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Dedicated Child Custody Representation for Fathers, Mothers, Grandparents, Same-Sex Parents and Psychological Parents I am passionate about my child custody practice. I am aware of the major impact a high-conflict divorce can have on children, and my goal is to lessen any negative impact on your children as much as possible. Above all else, I believe that children must be kept out of the middle of child custody disputes. I represent all types of parents and caregivers who need to obtain, change or modify their legal rights to lovingly interact with the children they love. I care about helping children maintain strong relationships with the parents and caregivers they love. Contact me to arrange a consultation.

There are many ways to handle child custody disputes. I believe that, in the vast majority of cases, the best way to reach a parenting schedule is through divorce mediation, collaborative law or a non-judicial settlement.

An attorney with 35 years of experience, I believe the goal of your divorce lawyer should be to work cooperatively with another competent divorce attorney to reduce hostilities and guide you and your divorcing spouse to a resolution you both can live with.

As your attorney, I can serve as your legal counselor as well as your advocate to ensure that we develop a parenting plan that will be workable for you and minimize the stress on your children. At the same time, as an experienced courtroom lawyer I do not hesitate to proceed toward litigation when doing so is in the best interest of my client and his or her children.

If you are experiencing serious issues in your parenting schedule or with your parental rights, call my firm at (503) 655-0037 or e-mail me to schedule a consultation.

Helping Parents in Any Situation Involving Child Custody or Visitation

I handle a variety of child custody cases involving divorce, post-divorce issues, unmarried parents, child custody modification, visitation enforcement, psychological parents, grandparents and same-sex couples:

• Unmarried parents: If you are not married to the other parent of your child, you need to know that paternity testing only establishes an obligation to pay child support. It does not establish parenting rights such as custody or visitation. A court action is required for an unmarried father to obtain parenting rights.
• Grandparents: Grandparents may be interested in seeking guardianship and eventual custody of a child or children whose biological parents are both unfit due to alcohol abuse, drug use or child abuse. In many cases, it is also possible for grandparents to obtain visitation.
• Psychological parents: Step-parents are examples of psychological parents. Step-parents can be named as psychological parents in divorce decrees.
• Same-sex couples: When same-sex couples have children, it us generally done one of two ways. Sometimes, one parent is the biological parent and the other can be legally considered a psychological parent. In other cases, the child may have been biologically unrelated to both parties and one may be legally considered a psychological parent (unless a dual-adoption was allowed by law). Psychological parents have rights in child custody cases.

When you are experiencing a divorce or faced with a child custody dispute, you may be going through one of the worst crises in your life. You need to have an attorney you can trust—especially when anger and other emotions may cloud your thinking. I think of myself as both a legal counselor and courtroom attorney, and I am ready to help you find an agreeable resolution to your child custody matter.

Contact my law firm today to arrange your consultation.

Mark Austin Cross, PC

294 Warner Milne Road
Oregon City, OR 97045-4288
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Phone: (503) 655-0037 | Fax: (503) 650-0367

Oregon City legal counselor and courtroom lawyer Mark Cross represents people in the greater Portland metro area and across western Oregon in communities such as Oregon City, Portland, Gresham, Salem, Milwaukee, Gladstone, Lake Oswego, West Linn, Eugene and Medford.

Multnomah County | Northwest Clackamas County