Just in case you haven't been paying attention, when you are before a judge, you can't predict the outcome. That point was driven home to me quite explicitly yesterday. I was before a judge who I've known for quite a long time. We were talking about something that could potentially become an issue later on but not yesterday. One topic led to another, and we talked about the judge's view of a client's compliance with court orders if they believed (rationally and reasonably) that to do so would endanger their child. Tough decision, right? Well, this judge's view was that so long as a pleading was filed in court to ask a judge to change that behavior, the judge would find the non-compliance understandable. Fair enough, except that a few months ago, I watched a different judge berate a client for engaging in self-help in exactly that type of situation. Both judges are parents, both are the same sex, relatively the same age, but exactly opposite views. Different judges, different opinions on the same facts. That's the risk of litigation. Here in the Trenches.
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