Nothing contained herein should be construed to be legal advice or create an attorney/client relationship, nor is it intended to interfere with any existing attorney/client relationships. Consult with an attorney before taking any action.
How to Interact with a GAL
First you need to understand that the Guardian Ad Litum (GAL) can make or break your case. You want the GAL to like you. To that end, you need to cooperate fully and make her job easy.
Child
Do not prep the child too much for the visit. Tell the child only that someone is coming who will be helping Mom and Dad and the Judge resolve the issues. She needs to answer the GAL’s questions honestly. DO NOT prompt the child to tell the GAL anything specific. Also DO NOT instruct the child NOT to tell the GAL anything. The child should be clean and neatly dressed.
House
The house must be clean and uncluttered. It should smell clean. Any safety hazards should be fixed. This includes holes in walls and broken windows and screens. Trash outside should be picked up and in trash bags. There should not be any junk or broken toys or other things in the yard. If there are pets, all feces should be picked up from the yard.
Any guns should be unloaded in a locked gun safe and/or have trigger locks on at all times.
The GAL may look in the cabinets, refrigerator, freezer and stove checking for cleanliness and adequate, healthy food. She may check in the bathroom for prescription drugs within reach of kids. Best to have all prescriptions in a locked medicine cabinet or drawer. Flush any old or expired prescription drugs.
Make sure the house is child proofed for the age of the child. Obviously, if there is a baby, there should be caps in outlets, locks on cabinet doors, and child proof door latches. Older kids don’t need those types of precautions.
If you are remodeling or making repairs, all areas, even work zones, should be neat and as clean as possible. They should also be closed off or blocked off to restrict access. If there are small children, there should be child proof gates in place to prevent them from getting into the work zone.
The GAL may make unannounced visits, so be sure to keep the house and yard clean and the pantry stocked at all times until the case is ended.
Pets
Pets should be up to date on shots. The GAL may request the shot records. Have that information handy. Pets should be outside or locked up if they are not perfectly behaved. Nothing will concern a GAL more than a large dog that acts like it will eat her. All pet areas should be clean. The pets should be free of fleas and be clean. If there are more than a couple of pets consider giving them away or having someone keep them until the case is ended.
Discussing issues
Make sure the child cannot hear your discussions with the GAL. Many parents SAY they never run the other parent down, but then will tell the GAL all the bad things about the other parent with the child in the room. Go outside or send the child to her room. Better still is to try and schedule the interview to start before the child gets home from school. Then you can speak freely and not worry about the child hearing. However, be aware of other children in the house – older half siblings may tell the child what you said, so try not to let them hear anything either.
This is not about bashing the other parent. All concerns have to relate to the best interests of the child. It is not acceptable to say you do not like the other parent’s girlfriend, you must indicate specifically how the girlfriend impacts the child. Don’t say you don’t like the other parent’s lifestyle, indicate specifically how the lifestyle impacts the child.
Do not get angry at the GAL if she raises issues that the other side has informed her of. She is only the messenger, so don’t shoot her. Respond calmly and rationally to any accusations. She may challenge you on your answers. Again, do not get angry at her. Do not assume this means she is “on their side”. It is common to challenge what both sides say in order to get to the truth.
Do not lie to the GAL. If you are caught in a lie or if your answer is so improbable as to be unbelievable, it will destroy your credibility and thus your case. But do not simply accuse the other side of lying either. Set out facts and your proof and let the GAL come to that conclusion on her own.
Making the job easy
Have a binder prepared to give to the GAL with copies of any documents you want her to see. Include the child’s most recent report cards; medical records, any pleadings and orders in the case, any prior GAL reports, any counselor reports or records, and CPS reports, any Facebook pages, any emails between the parents, any texts between the parents, and any photographs. Include the names, addresses and phone numbers of any witnesses and what they can tell the GAL, including teachers, counselors, church staff, scout masters and relatives. Include a history of the relationship with particular attention to the dates and events that led to the current legal action.
Child
Do not prep the child too much for the visit. Tell the child only that someone is coming who will be helping Mom and Dad and the Judge resolve the issues. She needs to answer the GAL’s questions honestly. DO NOT prompt the child to tell the GAL anything specific. Also DO NOT instruct the child NOT to tell the GAL anything. The child should be clean and neatly dressed.
House
The house must be clean and uncluttered. It should smell clean. Any safety hazards should be fixed. This includes holes in walls and broken windows and screens. Trash outside should be picked up and in trash bags. There should not be any junk or broken toys or other things in the yard. If there are pets, all feces should be picked up from the yard.
Any guns should be unloaded in a locked gun safe and/or have trigger locks on at all times.
The GAL may look in the cabinets, refrigerator, freezer and stove checking for cleanliness and adequate, healthy food. She may check in the bathroom for prescription drugs within reach of kids. Best to have all prescriptions in a locked medicine cabinet or drawer. Flush any old or expired prescription drugs.
Make sure the house is child proofed for the age of the child. Obviously, if there is a baby, there should be caps in outlets, locks on cabinet doors, and child proof door latches. Older kids don’t need those types of precautions.
If you are remodeling or making repairs, all areas, even work zones, should be neat and as clean as possible. They should also be closed off or blocked off to restrict access. If there are small children, there should be child proof gates in place to prevent them from getting into the work zone.
The GAL may make unannounced visits, so be sure to keep the house and yard clean and the pantry stocked at all times until the case is ended.
Pets
Pets should be up to date on shots. The GAL may request the shot records. Have that information handy. Pets should be outside or locked up if they are not perfectly behaved. Nothing will concern a GAL more than a large dog that acts like it will eat her. All pet areas should be clean. The pets should be free of fleas and be clean. If there are more than a couple of pets consider giving them away or having someone keep them until the case is ended.
Discussing issues
Make sure the child cannot hear your discussions with the GAL. Many parents SAY they never run the other parent down, but then will tell the GAL all the bad things about the other parent with the child in the room. Go outside or send the child to her room. Better still is to try and schedule the interview to start before the child gets home from school. Then you can speak freely and not worry about the child hearing. However, be aware of other children in the house – older half siblings may tell the child what you said, so try not to let them hear anything either.
This is not about bashing the other parent. All concerns have to relate to the best interests of the child. It is not acceptable to say you do not like the other parent’s girlfriend, you must indicate specifically how the girlfriend impacts the child. Don’t say you don’t like the other parent’s lifestyle, indicate specifically how the lifestyle impacts the child.
Do not get angry at the GAL if she raises issues that the other side has informed her of. She is only the messenger, so don’t shoot her. Respond calmly and rationally to any accusations. She may challenge you on your answers. Again, do not get angry at her. Do not assume this means she is “on their side”. It is common to challenge what both sides say in order to get to the truth.
Do not lie to the GAL. If you are caught in a lie or if your answer is so improbable as to be unbelievable, it will destroy your credibility and thus your case. But do not simply accuse the other side of lying either. Set out facts and your proof and let the GAL come to that conclusion on her own.
Making the job easy
Have a binder prepared to give to the GAL with copies of any documents you want her to see. Include the child’s most recent report cards; medical records, any pleadings and orders in the case, any prior GAL reports, any counselor reports or records, and CPS reports, any Facebook pages, any emails between the parents, any texts between the parents, and any photographs. Include the names, addresses and phone numbers of any witnesses and what they can tell the GAL, including teachers, counselors, church staff, scout masters and relatives. Include a history of the relationship with particular attention to the dates and events that led to the current legal action.