Court for child access, cost and likelihood

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I have stopped my 10 year old from seeing father due to his drink driving, have offered access for him to see her but not to take her for weekends or overnights, I have contacted social services and following all legal routes correctly

He isn't on birth very his choice but I'm worried about him going through the courts, how much would it cost him to go to court for access is it just the initial £200 or do these this cost thousands?

Also what is the likely hood of him getting parental rights and overnight access if he has drinking problems

Hi OP, first of all the costs- no it isn’t just the £200. In theory if he chose to represent himself it wouldn’t cost a fortune as the bulk of costs is solicitors fees, sometimes these can be in the range of £150 per hour so it does start to add up quickly! With solicitors involved it can easily be in the thousands, if representing yourself you save on the sols fees so it is cheaper.

With regards to the drinking issues it really does depend on the circumstances. If you are claiming he has an active drinking problem you can make that argument but you would need evidence to back that up and it does take quite a bit to prove that, he can submit his own evidence to disprove it if that was the case. Even if the court agree that he has an active issue with alcohol they will still not automatically prevent him having access to his child/ren because it is in the best interests of the child to have a good relationship with both parents and so the court can put other measures in place to safeguard the kids while also enabling access so things like saying he can spend time with his child in the presence of a responsible adult, if the excessive drinking is restricted to weekends then the court could say he can spend time with his kids mid week when there is less risk or the court can allow contact but say it must be in public etc.

What @Mrsttcno1 said above 👍 The court could make directions for hair strand testing to check the severity of the drinking, but they would not stop him seeing the child. They would just do it in a supervised environment (ie one of his family members being there when the child/children), spend the day with him etc.

Costs - the law firm I work for charge £295 per hour, but you can self represent.

Thank you I'm not looking to stop access totally just to ensure she isn't in car etc with him as she has witness his drink drinking, he carries what he calls driving juice (wine) in the car with him, I'm happy for contact her can come to our snd take her out (plenty of public transport) but I can not allow her in the car!

We split because of his drinking I have documents from them proving he drinks drives, is an alcoholic he admitted it in writing to me but that was 10 years ago, he's had two previous convictions for drink driving

Dd has never enjoyed seeing him and I honestly would never had allowed it if I thought she was at risk and he would drive with her in the car

I just need to ensure dd was is safe

She is ten and has a say. Realistically if she doesn't want to go then she doesn't have to.

He would need to get his name on the BC first anyway as he currently has no parental rights. It's relatively simple to do just takes a bit of time. Then the child access court case. Hy the time it all happens DD will be that much older and have that much more of a say.

If DD is honest and tells the court she feels at risk then it seems unlikely. The 'driving juice' info is pretty damning as are his several convictions.

Thank you dd is very bright, intelligent and eloquent so I was hoping that she gets a say, unfortunately she never really enjoyed her dad's company though she adores his brother and his wife so hopefully can still maintain a relationship with them

Report him for drink driving.. They will catch him eventually.. My exh lost his licence for a year.

As others say. He would need to have PR before he can apply to court. Then he would need to start the ball rolling by engaging a solicitor. Usually mediation has to be tried first. Each party pays their own fees, often £200 per session. If no decision can be reached then your Ex would have to apply to court.

He would pay the fee to apply to court. First hearing would be relatively short as assume a judge would order Cafcass report. SS would speak to both parents and your daughter and depending on her age at the time (and assessment by SW) that she was able to relay her "thoughts & feelings". A report is produced with a recommendation and then another hearing is scheduled where, usually the judge follows the report recommendation.

So the ball will be in your Ex court. What happens next depends on how aggressive he (& solicitor) will be. A good solicitor will encourage him to attend mediation and seek a solution.

If your daughter is 11 by then her thoughts & wishes are likely to be followed.

If he's had 2 convictions for drink driving were these both within a 10 year period?

Has he actually got a licence and insurance? If both convictions were within 10 years he would have had to apply for his licence back and it's not automatic.

He's been seeing her for 10 years, there is no dispute as to her paternity - so he won't need PR before he applies for child arrangements. He can apply for PR, for a declaration of parentage (to get the birth certificate amended) and for child arrangements all at the same time.

But he hasn't done so in 10 years - strong likelihood he won't bother.

At 10 the child's views are of interest, but are definitely not determinative.

Thank you I have a funny feeling he will try stop maintenance and deny he's the father to child support