Get your CPS attorney early for peace of mind

All it takes is for one person to call Child Protection Services (aka CPS) on you for your entire life to be turned upside down. Some people are more vulnerable than others, especially if they are working class or from a lower social-economic status, have a drug or alcohol history or have some past criminal issues. Because CPS' involvement often doesn't start with a court case, many people don't see a need to hire CPS lawyers in Fort Worth. They think it will all just go away as soon as CPS realizes that nothing is there; unfortunately for many, this is a bad move that usually costs them.

What catches a lot of people by surprise is that CPS is not limited to the original issue that brought them into your life. For example, if they received a call about child abuse and it turns out to be false, it doesn't mean that they will just leave. If they find out that you have a substance abuse history, no matter how minor, they can force you to submit to drug testing. If they interview your children and they say something out of context, they can be taken away from you or you could be forced into more services. If you resist, your children may get taken away. If you confess to other wrong-doing such as alcohol abuse, you could find yourself in counseling. By the time people decide that enough is enough, it may be too late and you will regret not involving a CPS defense attorney earlier.

There are a few discerning people who call CPS lawyers at the very early stages of CPS involvement. When this happens, there is a lot that a skilled CPS attorney can do. One of the more important tasks for an attorney at this stage is to keep you out of the system. In other words, limit the evidence that CPS can gather against you to shut down the case. Often, this involves getting private medical providers that are not connected with CPS to review the issue in question and write a report. Oddly enough, these reports often do not suggest continued treatment while CPS' providers suggest prolonged treatment that never seems to end.

Besides gathering evidence to shut down a case, CPS lawyers in Fort Worth can make other moves that will help early. In these situations, sometimes less is more. Only a skilled CPS attorney will be able to look at a situation to determine if you should talk or remain silent. Taking a one-size-fits-all approach never works. In some cases, making a statement could shut down a case. In other cases, silence is the best approach. Whatever the CPS attorney decides to do, it will have a purpose. If a statement is made, the attorney must be present to control all questioning. While avoiding court is always the goal, sometimes forcing litigation is good strategy but again, the most competent CPS lawyers in Fort Worth clearly understand different cases and the incredible gamble that litigation involves.