Legal Aid of North Carolina

In some situations, it is strongly recommended that you get advice from a lawyer before deciding to file a custody case on your own without a lawyer. Additional steps may be required, or you may not be allowed to file for custody in North Carolina.

Below are some of these situations:

You or the children are victims of domestic violence

The children have lived in North Carolina less than 6 months

One parent lives outside North Carolina

One parent is in the military

You do not know the current whereabouts of the other parent

There has been another custody case involving these children

There has been a Juvenile Court case involving these children

DSS Child Protective Services has placed these children with someone else

The children live with someone who is not their parent