party or not), they are more involved and can often work out things amicably in this way.

Even with input from both sides, a child visitation agreement that once seemed feasible may not suit the needs of the children or parents in the future. In addition to this, the plan may need more clarity, such as who should take a sick child home from school. When this happens, consulting an experienced child custody lawyer can help.

Making Changes to the Child Visitation Schedule

Child visitation schedules are considered legally binding, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make any changes to them. As children get older, their needs change, and so parents need to be more flexible in order to accommodate their interests and pursuits. As long as both parents agree, these changes are relatively easy to make.

However, things can get a bit more complicated when parents want to make changes to the visitation schedule but are unable to work out a plan that works for both of them. At this point, consulting with a legal expert can help move along negotiations.

Get an Experienced Family Lawyer on Board

Reach out to our expert child custody lawyers to discuss any issues that you may be facing with a joint parenting plan. Whether you need a mediator to move things along smoothly or present your case in court, we can give you sound legal advice along the way.

Call 443-542-5889 to schedule an appointment at our Baltimore or Silver Springs office.

Allocating custody time between co-parents can be quite a challenge. Many of them end up in dispute because parents don’t take time out to coordinate and discuss their plans. If you want to have a peaceful and enjoyable summer break with your children, then follow these three simple tips:

1. Set a Child Custody Schedule

With summer break just around the corner, it’s normal for co-parents to get excited and start making plans with the kids. However, this approach is problematic because chances are, your plans will overlap. Before you do anything, it’s always good to sit down with the other parent (preferably in the presence of a legal counsel or neutral third party) and develop a custody schedule.

Many co-parents prefer custody of the children every alternate summer break as it’s easier to follow, plus it can accommodate traveling plans too. Another option is to divide the summer break every year. Either way, you’ll have to make sure the division is fair, and both parties are clear about the terms, such as which parent is in charge of pick-up and dropping off children.

2. Account for Both Parents’ Schedules and Jobs

Splitting custody is not a cut-and-dried decision. Even if kids are on vacation, many parents are still working. Their job schedules and other commitments must be taken into account so that both the child and co-parent can enjoy their time with each other.

When you’re making a custody plan for the summer break, try to anticipate work obligations and inconveniences that may crop up. Allow for flexibility or maybe exchange a certain time period in the summer for the winter holidays. Remember, if you’re flexible, the other party will be more willing to give you some leeway too.

3. Put It On Paper

It’s always good to have a written document instead of just a verbal agreement. This way, there is no ambiguity about the custody arrangements for the summer. It can prevent a lot of miscommunication and last-minute frustration. Plus, in the event of a dispute, the judge can easily reference the document.

So once you’ve decided on the custody schedule, write down your plans and mention any key details that the co-parent should be aware of. Be sure to share it with the co-parent and get their approval on the final plan.

Get an Experienced Family Lawyer on Board

Co-parenting is no mean feat. It requires constant effort and consideration. Hammering out the details of a co-parenting agreement at the start can help simplify things later.

Reach out to our expert child custody lawyers to discuss any issues that you may be facing with child custody. Whether it’s making a case for sole custody or developing a plan for co-parenting, we can give you sound legal advice along the way.

Call 443-542-5889 to schedule an appointment at our Baltimore or Silver Springs office.

Immigration is a challenging process that puts a lot of pressure and stress on a family. With the state of immigration laws in the USA today, it’s hard to keep the faith. However, to make your family’s immigration application go through as quickly as possible, make sure you follow these tips.

Remember, though, hiring an immigration attorney from the start is always a good idea.

Expect and Prepare for Delays

You need to anticipate and plan for that an immigration process takes time and will always have delays. No matter how flawlessly you fill out the forms and provide documentation, you can’t hurry the bureaucracy along.

Make sure you apply on a timeline that doesn’t require your family to move urgently to the States. In the meantime, settle in and wait until you get more information. Talk to your immigration attorney and plan for the inevitable delays. Beyond that, there’s not much you can do.

Make Sure You Choose the Right Visa Option

There is a range of immigration options available to you, depending on your immigration status, job status, and family details. For example, if you’re a naturalized citizen and you want your spouse and kids with you, you can apply for a family-based green card rather than trying to go through a work permit visa or an asylum application.

Our immigrant lawyer can help you on that front, reviewing your case history as well as your family’s profile to help you reach a workable solution. While you can try to go through this process on your own, having an experienced attorney can help speed it up.

Follow the Regulations to a T

Don’t violate the regulations of your family’s visa or green card. This means ensuring you file documentation wherever necessary, presenting yourself in court if summoned, and most importantly, never breaking the law.

Any hiccup in your application or problem in your profile/ your family’s profile can delay or jeopardize the process.

Have an Experienced Immigration Lawyer Working With You

While you may feel that access to the internet and information in today’s age means you don’t have to hire a lawyer to help you out, you may want to consider it anyway. While the internet gives you information and facts, it can be hard to understand certain parts of the process’s legal implications.

An immigration lawyer is your best bet to understand what requirements to fulfill, what paperwork to file, and ensuring that your family’s application process is as streamlined as possible.

For more information on immigration’s legalities or schedule an appointment with our immigration lawyer in Baltimore, Silver Spring, Towson, and D.C., call us at 443-542-5889.

At The Lincoln Law Group, we’re committed to serving you as best as possible with our team of immigration lawyers, tax attorneys, family law attorneys, personal injury lawyers, and criminal defense attorneys in Maryland and Washington D.C.

Filing for custody can mean a highly complex litigation process that can drain you emotionally and physically. However, our family law attorney in Maryland is more than up for the task.

Read on to make sure you know what to expect with a custody battle in Maryland.

What Custody Law in Maryland Says

In general, Maryland law presumes that both biological parents have equal rights to be natural custodians of their kids. This means that the legislation does not favor the mother over the father or vice versa. What this means is that a gender-based argument will not work for you in the state.

Grandparents can petition for custody, as can other types of parties. However, the law favors the biological parents and, in a case where a birth parent is willing and able to take custody, the chances aren’t too great.

Why Jurisdiction Matters

If you’re petitioning for full custody of your kids in Maryland, one aspect you must remember is that of jurisdiction. Whether or not the circuit courts in Maryland have the authority to take and hear your case is a matter of jurisdiction.

You may file a custody case in Maryland if one or more of the following conditions are met:

• Maryland is the child’s home state, i.e., they live and study in the state, and the parent who is filing also has contact with Maryland. i.e., they live, work, pay taxes, and vote in the state.
• The child is not in Maryland, but it was the kid’s home states up to 6 months ago, and the parent who is filing lives in the state.
• The child and one parent have contact or have had contact in Maryland. This means they’ve lived, worked, and studied here with records to show this.
• The kid in question is present in Maryland and was in an emergency situation requiring protection such as abuse or neglect.

Factors the Judge Considers

The judge may consider a range of factors to come to a conclusion in a custody battle. This includes an evaluation of the primary caregiver. The judge will try to discover who is most responsive to calls from school or who is around more for the child. The physical and psychological fitness of a legal guardian is also investigated.

Furthermore, the demonstrated ability to maintain a good relationship, financial ability, and the character of a parent may be something the judge considers as well. A history of abandonment, neglect, or abuse is significant here.

The age, health, and gender of the child may have a role as well as what the child has to say. For example, if a child testifies to an uncomfortable or debilitating environment at one parent’s home, this can have an effect on the case.

Understanding the Burden of Evidence

What you need to know is that if there’s a disagreement during divorce mediation or you’re filing for full custody after an agreement was already settled upon, you will have to provide the proof. This means you need an experienced and professional child custody lawyer by your side.

Our family lawyer in Silver Spring and Baltimore is here to help you through this. All you have to do is pick up the phone and call us. We also have tax lawyers, immigration lawyers, criminal defense lawyers, and personal injury lawyers to help you with just about all kinds of legal work.