I’m looking for guidance for a first step.
I have a friend who has been a stay at home mom or worked low level jobs over the last 2 decades while raising kids. She is now separated from her ex but he is retaining custody of the kids because she has no income. It’s been several months and she was evicted , lived with a friend, and now has a 1 bdrm and just started a low paying job.
She wants to be able to share custody of her kids but her ex is not helping to support her. Running rough numbers through the child support and alimony calculator, she is entitled to several thousand per month.
She can’t afford a lawyer so is relying on free services and isn’t sure where to go or what to do. When she first tried a few places they said they were out of funding. Im concerned this is going to take so long that the court will consider her ex the primary parent and give him full custody.
I went on the legal aid website and it asks for proof of her ex’s income which she doesn’t have, so I’m not sure if there is a way to get around that. He makes more than would qualify but she doesn’t have access to that money.
I want to help her - what services or organizations can I point her to? Can she file herself?