Services
Expert Witness, Child Custody Evaluations
& More
Expert Witness
Expert Witness of the Month in Attorney at Law magazine, Dallas edition
Ms Bradshaw Schmidt is available to engage with attorneys as an expert consultant to assist in the preparation of their cases involving minor children. Ms Bradshaw Schmidt is specifically available to provide expert testimony regarding child-related issues in the field of family law such as: relocation matters, resist/refuse dynamics, issues related to children under three, ethical requirements of counselors and evaluators in working with high conflict families, etc.
Strategic Legal Support
Ms. Bradshaw Schmidt also is available to assist with preparing a client for court or for an evaluation, and she is available to assist the attorneys of record as well with litigation support in developing potential parenting plan options on difficult cases to assist with settlement discussions, or successful outcomes at trial. Ms. Bradshaw Schmidt has also had the pleasure of working with attorneys and their clients in determining their best course of action to settle their case while avoiding costly litigation, and she has been engaged to coach clients behind the scenes to assist them in transitioning into their lives as single parents and co-parents.
Work Product Reviews
Ms. Bradshaw Schmidt has conducted work product reviews related to the child custody evaluations and work of other professionals in the field of contested child custody litigation to ensure their compliance with the Texas Family Code, and she enjoys the opportunity to assist in ensuring that the work done by the few professionals in this field is of the quality and integrity necessary to benefit the children before the court.
Expert Witness
Expert Witness of the Month in Attorney at Law magazine, Dallas edition
Ms Bradshaw Schmidt is available to engage with attorneys as an expert consultant to assist in the preparation of their cases involving minor children. Ms Bradshaw Schmidt is specifically available to provide expert testimony regarding child-related issues in the field of family law such as: relocation matters, resist/refuse dynamics, issues related to children under three, ethical requirements of counselors and evaluators in working with high conflict families, etc.
Strategic Legal Support
Ms. Bradshaw Schmidt also is available to assist with preparing a client for court or for an evaluation, and she is available to assist the attorneys of record as well with litigation support in developing potential parenting plan options on difficult cases to assist with settlement discussions, or successful outcomes at trial. Ms. Bradshaw Schmidt has also had the pleasure of working with attorneys and their clients in determining their best course of action to settle their case while avoiding costly litigation, and she has been engaged to coach clients behind the scenes to assist them in transitioning into their lives as single parents and co-parents.
Work Product Reviews
Ms. Bradshaw Schmidt has conducted work product reviews related to the child custody evaluations and work of other professionals in the field of contested child custody litigation to ensure their compliance with the Texas Family Code, and she enjoys the opportunity to assist in ensuring that the work done by the few professionals in this field is of the quality and integrity necessary to benefit the children before the court.
CHILD CUSTODY EVALUATIONS
Ms. Bradshaw Schmidt conducts child custody evaluations throughout the state of Texas. These evaluations are only done with a signed court-order appointing her to conduct an evaluation, and Ms. Bradshaw Schmidt follows the guidelines outlined in the Texas Family Code, Section 107.101, Subchapter D, related to Child Custody Evaluations.
PURPOSE OF AN EVALUATION
Child custody evaluations are conducted to assist the court in determining the best parenting plan for children in the midst of contested litigation within family law cases, and these evaluations are forensic in nature. In turn, these evaluations are not therapeutic, and any and all information received by the evaluator is not confidential. It is important to note that the assessment of families is a difficult process for the parents and the children who must undergo an evaluation, and the evaluation process can be lengthy and quite taxing on the parties involved.
Goal of an Evaluation
At the conclusion of the evaluation, one, if not both parties, can be disappointed in the assessment and/or the final recommendation since it can often be hard to examine one’s own behavior and areas in need of improvement. However, Ms. Bradshaw Schmidt consistently works to ensure that each of her child custody evaluations is thorough and that she has reviewed any and all information that either party has requested for her to review within the parameters of her policies and procedures. Ms. Bradshaw Schmidt’s ultimate goal is to assist parents in reestablishing their lives and their home environments after a difficult divorce; while also assisting the court in creating a final parenting plan for the children in question when parents are unable to resolve their own dispute.
Adoption Evaluations
Ms. Bradshaw Schmidt is available to evaluate families for intrastate adoption evaluations. An adoption evaluation is normally a very brief evaluation of a family requesting the adoption of a child who is either related or unrelated. These evaluations take less than a day to interview, and their reports can normally be completed fairly quickly.
These evaluations are also often quite enjoyable since these evaluations serve as a safety net to ensure that children are placed permanently in safe, child-friendly homes where they can flourish.
