Book Description
A concise guide to the legal rights of single parents, including the expansion of "father's rights" and single-parent adoption.

The Legal Almanac series serves to educate the general public on a variety of legal issues pertinent to everyday life and to keep readers informed of their rights and remedies under the law. Each volume in the series presents an explanation of a specific legal issue in simple, clearly written text,
making the Almanac a concise and perfect desktop reference tool. All volumes provide state-by-state coverage. Selected state statutes are included, as are important case law and legislation, charts and tables for comparison. ... Read more

Book Description
In this very informative book, Dr. Robert C. Prall, the renowned child psychiatrist, presents the rights that children should have when their parents separate or divorce. Dr. Prall discusses the reasons for each right. And he tells ways that parents can prevent and solve many of the problems children have during these traumatic experiences.

This is a very clear, quick-to-read, easy-to-follow book that offers many valuable insights and helpful suggestions. ... Read more

Book Description
Children's rights are derived from state and federal laws, as well as the basic rights set forth in the United States Constitution. This Almanac provides an overview of the various laws society has enacted to protect, educate and discipline children. It sets forth the role of the juvenile
justice system and the safeguards which have been devised to ensure that the children who enter the system are afforded their constitutional rights. ... Read more

Book Description
How can international human rights law be used to help protect children at risk for sexual abuse? Should the definition of sexual abuse be allowed to differ among cultures? Should a country intervene in the internal workings of another with whom they disagree about approaches to the issue? What do notions of rights and law mean, and how could they be developed without placing more children at risk for abuse?

This book begins the process of addressing these and other issues as it considers how human rights law can help detail what could and should be done to protect children from sexual maltreatment. Roger Levesque places particular emphasis on the ways in which abusive activities in different countries and societies are linked with one another and the way diverse societal views of children place them at risk. Throughout, Levesque brings together several intersecting debates in social science and law, as he pragmatically considers human rights law as a tool for combatting child sexual maltreatment. ... Read more

Book Description
This book examines three core foci of interest of both practitioners as well as academics in the area of the protection of human rights of children. The first two are the international legal documents of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR). The third focal point consists of an investigation into a specific area of jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights regarding the protection of human rights of children: the phenomenon of the corporal punishment and abuse of children in the UK. The analysis concludes that both the CRC and the ECHR are characterised by various flaws and drawbacks in relation to the protection of children's human rights. The narrow textual scope of the ECHR and the significant weaknesses of the CRC regarding its implementation mechanism are two prominent examples. The paper suggests that in Europe, the trend of maximising the potential of the ECHR by combining the widely accepted, detailed standards on children's rights set out in the UN Convention with the highly successful system of individual petition and implementation should be strengthened further. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description
This volume constitutes a commentary on Article 31 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. It is part of the series, A Commentary on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which provides an article by article analysis of all substantive, organizational and procedural provisions of the CRC and its two Optional Protocols. For every article, a comparison with related human rights provisions is made, followed by an in-depth exploration of the nature and scope of State obligations deriving from that article. The series constitutes an essential tool for actors in the field of children's rights, including academics, students, judges, grassroots workers, governmental, non- governmental and international officers. The series is sponsored by the Belgian Federal Science Policy Office. ... Read more

Book Description
Termination of parental rights (TPR) is not only a matter of the family any more. Now, we face termination of parental rights as one of social institution on what should be guided for child rearing practice and why we should make a decision to intervene the State into the family. This study seeks to provide empirical evidence that examine why and to what extent children who have been exposed to child maltreatment and placed in foster care experience TPR and permanency outcome of adoption. The discussion of this study includes the deliberate discussion on the parentchild relationship and the primary principles of the State intervention into the family in cases of child abuse and neglect with a review on the legal standards/ grounds for the involuntary TPR for foster children according to the changes of child welfare policy goals in the American society. Since the ASFA of 1997 was enacted, in particular, it has been widely accepted that TPR proceedings for foster children who cannot be reunified with their natural parents should be pursued. Thus, it can be argued that the involuntary TPR becomes an alternative to family preservation/reunification and an essential mechanism to achieve the permanency outcome for children in foster care. This book is addressed to social workers and policy makers in the child welfare field as well as practitioners in family law. It is also directed towards researchers in social practice and policy, child welfare and family services. ... Read more

Book Description
Provoked by the implementation of the Human Rights Act 1998, interest in the concept of children's rights has grown significantly since the first edition of this work was published. Now in its second edition, Children's Rights and the Developing Law explores the way developing law and policy in England and Wales are simultaneously promoting and undermining the rights of children. It reflects on the extent to which these developments take account of children's interests, using a range of current research on children's needs as a template against which to assess their value. A critical approach is maintained throughout the work, particularly when assessing the extent to which the concept of children's rights is being developed by the domestic courts and the degree to which the UK is complying with its obligations to implement the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Wide reaching in its scope, the work starts with the theoretical perspectives of the concept of children's rights and the extent to which international activity in the field of human rights can be utilised to inform domestic law. ... Read more

Amazon.com
Jeffery Leving has spent more than a decade in the trenches of domestic law. From that perspective, he gives men embroiled in custody disputes a powerful and impassioned voice in Fathers Rights. Arguing that men are disenfranchised and stigmatized by a biased legal system, Leving promises help through such difficulties as finding empathetic attorneys, avoiding unhealthy custody arrangements, protecting the child-parent relationship, and remaining financially solvent. Included is advice on how to demonstrate parental competence when falsely accused of abuse.

Writing with passion for the plight of an under-represented population in the domestic drama, Fathers' Rights offers sound, step-by-step council and a road map through the complex terrain of family law. "Too often a dangerous free-fall ensues," Leving writes, speaking of divorce's aftermath. "At every step in the divorce process, the legal system deepens marital wounds, serving up revenge and recrimination much more often than it dispenses compassion and justice." It is Leving's mission to right the wrongs caused by divorce court.Book Description
Millions of fathers are currently in the fight of their lives: the fight for custody of their children. Many wonder if they will ever again be an important part of their children's lives. With this landmark book, renowned men's rights attorney Jeffery Leving leads fathers through every twist and turn of the legal system, offering meaningful advice to save years of anguish and possibly thousands of dollars.

This authoritative and accessible book covers every aspect of the custody process, including protecting the parent/child relationship as a breakup occurs; determining when to settle and when to litigate; techniques for dealing effectively with psychologists, social workers, and other domestic relations expert; and much more.

Illustrated with vivid real-life examples, Jeffery Leving and Kenneth Dachman's practical guide is essential reading for the scores of American Fathers routinely excluded from their children's lives by a biased legal system in which avarice and recrimination too often overwhelm compassion and justice. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (27)

Read FAMILY COURT HELL TOO!
'Fathers rights' is a 'must read' along with the other book available on Amazon called FAMILY COURT HELL. Family Court Hell is the story of the father who launched the Fathers 4 Justice campaign that not only spread around the world, but helped him resolve his own child access case too. Both books compliment each other-check it out!

A Start
Mr. Leving has done a lot of good for fathers' rights in Illinois, and this is a workmanlike treatment of the strategy you should adopt if in court over custody.

But by the time you read this (or a book like this), often it is already too late to set in motion anything that will let you see your children.

If I had a son, I would give him this book in college, and make sure he knew his rights from the get go.Then I would advise him to hold off on marriage or cohabitation as long as possible.

Better to defer marriage and fatherhood and protect your assets than to marry too early, entering the 50% club of potential divorce.All single men should read and heed - unless you want to subsidize some woman's life for eighteen years or more.If you do not feel a compelling need to to marry, feel free to avoid doing so.

After all, having a vagina almost automatically entitles you to custody in the event of a divorce, a decision frequently made in Family Court, where there is no evidentiary due process.In other words, you have more legal rights in criminal court as a defendant than you do in Family Court as a petitioner or respondent.Marriage and fatherhood are dicey propositions these days.

A inprisoned parents rights
I have not read this book, but am looking for other self help books on a similar subject.I am a women , and have a child from a previous marriage.This father happens to be in prison for rape and bodily harm on a stranger.He has not seen our child since our son was 4 months old, my son is now 7 years old.

I remarried 2 years ago to wonderful man, we have been living together for a total of 5 years and my son knows him as his only father figure, infact we never incouraged my son to call my husband dad, but one day he just started to on his own.Children know who care for them, shelter them, love them ,and support them.You dont have to be a biological father or mother to do that!

My problem is this violent criminal still has rights to a child he dosn't even know or love , and when he does get out of prison who knows what kind of revenge he will take on me for not allowing visitation.Yes I know I chose to marry him and have a child , but If I knew what he was capable of I assure you I wouldn't have even given him the time of day, but as many of us know we never see the full person until we have lived with them for long enough.This man was also violent, and threatened harm upon me and my infant son.An all around abusive dude, there isnt enough time to even tell even a fraction of the stuff he put us through .

As a parent I should have a right to protect my son from any harmful person even his own biological father. attorney fees to have parental rights revoked so my husband can adopt can cost easily $15,000 in california. I dont have that type of money, and even if I do go through with it only 25 percent of these cases win.

I know there are great fathers out there who deserve to see there children.As a woman I couldn't imagine being so evil and try to takea great fathers rights away without a reason. With my sons biological father you can see that my son could be in danger if he ever had rights to him, but where are my rights to protect him, and where are my sons rights to be safe from potiential harm?

As for the men out there who are in my situation.Try not to be bitter towards women , just like men I assure you there are good ones out there!This isnt a war against the opposite sex, its a war against parents who are dangerous to our childrens welfare, and those people exists on both sides, and it is just as hard for women as it is for men trust me.

Fathers and Men need to WAKE UP NOW
I felt compelled to write about this book after reading one of the reviews on it apparently written by a female.

The review yearned for a REAL fathers advocate book written by someone who has been there and lived through the HELL that is divorce, custody and a compete loss of everything that resembled "my life" - after I caught my wife cheating on me.

I read this book during the first stages of my divorce and did not find it overly helpful. BUT, it was the only book that I found that spoke of what was about to happen.

I have been writing columns and attending divorce/mens support groups for two years now and am VERY despondent about what I am seeing.

Fathers rights is the "civil rights" story of this decade and it needs to be SEEN and SPOKEN about in the media.

I have been on a personal crusade to get groups organized in DENVER and to get any media outlet to focus on men's rights but I get NOTHING back - I have emailed Dr Phil, 20/20, every possible media outlet and all I get back is more stories on "deadbeat dads" and Women and Domestic violence.

Bad news GUYS:

We know the courts do not care -
We know the laws are laughably biased -
We know the media would rather propagate more female friendly stories -

But most guys do not ask WHY THIS IS.

I see this as Men not taking action. Men avoid support groups because we are supposed to "suck it up".

Men - WAKE UP - Get active.

If I cannot get this story on 20/20 or Dr Phil, it is because MEN are NOT the audience.

DO men vote, do men get involved in local politics, do men go to therapy to Resolve "their" issues. And these issues could include "how to deal with the powerlessness you feel in the system".

I am working to put together articles I have written about MY experience -
And it was/is horrible:

Wife cheats - gets caught - blames me for her behavior. Badgers the police with false charges against me - of which, I have to expend money to fight her.

My son (8) has cancer. My wife continued to change appointment times and cancel times.

AND GUESS WHAT GUYS:

When you get a Child Advocate or Child Family Investigator:

The game is:

As a MEN, you can never get angry.

If the ex plays with parenting time.

You cannot get angry.

If the ex uniformly ignores Permanent Orders.

You cannot get angry.

If the MAN gets angry the courts will CRUCIFY YOU.

I have documented my experiences and have read most every book (recommend Divorce Poison!!!!!) and plan to get this issue NATIONAL Attention.

I am not optimistic at the moment.

Finally, men, remember, no matter what transpires - no matter the complete injustice of the courts, lawyers, your ex's horrible wrath -

Remember that everything is about the kids. One mistake by you, as the male and father, and the system will take your kids away from you.

Make sure EVERY action is done with this in mind.

regards

Mike

Some good thoughts but overoptimistic
The author of this book certainly does not say anything that is untrue, even given the huge disparity of laws in the 50 states. However, on the front cover, among other things, he says you will learn how to:
*Find an effective and empathetic attorney
*Avoid unfavorable custody arrangements
*Overcome the "tender years" bias
*Remain financially solvent
To be quite honest, being the second wife of a man who has been taken to the cleaners repeatedly by a devious first wife who has no moral compass, all I can say is this book must contain magical powers, because that is the only way any of these things are going to happen.

First off, as far as finding an effective attorney, forget about it. The author's advice is pollyanna-ish at best. Attorneys are foremost interested in making money, and family law only pays off in volume. Therefore your case will get the obligatory two hour cram session from your attorney just prior to court. Plan on doing any real investigation yourself, and realize you are going to probably have to give your attorney a script of questions to read in court because these people are not "out of the box" thinkers.

As far as avoiding unfavorable custody arrangements and overcoming the tender years bias, remember that judges are generally from the most conservative ranks of lawyers, and lawyers are from the most conservative ranks of society. I'm not talking about "conservative" in political terms. I'm talking about conservative in terms of conserving and never questioning the status quo, and the status quo is father = cash machine, mother = protector of civilization. Nothing but divine intervention is going to overcome that. Daniel Broderick overcame it, but then look what happened to him. The author of this book misleads you into believing that the system is remotely fair and unbiased, probably because he has been part of the system and cannot see it for what it is.

As far as remaining financially solvent, the author completely overlooks the most important factor of all - which state you live in. Some states, such as Texas and New York, have absolute limits of 25% of your pre-tax income put on child support. As much as the courts and the mother of your children would love to pick your pockets for more money, this is all they are going to get. However, if you are unfortunate enough to live in the state of Virginia, there is no limit on alimony or child support and you can wind up with negative income flow, which happened in the case of my husband's divorce and is happening now in the case of an acquaintance and his divorce. In fact, the financial ruin of a Virginia divorce is the reason Aldrich Ames gave for becoming the worst spy in American history.

In summary, although I may seem harshly critical, this book is moderately helpful as to absolute facts and a mentality you must take if you are on the road to litigation. However, I subtract two stars because I think it gives false hope to single fathers and their probable future in terms of staying close to their children and not winding up in debtor's prison if the mother is determined to fight. I've been up close and personal with this ongoing problem in my husband's life for the past 14 years, so I think I know what I'm talking about. ... Read more

Book Description
This book provides a comprehensive and up-to-date look at child labor, the exploitative relationship of the economy to the children of the poor and the marginalized in India, and on child rights as a key issues in the development debate internationally. ... Read more

Product Description
This volume constitutes a commentary on Article 27 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. ... Read more