This article was originally published on Crafting Your Home. A human contributor also wrote and edited the post.
Taylor Frankie Paul’s ongoing legal troubles have reached a new and far more serious stage, with Utah’s Division of Child and Family Services filing a petition asking a juvenile court to determine whether her three children should be legally classified as abused, neglected, or dependent.
The filing, submitted by the Utah Attorney General’s Office on behalf of DCFS, also asks the court to place the children under protective supervision and appoint a guardian ad litem, an independent representative who advocates for the children’s best interests throughout the proceedings.
Both of Taylor’s exes, ex-husband Tate Paul and ex-boyfriend Dakota Mortensen, have now broken their public silence, sharing a joint statement that reflects just how seriously they are taking the development.
According to a statement shared with People, Tate and Dakota say they are deeply concerned following news of the DCFS petition.
The two men share all three of Taylor’s children, with Tate raising 8-year-old daughter Indy and 5-year-old son Ocean, and Dakota raising 2-year-old son Ever.
Their statement arrives after months of separate custody battles that have played out in Utah courts, and it marks one of the first times the two men have addressed the situation together rather than through their individual legal disputes with Taylor.
What The DCFS Petition Actually Says
The petition, filed with the Utah Attorney General’s Office and first reported by TMZ, asks the juvenile court to take jurisdiction over all three of Taylor’s children and determine whether they meet the legal definition of abused, neglected, or dependent under Utah law.
It also requests an expedited hearing, protective supervision services, and the appointment of a guardian ad litem to represent the children directly in court.
The filing reportedly references the family’s prior interactions with DCFS, along with the ongoing, separate custody disputes involving both Tate and Dakota, as part of the broader context the agency asks the court to consider.
It is important to understand what this filing does and does not mean. A DCFS petition is an allegation that must still be evaluated by the court, and it is not a final finding that abuse or neglect has actually occurred.
The juvenile court will ultimately weigh the evidence presented and determine what, if any, protective measures are warranted going forward.
That distinction matters a great deal in a case that has already generated significant public attention, since a filing seeking a legal determination is very different from a court actually reaching that determination.
The DCFS filing follows a string of legal developments already playing out for Taylor this year. In April, a Third District Court commissioner ruled that she could not have unsupervised contact with her youngest child due to concerns tied to her conduct during confrontations with Ever’s father, Dakota.
That ruling came after both Taylor and Dakota filed competing protective orders against each other earlier in the year, with both accusing the other of domestic violence in incidents that authorities in Utah have investigated separately.
Reports have also indicated that Tate filed for sole custody of the two children he shares with Taylor in recent weeks, adding another active legal front to an already complicated family situation.
The Fathers’ Attorney Pushes Back on How The Filing Has Been Described
An attorney representing Tate and Dakota pushed back directly against characterizations from Taylor’s legal team suggesting the DCFS filing was simply a routine procedural step.
The attorney described it instead as a serious legal action intended to protect the children, arguing that the significance of a state agency asking a court to make this kind of determination should not be downplayed.
He said that warning signs had gone unaddressed for too long and that better coordination is needed among family courts, law enforcement, prosecutors, and child welfare agencies that handle different aspects of the same underlying situation.
The attorney also addressed why Tate and Dakota have largely avoided commenting publicly on the situation to date.
He explained that the two men have chosen to remain silent to protect the children from further exposure, and that they intend to present their side of the events in the appropriate legal forum rather than through social media posts or public statements.
That approach stands in contrast to much of the back-and-forth that has played out online throughout this custody battle, with various statements, social media posts, and leaked court documents shaping public perception of the case for months.
Taylor’s legal team has also responded to the DCFS filing, maintaining that she is fully cooperating with the court process.
Her attorneys described the shift to juvenile court proceedings as a common step for families engaged in highly contentious, complex custody matters, and said she welcomes the added structure and oversight moving forward.
Taylor has also previously said publicly that she accepts the court’s supervision and remains focused on regaining custody of her children while doing what she believes is best for their wellbeing, a position her legal team reiterated in their statement responding to the petition.
The broader context surrounding this case has been building for months. Taylor was previously pulled from her role on The Bachelorette, and production on the fifth season of Secret Lives of Mormon Wives was reportedly suspended due to her ongoing legal battles.
She has also spoken publicly in the past about experiencing what she has described as extensive mental and physical abuse, while Dakota has separately denied allegations made against him and has said his focus remains on the safety of their son.
No criminal charges have been filed against Taylor in connection with the domestic violence allegations at the center of these disputes as of this filing, and the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s office has confirmed it is aware of the ongoing cases.
What happens next will depend entirely on the juvenile court, which is expected to hold an expedited hearing given the priority scheduling request included in the DCFS petition.
Until that hearing takes place, the specific protective measures being sought, including supervision and the appointment of a guardian ad litem, remain requests rather than court orders.
For a family already navigating multiple overlapping legal proceedings across different courts, this latest filing adds a significant new layer to an already difficult and closely watched situation, one that ultimately centers on the wellbeing of three young children caught in the middle.
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