Petition to Modify

You’ve been served with a Petition to Modify. You thought your divorce case ended when the court signed your divorce decree, but now your ex has decided to file a new lawsuit against you to get more custody or parent-time than what your spouse originally agreed to, or which was already decided by the Court.

Or, maybe you’ve been served with a Petition to Modify to reduce or eliminate child support or alimony.

Usually a new spouse is involved in these cases, or an intentional or voluntary reduction of income.

Let’s not mince words, this sucks! But the good news is that the law is on your side. And so is our team at Fontenot Law. Defending Petitions to Modify custody is one of our specialties, and we have trial and appellate court experience defeating Petitions to Modify. When a client of ours is served with a Petition to Modify, we bring about all of our energy and skill to put that Petition to Modify down.

In order for a Petition to Modify to succeed, there must be a showing of a substantial and material change in circumstances that warrants a modification, and the change must be related to the modification sought. This can be a complicated analysis, but in a large number of cases, this standard cannot be met.

Mr. Fontenot recently argued before the Utah Court of Appeals that the standard for modification is high, and that a modification should only be allowed when the court finds that a substantial and material change has occurred. In the case, Mr. Fontenot presided over a trial where the long and bitter legal battle to modify custody ended with his client prevailing and the other parent’s request for modification failing.

Mr. Fontenot recently prevailed on an appeal involving a petition to modify, which you can read here. If you have been served with a petition to modify, Mr. Fontenot is the attorney you want fighting to defeat that petition.