By Liz Farsaci

An elderly father paid his son to say he wants to spend more time with his dad, a mother has claimed at the Family Court.

The father is buying the schoolboy things so that he will say and do certain things, the mother claimed at the Dublin District Family Court today.

“My client feels he’s constantly promising the boy things, if he does certain things,” Sandra McAleer, solicitor for the mother, said.

But Eamon Bennett, solicitor for the pensioner father, said the boy was “very anxious” to spend more time with his father. He indicated that the boy had written a ….read more

By Liz Farsaci

A court has granted a protection order against a man recently released from prison.

He was allowed to see his two toddlers when he was first released from prison several months ago, but has now become too aggressive, his ex-partner told the Dublin District Family Court.

The mother said her ex-boyfriend physically assaulted her three months ago and was verbally abusive earlier this week. She said he had begun to take drugs and it was no longer safe for the children to be around him.

Referring to her application for a protection order, the young mother said: “I really need it. ….read more

By Liz Farsaci

An allegedly abusive alcoholic told a judge to make a safety order against him “for 21 years”, as he didn’t want to see the mother of his child again.

The man would regularly consume 16 cans of beer and then a naggin of vodka within the space of a couple of hours, his ex-partner told the Dublin District Family Court, Dolphin House, Temple Bar, Dublin 2 today.

She spoke of several occasions in which her ex-partner was under the influence of alcohol, and threatened to harm her and their young child.

“He put me and my child in fear of him,” ….read more

By Liz Farsaci

A distraught mother was today granted a five-year safety order against her teenage daughter who struggles with mental health issues.

The daughter, who just completed her Leaving Cert, suffers from bipolar disorder, the mother told the Dublin District Family Court.

She said her daughter recently went on medication and had been feeling better, but a psychologist recommended that she stop taking sleeping tablets as they are highly addictive. “And now the anxiety is back,” the mother said.

“She’s full of anxiety at the moment, but I would like a protection order, just for myself,” the mother said. “This is a horrible ….read more

By Liz Farsaci

A woman found out she was a grandmother after a toddler and her older brother turned up on her doorstep with DNA test results, a court heard today.

The grandmother, who was seeking access visits with her granddaughter, told the Dublin District Family Court that up until last summer she was under the impression that the girl in question was her nephew’s daughter.

But then last summer, the young girl and her brother turned up at the grandmother’s door, with results from a DNA test, showing that the grandmother’s son was father of the young girl.

The grandmother said she was ….read more

By Liz Farsaci

A young father who owes the mother of his child nearly €6,000 in maintenance has been warned that he could go to prison if he does not start paying up.

Judge Gerard Furlong at Dublin District Family Court asked the father why he hadn’t paid the mother the €5,887 he owed her for the upkeep of their son.

The man replied he’d been “all over the shop for the last couple of months”.

The father suggested that, as he was not working, he could pay €20 per week in maintenance, down from €50 per week, as well as €10 per week ….read more

By Liz Farsaci

A father was granted sole custody of his children after a court heard he was terrified the mother – who suffered serious injuries in a suicide attempt – would try to take the children away.

The father was today granted temporary sole custody of the children at the Dublin District Family Court. He remains in the family home with the children, while the mother remains in hospital.

The father also applied for a barring order against the mother, but that was withdrawn once the mother promised – through her solicitor Ursula Regan – that she would not go near the ….read more

By Liz Farsaci

A father seeking overnight visits with his children has told a family law judge that he and his wife engaged in group sex with prostitutes.

The father, who separated from the mother earlier this year, applied to Dublin District Family Court to have weekly overnight access with the two young children they have together.

Under-cross examination, the father said that he and his wife had slept with prostitutes together and have both used recreational drugs.

He told Shane Carty, solicitor for the mother: “I have slept with prostitutes. My wife has slept with me with prostitutes.”

He said he also “occasionally and ….read more

By Liz Farsaci

A father who recently served time in prison has claimed his former partner had “brainwashed” their two sons into not wanting to see him.

The father told the Dublin District Family Court in Dolphin House, Temple Bar, Dublin that he wanted joint custody and guardianship for the boys so that he could go to their house “without being arrested” if their mother was drunk.

The father, who spent two months earlier this year in prison, said he also wanted to visit his sons.

“All I want to be able to do, if there’s an emergency in the house and [the mother] ….read more

By Liz Farsaci

A mother seeking a safety order has been caused “significant trauma” due to contact with the father of her child and would be unable to give evidence while he was present, a court has heard.

The mother’s solicitor, Shehzad Bajwa, told the Dublin District Family Court that the woman had medical letters confirming that she cannot be in the same room as the father.

Mr Bajwa indicated that the woman would be unable to give evidence regarding her application for a safety order while her former partner was present in court. He said she was previously allowed to give evidence ….read more