Taylor Frankie Paul got an early Mother’s Day gift after a judge extended her visitation window with son Ever for the holiday, Us Weekly can confirm.
According to court documents submitted on Wednesday, May 6, and obtained by Us, a Utah judge awarded Paul, 31, “parent time” for Sunday, May 10, amid her and ex Dakota Mortensen’s mutual protective orders. (TMZ was first to report the news.)
Instead of her usual eight-hour visitation agreement, the court is allowing Paul to see Ever, 2, from the hours of 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
The filing also revealed that Paul’s parenting time has been increased from eight to 12 hours a week.
Taylor Frankie Paul Granted Supervised Visits With Her Son: Judge
The temporary change will be reevaluated during a hearing on June 1, where Paul and Mortensen, 33, will discuss “future child custody and parent-time issues,” per the docs.
According to the amendment, the court recommends Paul have three separate four-hour supervised blocks to have more consistent quality time with her youngest child. (Taylor also shares daughter Indy, 8, and son Ocean, 5, with ex-husband Tate Paul.)
Us Weekly has reached out to Taylor’s rep and attorney for comment.
Taylor’s extension from eight to 12 hours comes one week after Utah commissioner Russell Minas issued mutual protective orders for Taylor and Mortensen. Minas ordered the exes to stay 100 feet away from each other in a ruling that is expected to last three years.
Judge Rules on Taylor Frankie Paul and Dakota Mortensen Protective Orders
Minas confirmed during the April 30 hearing that he would not be changing their custody arrangement for Ever after Mortensen was granted temporary custody of him in March. The initial agreement stated that Taylor would be allowed up to eight hours of supervised visitation with her toddler.
Mortensen, for his part, sought custody of Ever in March amid a police investigation into his and Taylor’s alleged domestic violence incident in late February. Amid the scandal, production on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives season 5 was halted.
As Mortensen and Taylor’s relationship issues continued to make headlines, a video from a 2023 domestic dispute between the pair resurfaced. The video, which showed Taylor throwing chairs at Mortensen, led to her arrest in 2023, and she later pleaded guilty to aggravated assault.
The resurfaced clip caused a stir among fans and eventually resulted in ABC pulling Taylor’s season of The Bachelorette, which was set to premiere in March.
Despite the public outrage over Taylor’s past actions, in April, prosecutors declined to press charges against Taylor in connection to her and Mortensen’s alleged February altercation.
During Taylor and Mortensen’s court hearing last month, they traded accusations of domestic violence against each other. Ultimately, the judge upheld their mutual protective orders and advised them to think of their son first and foremost.
“This has been a very toxic relationship. It’s beyond the pale in a lot of ways, the toxicity,” the judge told both parties in court on April 30. “What I’ve seen from the evidence even post [the] last hearing, there seems to be a continuing attraction that they have for each other. … You guys have to figure out a lot here. You have to figure out how to function as coparents.”
What to Know About Taylor Frankie Paul and Ex Dakota’s Custody Battle
Minas added, “I’m hoping that you’re not people who just thrive on the drama and the conflict. You’ve got to put your child first and shield the child from this conflict. I’m going to leave the current [custody] order in place. I need to think a little bit more about this lifting of supervision. I have mixed feelings about it.”
“Today’s hearing was a significant step forward as the court entered protective orders requiring that Taylor’s ex-partner stays far away from her,” Taylor’s attorney, Eric M. Swinyard, said in a statement to Us at the time. “Taylor was incredibly candid with the court that she is not perfect and owned her faults, which is in direct contrast to how the other party presented their argument, despite evidence and input from law enforcement that showed otherwise.”
The attorney added, “Taylor feels solidarity with the many survivors who have endured similar hardships behind closed doors and shared only part of their stories, and she remains grateful for the outpouring of support she continues to receive. She looks forward to continuing to cooperate with the court to make progress in the custody case.”
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential support.
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