HomeMy WebLinkAbout09-1557I- 1
GREGORY P. SCHANK,
Plaintiff
vs.
STEPHANIE A. SCHANK,
Defendant
IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF
CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA
NO. 2009- 166'7 CIVIL TERM
IN DIVORCE/CUSTODY
NOTICE TO DEFEND AND CLAIM RIGHTS
You have been sued in Court. If you wish to defend against the claims set forth in the
following pages, you must take prompt action. You are warned that if you fail to do so, the case may
proceed without you and a decree of divorce or annulment may be entered against you by the Court. A
judgment may also be entered against you for any other claim or relief requested in these papers by the
Plaintiff. You may lose money or property or other rights important to you, including custody or
visitation of your children.
When the ground for the divorce is indignities or irretrievable breakdown of the marriage, you
may request marriage counseling. A list of marriage counselors is available in the Office of the
Prothonotary at the Cumberland County Courthouse, Carlisle, Pennsylvania.
IF YOU DO NOT FILE A CLAIM FOR ALIMONY, DIVISION OF PROPERTY,
LAWYER'S FEES OR EXPENSES BEFORE A DIVORCE OR ANNULMENT IS GRANTED, YOU
MAY LOSE THE RIGHT TO CLAIM ANY OF THEM.
YOU SHOULD TAKE THIS PAPER TO YOUR LAWYER AT ONCE. IF YOU DO NOT
HAVE A LAWYER, GO TO OR TELEPHONE THE OFFICE SET FORTH BELOW. THIS OFFICE
CAN PROVIDE YOU WITH INFORMATION ABOUT HIRING A LAWYER.
IF YOU CANNOT AFFORD TO HIRE A LAWYER, THIS OFFICE MAY BE ABLE TO
PROVIDE YOU WITH INFORMATION ABOUT AGENCIES THAT MAY OFFER LEGAL
SERVICES TO ELIGIBLE PERSONS AT A REDUCED FEE OR NO FEE.
CUMBERLAND COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION
32 SOUTH BEDFORD STREET
CARLISLE, PENNSYLVANIA 17013
TELEPHONE: (717) 249-3166
GREGORY P. SCHANK, IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF
Plaintiff CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA
VS. NO. 2009- l .55 7 CIVIL TERM
STEPHANIE A. SCHANK, :
Defendant IN DIVORCE/CUSTODY
COMPLAINT
AND NOW, the Plaintiff, Gregory P. Schank, through his attorney, Dawn S. Sunday,
Esquire, files this Complaint in Divorce based upon the following:
COUNT I -IN DIVORCE
1. The Plaintiff is Gregory P. Schank, an adult individual residing at 1403 Princeton Road,
Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania 17050.
2. The Defendant is Stephanie A. Schank, an adult individual residing at 1403 Princeton Road,
Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania 17050.
3. The Plaintiff and Defendant were married on August 11, 1990 in Lycoming County,
Pennsylvania.
4. The Plaintiff and Defendant have been bona fide residents of the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania for at least six months immediately prior to the filing of this Complaint.
5. There have been no prior actions for divorce or annulment between the parties.
6. Neither party is a member of the Armed Forces of the United States of America.
7. The marriage is irretrievably broken.
8. The Plaintiff has been advised of the availability of marriage counseling and that
Plaintiff may have the right to request that the Court require the parties to participate
in counseling. Being so advised, the Plaintiff does not request that the Court require the parties
to participate in counseling prior to a divorce decree being entered by the Court.
WHEREFORE, the Plaintiff respectfully requests that the Court enter a decree of divorce under
Section 3301(c) or 3301(d) of the Divorce Code.
COUNT II - CUSTODY
9. The preceding paragraphs of this Complaint are incorporated herein by reference as though
set forth in full.
10. The Plaintiff, Gregory P. Schank, (hereinafter "Father") is the biological father of Paige A.
Schank, whose date of birth is February 25, 1995 (hereinafter "Child").
11. The Defendant, Stephanie A. Schank, (hereinafter "Mother") is the biological mother of the
Child.
12. The parties are married to each other and currently reside together, with the Child, at 1403
Princeton Road, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania 17050.
13. The Child was born in wedlock.
14. The Child is presently in the custody of both parents.
15. The Father has no information of any other custody proceeding concerning the Child
pending in a court of this Commonwealth or any other jurisdiction.
16. The Father does not know of any person who is not a party to these proceedings who has
physical custody of the Child or claims to have custody or visitation rights with respect to the Child.
17. Each parent whose parental rights to the Child have not been terminated and the persons
who have physical custody of the Child have been named as parties to this action.
18. The parties have reached a resolution on the matter of custody of the Child through
participation in the Collaborative Law Process and desire that their agreement to share having legal
and physical custody of the Child be memorialized as a Court Order. Accordingly, the parties intend
to submit a Stipulation to the Court for entry as an Order.
WHEREFORE, The Plaintiff/Father requests that this Honorable Court grant the parties shared
legal and physical custody of the Child.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dawn S. Sunday, Esquire
Counsel for Plaintiff
ID No. 41954
39 West Main Street
Mechanicsburg, PA 17055-6230
(717) 766-9622
VERIFICATION
I verify that the statements made in this Complaint are true and correct. I understand
that false statements herein are made subject to the penalties of 18 Pa. C.S. Section 4904, relating to
unworn falsification to authorities.
311
Date
Gregory . Schank
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GREGORY P. SCHANK, IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF
Plaintiff CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA
VS. NO. 2009-1557 CIVIL TERM
STEPHANIE A. SCHANK,
Defendant IN DIVORCE
ACCEPTANCE OF SERVICE
I accept service of the Divorce Complaint on behalf of Stephanie A. Schamk and certify that I
am authorized to do so.
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Maryfnn Murphy, Esquire
PMB 246
4902 Carlisle Pike
Mechanicsburg, PA 17050
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AUG 0 3 2009
IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA
CIVIL ACTION -LAW
GREGORY P. SCHANK,
Plaintiff
No. Cl-~-155x1 n-vil~G1't1
v.
STEPHANIE A. SCHANK,
Defendant
IN DIVORCE/CUSTODY
ORDER OF OURT~.._
AND NOW, this ~ day of 7 , 2009, upon consideration of
the attached Stipulation for Entry of Custody Order, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED AND
DECREED that custody of PAIGE A. SCHANK, born February 25~ 1995, shall be as
follows:
1. The parents shall share legal custody of Paige. Major decisions concerning
their daughter, including, but not necessarily limited to, her health, welfare, education,
religious training and upbringing shall be made by the parents jointly, after discussion and
consultation with each other, with a view toward obtaining and following an harmonious
policy in their daughter's best interest.
Neither parent shall impair the other parent's rights to shared legal custody of Paige.
Neither parent shall attempt to alienate the affections of their daughter from the other
parent.
Each parent shall notify the other of any activity or circumstance concerning Paige that
could reasonably be expected to be of concern to the other.
Day to day decisions shall be the responsibility of the parent then having physical
custody. With regard to any emergency decisions which must be made, the parent having
physical custody of Paige at the time of the emergency shall be permitted to make any
immediate decisions necessitated thereby. However, that parent shall inform the other of
the emergency and consult with her or him as soon as possible.
In accordance with 23 Pa.C.S.A. Section 5309, each parent shall be entitled to complete
and full information from any doctor, dentist, teacher, counselor, professional or authority
and to have copies of any reports or information given to either of them as a parent as
authorized by statute.
2. The parents shall share physical custody of Paige.
FATHER shall have Paige on alternate weekends from Thursday after work until Sunday
afternoon, and on Wednesdays following his weekends from after work until Thursday
morning.
MOTHER shall have Paige at all other times.
This schedule can be altered or modified by mutual agreement of the parents.
3. The parent with physical custody during any given period of time shall
communicate in a prompt fashion with the other parent concerning the well-being of their
daughter, and shall appropriately notify the other parent of any changes in health or
educational progress. Each parent shall execute any and all legal authorizations so that the
other parent may obtain information from Paige's schools, physicians, counselors, or other
individuals concerning her progress and welfare.
4. Holidays -The following is the holiday schedule:
a. Thanksgiving -The Thanksgiving holiday shall be from Wednesday after
work until the following Tuesday when Paige returns to school.
In 2009 and in all odd years thereafter, MOTHER shall have the Thanksgiving
holiday. In 2oio and in all even years thereafter, FATHER shall have the Thanksgiving
holiday.
b. Christmas -The Christmas Holiday shall be divided into two Sections.
Section A shall be from 9:0o a.m. on Christmas Eve until 9:0o a.m. on Christmas Day.
Section B shall be from 9:0o a.m. on Christmas Day until 9:0o a.m. on December 26th.
In 2009 and in all odd years thereafter, MOTHER shall have Section A and FATHER
shall have Section B. In 20 io and in all even years thereafter, FATHER shall have Section A
and MOTHER shall have Section B.
c. New Years -The New Year's holiday shall be divided into two Sections.
Section A shall be from 10:0o a.m. on New Year's Eve until io:oo a.m. on New Year's Day.
Section B shall be from io:oo a.m. on New Year's Day until io:oo a.m. on January 2na,
In 2009 and in all odd years thereafter, FATHER shall have Section A and MOTHER
shall have Section B. In 2oio and in all even years thereafter, MOTHER shall have Section A
and FATHER shall have Section B.
For purposes of this provision, the entire New Year's holiday shall be deemed to fall in
the same year as New Year's Eve.
d. Easter -The Easter holiday shall be from after work the day before
Paige's school break begins until Paige returns to school.
In 2009 and in all odd years thereafter, FATHER shall have the Easter holiday. In
2oio and in all even years thereafter, MOTHER shall have the Easter holiday.
e. Mother's Day and Father's Day -MOTHER shall have Paige for Mother's
Day from Saturday through Sunday; and FATHER shall have Paige for Father's Day from
Saturday through Sunday.
f. Memorial Day and Labor Day - In 2009 and in all odd years thereafter,
MOTHER shall have Paige for the Memorial Day weekend and the Labor Day weekend from
Saturday through Monday. In 2oio and in all even years thereafter, FATHER shall have
Paige for the Memorial Day weekend and the Labor Day weekend from Saturday through
Monday.
g. Fourth of July -The parents shall alternate the Fourth of July each year.
If the holiday falls on a Friday or Saturday, the holiday time shall be from Friday through
Sunday. If the holiday falls on a Sunday or Monday, the holiday time shall be from Saturday
through Monday.
In 2009 and in all odd years thereafter, FATHER shall have the Fourth of July
holiday. In 2oio and in all even years thereafter, MOTHER shall have the Fourth of July
holiday.
h. Paige's Birthday - Both parents shall have an opportunity to see Paige on
her birthday each year.
i. The holiday schedule shall take precedence over the regular parenting
schedule.
5. Vacation -Each parent shall have three (3) uninterrupted weeks of vacation
with Paige each year. Unless mutually agreed between the parents, there shall be a
maximum of two (2) consecutive vacation weeks. A week shall be defined as seven (~) days.
MOTHER and FATHER shall give each other as much notice as possible of their chosen
week(s) for vacation. In the event both parents choose the same week(s), the parent who
gives first notice shall prevail.
6. The parents shall cooperate with each other in obtaining a passport for Paige,
and they shall make arrangements between themselves by agreement as to which parent
will hold Paige's passport when she is not using it.
~. Either parent may take Paige outside of the country for a trip only after
discussing the arrangements with the other parent and receiving the consent of the other
parent in advance.
8. If one parent loses her or his weekend time with Paige because of the holiday
schedule or because of work commitments, that parent can request make-up time.
9. The parents shall permit and support Paige's access to all family relationships.
Special family events such as weddings, family reunions, family gatherings, funerals,
graduations, etc. shall be accommodated by both parents with the routine schedule
resuming immediately thereafter. Each parent shall have the option of proposing time or
date variations to the other parent when special recreational options or other unexpected
opportunities arise. Each parent must confer with the other parent before arranging
regularly occurring extracurricular activities for Paige which might interfere with the
regular parenting schedule.
io. Each parent shall be entitled to reasonable telephone contact with Paige when
she is in the custody of the other parent.
li. Both parents shall establish a no-conflict zone for Paige and refrain from
making derogatory comments about the other parent in the presence of their daughter and,
to the extent possible, shall not permit third parties from making such comments in her
presence. Each parent shall speak respectfully of the other.
Communication should always take place directly between the parents, without using
Paige as an intermediary.
12. If the parents wish to modify this parenting schedule and are unable to reach
agreement, MOTHER and FATHER agree that they will return to the Collaborative Law
Process or seek mediation prior to initiating litigation.
13. The parents hereby request that this Honorable Court enter this Stipulation as
an Order which shall replace and supercede any and all prior Orders and shall remain in full
force and effect pending further Order of Court.
i4. There has been no Judge assigned to this case, and no ruling upon this or any
other issue in the same or related matter.
BY THE COURT:
J.
Distribution:
For Plaintiff: Dawn S. Sunday, Esquire
,/for Defendant: Maryann Murphy, Esquire
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