Limited Scope Representation in child custody and support

Limited Scope Representation

A client may seek to hire an attorney to handle a limited portion of the divorce, such as child custody, child support, or spousal support without the attorney handling other issues in the case. In a limited scope situation, the attorney and client agree the scope of representation will be limited to specific tasks, such as only drafting a custody agreement, or only addressing spousal support. There are two forms of limited scope representation: undisclosed representation and noticed representation.

Undisclosed representation for drafting documents

A client may hire an attorney just to draft, or assist in drafting, documents that the client then files on his own (in propia persona).  The attorney’s name or firm is not on the documents, and neither the client nor the attorney must disclose this relationship.

Noticed Representation for Court Appearance

An attorney making an appearance for a limited issue or for only one hearing must provide notice by serving other parties and filing with the court a mandatory Notice of Limited Scope of Representation. When my Vista law firm makes an appearance on your case, the other party receives notice and must include the my firm with service of all documents pertaining to the identified issues, such as custody agreements or spousal support. 

The limited scope attorney who appeared at the hearing may or may not agree to prepare the Order After hearing, and must either file a substitution of attorney or a petition to be relieved to be removed from the record on that limited issue.