Bonnie Sue Shields

She was a horrible CFI. Yes, technically the review was in my favor (only because she knew she had no way of saying otherwise. I’m a good, stable mother), nonetheless she favored my ex husband, who abused me in every way. She gave him many opportunities such as outside opinions and text, email, and p...ersonal calls. I did not receive that same chance to talk and go over anything. She had to come to my house (3 hours away) and over charged me Meanwhile, my ex husband (her favorite) has been charged with felony crimes and DV (still pending). She should be forced to leave her CFI practice. She may be a good lawyer ( though I highly doubt it). If she had her way he would have custody of my kids. She doesn’t care about the facts and she doesn’t care about the kids or their wants and needs. She wants money. Nothing else.

I cannot speak to Ms. Shields as an attorney, but as a CFI I would never recommend her. After 8 years of constant litigation initiated by his ex, and 17 months of litigation that included Ms. Shields CFI investigation, my husband retained full custody and decision making authority for his children... AND was awarded relocation by the court in December 2022. She is biased, unfair, and did not have an awareness of correct legal standard, which is concerning, as she is an attorney. She made a threat of filing a motion to try and force her uninformed opinion on my husband based solely on her communication with his ex; worked far outside the scope of her appointment and with no regard for the boundaries of her appointment; advised the opposing party on how to try and “win” her case; made false, erroneous, damaging and disparaging statements about me and my husband; and, baited my husband into saying negative things about his ex that she then used against him. My husband (and by extension I) have been involved in constant litigation with his ex for 8 years through the entirety of which he has retained primary custody and sole decision making for their children. Ms. Shields did not even consider that very basic fact during the investigation. But don’t take my word for it. Here are a few statements about Ms. Shields from the public court order (names of minor children, professionals and/or witnesses have been removed for privacy): • The CFI took issue with Father’s home even though no caseworker or other professional has found that his home is unsafe. • The CFI gave Mother 30 days’ notice for a home visit and Father 13 hours. • [Psychologist] felt compelled to clarify the CFI’s false reference to their conversation about stepmother’s appropriate communication that the CFI indicated was excessive. • In hindsight, the change of therapists was not only not endangering as alleged by the CFI but was clearly in the best interests of [the minor child]. • [Work Product Review Professional] noted that the CFI disregarded Father’s primary role for the last 6 years. • The CFI exceeded the scope of the order appointing her by opining about decision-making and recommending a change in the majority parent when the only motion pending was the relocation motion and a request to change Mother’s dinner visit. • The CFI did not notify Father that she intended to investigate a change in majority parent or decision-making. • The CFI also failed to maintain objectivity. • She inappropriately read the previous CFI report before completing her investigation. • A CFI report is supposed to be a “brief assessment that is nonintrusive, efficient and cost effective” (CJD 04-08) (the CFI report here fails to meet any of those criteria). • Neither the CFI nor the PRE considered the significance of Father’s primary role. • She did an interactional with Mother and the children but not with Father. • She demonstrated no awareness of the correct legal standard according to [the Work Product Review Professional]. • She gave advice to Mother on how to achieve primary parenting. • She did not make good faith efforts to reach [the Psychologist] or [the Family Therapist], one of Father’s collaterals. • She testified that Father said he hated Mother’s guts when it was she who suggested that both parties hate each other. • She spent more time reviewing Mother’s materials and with Mother than with Father.

Bonnie is simply amazing! She is easy to talk to, very responsive via phone and email, and, most importantly, understands family law and how to apply it to various situations. She helped me with my divorce and then again a few years later to address a custody issue. I would highly recommend her to... anyone needing family law help.