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Divorce | Family | Child Custody

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Divorce and Child Custody

Was a Jury Verdict in a Million Dollar Child Custody Case Tossed Out Because of Politics?

I am a divorce lawyer now, but once I was a young father battling for custody of my two children.  I still can feel the worry and dread such a court case creates.  It seems to the parents that everything important to them in the universe is at stake.  Parents in such situations feel helpless because so much rides on the lawyers and the judge and jury.  No matter who "wins" or loses in a child custody case, both parents should at least leave the courthouse feeling they were treated fairly and that neither side had some sort of inside connection or political advantage.  Lawyers and judges who allow it to appear that political clout is influencing a case are damaging the integrity and stability of the justice system we all work and believe in.  I have spent many hours on this story and I have tried to be as accurate and fair as possible.  I will publish any responses from those involved if they feel their side of the story needs to be told differently than what I have written. Greg ... Read More >

A Step Closer to the Truth about Lucrative Court Appointments – Part One

A very small, select number of attorneys make hundreds of thousands of dollars each year because they are appointed by family and juvenile court judges to be amicus attorneys representing children in private custody cases where the parties can afford to pay very large fees.  The law that requires random appointment of lawyers for most positions (infamously called the "wheel") specifically does not apply to amicus attorneys or discovery masters.  Each judge has the unfettered, and largely secret, ability to reward certain lawyers with these very lucrative appointments. There is no way to really track who gets these appointments, which judges make the appointments or how much the appointees are paid.  Public transparency and accountability has been sorely lacking for years.  Now the Harris County Family District Judges are requiring a new reporting form to bring transparency to this issue.  I applaud the judges, but more is needed. In a case where wealthy parents are fighting over ... Read More >

It is Not Too Late To Buy Judge Franklin (a wedding gift)

There is still time to buy a wedding gift for Judge Alicia Franklin before her April 4 wedding.  Whether you are motivated out of friendship or more practical purposes, Franklin made it very easy for you to buy her a gift on-line.  Until Tuesday, anyone on the planet was able to see her Honeymoon Pixie site and quickly order her gifts for her honeymoon.  Suddenly, after a very critical article was posted on the Republican blog Big Jolly about this unseemly situation, the links disappeared.  Then, the site required a password then within hours the public could again see the couple's gift wish list and buy them gifts.  Try clicking this link to possibly see it for yourself.  A Google search for "Alicia Franklin Doug York" pulls up this gift registry website and several others.  Here is part of what you were able to see until this week about the Franklin - York wedding: Judge Franklin and Mr. York are also registered on a variety of sites for gifts, including The Knot and ... Read More >

Nepotism in the Courtroom?

The vast majority of the stories in The Mongoose newsletter which criticized judges asked (or could have included) these questions: •    What the hell were they thinking? •    Surely, they realized that does not pass the “ethical smell test?” •    Didn’t they think someone would get the word out and this would look really, really bad? These questions certainly must be asked of any judge who allows her fiancé or spouse or his Associate Judge’s spouse to accept or handle cases pending in his or her court. There is no doubt it is improper for an elected  judge’s spouse to be allowed to represent clients in that judge’s court, as that is grounds for disqualification. It is just as improper for a judge’s spouse to sign up cases already pending in his wife’s court and then use his wife’s position as reason to have the case transferred to another court.  That amounts to reverse venue shopping and it creates a market for those who want out of a particular judge’s court to hire ... Read More >

Alicia Franklin Scandal – Count One: Submitting CPS Pay Vouchers That Simply Cannot Be True

This is a reprint from the September 3, 2014 Mongoose newsletter.  This is a long article and my proof consists of many pages of pay vouchers that Alicia Franklin submitted the month before she became a judge.  Click here to read my complete, 19 page article: "Alicia Franklin Submitted CPS Pay Vouchers That Simply Cannot Be True."   This article includes my legal explanation of why knowingly submitting a false CPS pay voucher to the county for payment is a crime. Here is the executive summary of my article: Attorneys, like Alicia Franklin, appointed by judges to represent abused children or their parents in CPS cases, must sign the pay vouchers they submit to the county.  In the family courts, the vouchers say that they are submitted "under penalty of perjury." I looked at four consecutive work days in May 2014 and pulled her charges for those days from dozens of pay vouchers submitted by Franklin.  I then added up the hours she billed for each day.  Here is what I found Franklin ... Read More >

Intro to the Alicia Franklin Scandal

This sad, heartfelt introduction to the Judge Alicia Franklin scandal is reprinted from the September 3, 2014 Mongoose newsletter. We understand our parents more and more as we age ourselves.  "Enthusiasm" was something my father had for everything in his life: his work as a school principal, organizing his garage, caring for the yard, serving his church, taking apart and reassembling a washing machine just for the challenge, and raising four boys.  My Dad loved his work, and for good reason was one year named "National Principal of the Year."  When the school district would move him to yet another troubled school that needed help, the parents and teachers at his old school would protest and demand that he stay.                                     The only time I can recall my father ever being really upset about his work that he ... Read More >

I Make It Really Easy For Polland to Give Me His Side of the Story

Reprinted from the August 26, 2014 Mongoose newsletter.  Gary Polland is a very busy man.  He barely has time for his political work, all of his court appearances, home visits I am so sure he personally performs, meetings with investment bankers, etc.  So, I sent Polland a fax that should make it easier for him to reply to my questions quickly and accurately, so that his side of the story can be shared with you: Mr. Polland, I know you are a very busy man and perhaps you lack the time to respond to my questions about the work you have done as an appointed attorney ad litem in CPS cases.   I am therefore providing you the following answers to my questions so that you can take just a few seconds to check the appropriate responses and fax your answers back to me.  I truly do want to be fair to you and deal with facts instead of rumor or supposition.   I know there are almost always two sides to every story and I really want to get your side of this story and share it with my many ... Read More >

The Polland Problem, Part 2

Reprinted from the August 21, 2014 Mongoose.  Most Republican judges and party leaders, to their credit, realize that the brewing scandal involving court appointments and their former party chair, Gary Polland, has the potential to effect the November elections.  They also realize that the current system just is not right.  They point out to me that Democratic politicians, such as legislators who are also attorneys, are getting lucrative appointments from Democratic civil judges. The solution is very simple: a commitment by judges to appoint attorneys based on merit only and transparency of information.  All judges of both parties should simply stop using court appointments as political patronage and ALL appointments and fees should be reported and made available to the public. Currently, the system hides appointment fees and makes it very difficult to determine accurately how much various attorneys are being paid.  The County Auditor website is a great example of sharing ... Read More >

How to Make Millions from Abused Children & Taxpayers

Reprinted from the August 13, 2014 Mongoose.  There can be no doubt: Gary Polland is a smart, successful lawyer who knows how to make a lot of money from the practice of law.  Polland is politically powerful and able to influence and profit from every Republican primary election.  Polland should be your hero and role model if high income and political influence are your goals in life. I asked a bunch of attorneys with experience in CPS cases how much they guessed Gary Polland had been paid in four and a half years for court appointments. Their guesses ranged from $300,000 - $700,000.  They were totally floored to hear that Polland had been paid $1.9 million by Harris County since January 1, 2010 for court appointments.   Just to be very clear, that is taxpayer dollars being paid to this one man for government court appointments only.  It does not count the many cases where Polland was appointed by judges but paid by private parties.  My investigation into this incredible situation ... Read More >