Most of the time, when a parent has lost custody of their child or their children, it's because a judge has found that that parent is not following orders of the court, or that that parent is not fit.

Are you preparing to file for divorce? Looking for answers on how the divorce process works? Visit www.ShayneLaw.com to find your answers. Get in touch with us today, for any of your Florida family law needs.

The question is, “I lost my child in my child custody case, and what can I do now?” Most of the time, when a parent has lost custody of their child or their children, it's because a judge has found that that parent is not following orders of the court, or that that parent is not fit. Of course, if you believe that a judge did not consider all the evidence, or that there may be grounds to file an appeal after a court entered orders in which you lost all child custody rights, you should speak to an attorney that handles appeals.

What I have typically found is that when a parent has lost custody and a judge has entered orders saying you cannot see your child without supervision, or you cannot see your child without meeting certain circumstances, it's for good cause. Let me give you an example. Recently, I had a case where one of the parents had a significant methamphetamine addiction that lasted many years. On many of those occasions, where the parent was using meth, that parent had taken the child to go smoke meth, and the child was nearby, or the child was left in the car. I've also had cases where a parent who had a methamphetamine addiction had neglected the child, was not properly providing clothing, or food, or medical care for the child. In those circumstances, judges are acutely aware of what the impact is on long-term drug use, such as the use of meth, and the ability of a parent to co-parent.

One of the things that a parent can do is go to a drug rehab, find out what the court wanted that parent to do in order to right the ship and to become involved in that child again. Take measures to end the drug abuse, and you'll see that in many of these court orders, the judge ordered not only random UAs but hair follicle tests, to prove to the court that before any parenting could take place, a parent has to prove that he or she is drug free. Those are the kinds of things that can be explored when you've gotten an order losing child custody, or custody has been eliminated by court order.

It's always wise to have an attorney look at all those court orders. Meet with an attorney and find out if there can be action taken to get a parent custody after a court has made these rulings. And one of the things you always want to look at is the ability, under Colorado law, to file a motion to modify parental responsibility and parenting if such an order has been entered. An experienced and qualified lawyer, who's been doing this for many, many years, should be able to assist you, to tell you whether you qualify to file a motion to modify, once you've received an order cutting off your parental rights.