HTML Preview Legal Custody Form page number 1.
Sponsored by the Family Law Section of the Philadelphia Bar Association February, 2015
COMPLAINT FOR CUSTODY
INSTRUCTION SHEET
USE THIS FORM IF THERE IS NO CUSTODY ORDER.
1. Fill in the Domestic Relations Information Sheet with as much information as you have.
2. Complete, date, and sign the Complaint for Custody (detailed instructions included).
3. The filing fee for a complaint for custody is $102.38. If you cannot pay the filing fee, you
may ask to be excused from paying the fee by filing a Petition to Proceed In Forma Pauperis
(IFP). If you receive public assistance or SSI, bring your public assistance photo ID or proof that
you receive SSI.
4. File the completed complaint and information sheet with the filing fee by mailing or hand-
delivering them in person to:
Clerk of Family Court
1501 Arch Street-11
th
Floor
Philadelphia, Pa. 19102
5. If you file in person, you may pay the filing fee by money order, or credit card. If you
file by mail, you may pay ONLY by money order. Make the money order payable to
“OFFICE OF JUDICIAL RECORDS.” Personal checks will not be accepted.
6. Whether you file the complaint by mail or hand-deliver it to the office of the Clerk of Family
of Court, you must file the original AND two (2) copies. A copy machine is available at the
Clerk’s office at a cost of $.25 per page.
7. Once the complaint is filed, the Court will mail a copy of the complaint and an order with a
date to appear in court on the complaint.
These instructions are meant to give you
general information and not legal advice.