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Mel Gibson Facing Up Hill Custody Battle
Beverly Hills, CA
Monday, July 26, 2010
The battle between Mel Gibson and Oksana Grigorieva over custody of their eight-month daughter is entering a high-stakes phase.
The charges and countercharges continue to fly. Today, a recording was released of a two-and-a-half-minute profanity-filled rant in which Mel Gibson lashes out against Grigorieva's prior husband and James Bond star, Timothy Dalton. Originally, Gibson and Grigorieva had a joint legal and physical custody arrangement that gave each of them significant time with their daughter.
According to Beverly Hills divorce lawyer, Evan T. Sussman, the hate-filled recordings may be jeopardizing Gibson's chances in the custody battle. "There is a rebuttable presumption that an award of sole or joint physical or legal custody of a child to a perpetrator of domestic violence is detrimental to the child's best interest. At a minimum, the recordings tend to show that Gibson isn't being cooperative, and at worst they may help convince a judge that he is being emotionally and physically abusive to the mother of his child."
Judges often follow the custody arrangement that is agreed to by the parents. Here, however, "the judge in awarding sole custody must consider which parent is likely to allow the child frequent and continuing contact with the other parent." Sussman, a Certified Specialist in Family Law, says. "Gibson's lawyers have so far done a good job of helping Gibson keep joint custody, but with the release of each recording, their job is getting more difficult."
Evan T. Sussman is the founder of Sussman & Associates (www.sussmanlawfirm.com), a family law firm located in Beverly Hills, California. Mr. Sussman has been recognized by the State Bar of California as a Certified Specialist in Family Law, a designation earned by fewer than one percent of California lawyers. Mr. Sussman can be reached at 310.288.1990.
The charges and countercharges continue to fly. Today, a recording was released of a two-and-a-half-minute profanity-filled rant in which Mel Gibson lashes out against Grigorieva's prior husband and James Bond star, Timothy Dalton. Originally, Gibson and Grigorieva had a joint legal and physical custody arrangement that gave each of them significant time with their daughter.
According to Beverly Hills divorce lawyer, Evan T. Sussman, the hate-filled recordings may be jeopardizing Gibson's chances in the custody battle. "There is a rebuttable presumption that an award of sole or joint physical or legal custody of a child to a perpetrator of domestic violence is detrimental to the child's best interest. At a minimum, the recordings tend to show that Gibson isn't being cooperative, and at worst they may help convince a judge that he is being emotionally and physically abusive to the mother of his child."
Judges often follow the custody arrangement that is agreed to by the parents. Here, however, "the judge in awarding sole custody must consider which parent is likely to allow the child frequent and continuing contact with the other parent." Sussman, a Certified Specialist in Family Law, says. "Gibson's lawyers have so far done a good job of helping Gibson keep joint custody, but with the release of each recording, their job is getting more difficult."
Evan T. Sussman is the founder of Sussman & Associates (www.sussmanlawfirm.com), a family law firm located in Beverly Hills, California. Mr. Sussman has been recognized by the State Bar of California as a Certified Specialist in Family Law, a designation earned by fewer than one percent of California lawyers. Mr. Sussman can be reached at 310.288.1990.
Evan T. Sussman
Sussman & Associates
Beverly Hills, CA
310-288-1990
