Houston Child Custody Attorney
Guarding Clients’ Parental Rights through Aggressive Legal Representation
It’s no surprise that most high-stress and high-stake cases in family law involve child custody. Divorcing parents often disagree on the best scenario for their children. Each spouse may be looking for an arrangement that fits with their work schedule or lifestyle, and these perspectives often clash, resulting in lengthy court battles. While Houston judges attempt to keep both parents in the child’s life, there might be some instances where a sole managing conservatorship is awarded to one parent. These decisions can significantly impact your life, travel, and relationship with your children.
If you’re considering petitioning for sole custody or are looking to fight for partial custody, call Horak Law today. Our team understands the hardships of going to court for your child and will do everything in our power to achieve a satisfactory outcome in your case. Our child custody lawyers have helped countless parents and guardians achieve the physical and legal custody arrangements that best fit their needs. We will not rest until you’ve gotten the most favorable outcome possible in your child custody case.
Call Horak Law today at (713) 225-8000 to set up your first consultation, or simply submit an online contact form. Horak Law has two locations in Houston and The Woodlands, Texas. However, we also accept clients in other neighboring counties, including Brazoria County, Harris County, Montgomery County, Fort Bend County, Liberty County, Galveston County, and Waller County.
How Does Child Custody Work in Texas?
Under Texas law, child custody is referred to as a “conservatorship.” Depending on the situation, parents can be named either joint managing conservators or sole managing conservators. Ideally, both parents would be named joint managing conservators. Still, there are cases where the court may name one parent as a sole managing conservator and the other as a possessory conservator if it is in the best interests of the child.
The sole managing conservator and the possessory conservator both enjoy parental rights to an extent, but the sole managing conservator has control over the care of the child. For example, a sole managing conservator can decide the child’s primary residence or receive child support. In most cases, a child custody hearing stems from a dissolution of marriage. However, these types of proceedings can also occur due to Suits Affecting the Parent-Child Relationship (SAPCR), family violence cases, paternity, and protective order cases.
Call our family law firm for emotional support, legal counsel, and aggressive representation in your child custody case.
What Are the Two Different Types of Child Custody Arrangements in Texas?
The Texas statutes establish two types of child custody, also called a conservatorship agreement. This is known as a sole managing conservator and joint managing conservators. In both scenarios, conservators have either partial or total parental rights over the child.
Conservatorship, under Texas law, gives a custodian the right to do the following:
- Become the child’s emergency contact
- Speak to the other conservator or parent regarding the child’s health, education, and/or welfare
- Be able to talk to school officials about the child’s academics and their activities
- Consent to any medical, dental, and surgical treatment
- Contact and speak to the child’s dentist, psychologist, or physician
- Attend the child’s school events
- Receive information about the child’s health, education, and welfare
Sole Managing Conservatorship
Sole managing conservators have total parental rights over the child or children. It’s also important to understand that this type of conservatorship can also apply to non-parents. Listed below are some additional rights sole managing conservators have that possessory conservators do not.
- Receive child support payments
- Make academics-related decisions for the child
- Consent to psychological and psychiatrist treatments
- Decide the child’s primary residence/home
- Influence the child’s religious practices
- Consent to marriage for the child
- Possess the child’s passport or apply for a new passport
Joint Managing Conservatorship
A joint managing conservatorship establishes joint custody between both parents or custodians. Although both parents/custodians will share the same rights, the court can adjust certain rights to one parent over the other in the child’s best interest.
Parents can also draft and file a parenting plan as required by Texas law to avoid court interference. The legal document, either temporary or permanent, will decide each parent’s rights and duties. It will also include a standard possession order (SPO) that determines visitation rights, access to the child, and where the child will live for the majority of the time. Parents who have established a parenting plan together can avoid the conservatorship process, as the court will simply honor the parenting plan.
Our team of Houston child custody lawyers is prepared to help you create a child custody arrangement that matches your family’s unique needs. Reach out to us right away for help getting started.
What Factors Are Considered in Child Custody Decisions?
When determining the best interests of the child, the State of Texas will reach a decision based on several factors. These factors are identified under the Texas Family Code, as listed below:
- Whether an adequate support system exists consisting of extended family and friends
- Parent’s understanding of the child’s capabilities and needs
- Whether the parent has a safe physical home environment
- Protection from any repeated exposure to violence (even if violence is not targeted towards the child)
- Supervision and guidance consistent with the child’s safety
- Adequate health and nutritional care for the child
- Supervision of the child to ensure they are safe
- Nurturance, care, and appropriate discipline consistent with the child’s physical and psychological development
- Whether the parent demonstrates adequate parenting skills
- Willingness and ability of the child or the child’s family to effect positive environment and personal changes within a reasonable time period
- Willingness and ability of the child’s family to seek out, accept, and complete counseling services and cooperate with and facilitate an appropriate agency’s close supervision
- Any history of substance abuse by the child’s family or others who have access to the child’s home
- Any history of abuse by the parent or their family or anyone who has access to the child’s home
- Results of psychiatric, psychological, and developmental evaluations of the child and their parents, other family members, or others who have access to the child’s home
- If the child was a victim of repeated harm
- Child’s age, physical and mental vulnerabilities
- Frequency and nature of out-of-home placements
Reach out to our talented, compassionate Houston child custody attorneys for help proving you deserve a fair custody arrangement that meets your needs.
What Is the Difference Between Legal Custody and Physical Custody?
Physical and legal custody are two different types of conservatorship that can be awarded to parents in a divorce. According to Texas laws, a judge may ultimately decide how to resolve custody disputes, including dividing the legal and physical parental rights between the two parents. As with any case involving children, child custody cases should be based on the best interests of the child, and the family court judge will issue an order according to what the court believes is best for the child’s upbringing.
Legal Custody
Legal child custody in Texas refers to the right to make important decisions in the child’s life. This form of Texas child custody includes issues such as what medical care the child will receive, how they’ll be educated, and in what religion they’ll be raised. Settling child custody disputes should include resolving whether one or both parents reserve some say in these critical legal questions.
Physical Custody
When many people think about child custody issues, they think about where the child will live and who will provide their daily care. In Texas, this is known as physical custody. As with other forms of child custody, physical custody can be divided between the two parents. If one parent is awarded sole managing conservatorship, the other parent may receive visitation rights.
Contact our Houston child custody lawyers right away to get the legal counsel you need to protect your legal rights and get a satisfactory child custody arrangement that matches your family’s needs and goals.
How Are Visitation Schedules Handled Under Texas Family Law?
One important matter regarding child custody is the visitation schedule. Child visitation rights refer to the right to see your child often and maintain a relationship. Texas courts recognize that the presence of both parents in the child’s life is of utmost importance. A visitation schedule is also referred to as standard possession. Among other child custody matters, assigning a visitation schedule is crucial for the well-being of children after a divorce.
Child visitation schedules indicate how the family will handle vacations and holidays. For example, in a Standard Possession Order (SPO), the non-custodial parent may have possession of the child for thirty days each summer, with one weekend dedicated to a visit for the custodial parent. A family court judge may alternately award the non-custodial parent an Extended Possession Order (ESPO), which gives them more than thirty days each summer. In other custody cases, the judge may use a custom custody order to align the schedule with the family’s unique needs.
Please note that in cases of domestic violence, the non-custodial parent may require supervised visitation. What’s more, with life changes, the family may need to adjust the custody arrangement. This could occur if one parent moves or as children grow older and have different needs. Being open to custody modifications is crucial for the happiness and well-being of children after a divorce.
Should You Hire Our Houston Child Custody Lawyer | Child Conservatorship in Texas?
Texas family law recognizes the importance of child custody matters during a divorce. While the child’s preference may be respected in many cases, your custody case will depend on the unique circumstances your family is dealing with. A custody dispute can be lengthy and expensive, with too much at stake to go at it alone. You deserve the help of a skilled child custody attorney like those at Horak Law.
Our child custody attorneys have over a decade of experience. We will work tirelessly to get you the results you need in your child custody case or child custody modification. Whether you are seeking sole custody or want a fair, balanced joint managing conservatorship, we will stand by your side to work toward this goal. The Houston custody lawyers at Horak Law will not rest until we’ve done everything possible to protect your parental rights and your relationship with your child.
If you need legal guidance with a child custody matter, call Horak Law. Horak Law has spent years practicing family law, including cases dealing with divorce, child custody, and child support. Matthew Horak and his team can evaluate your situation and guide you on what to do next to achieve a favorable outcome for your case.
Don’t wait any longer when so much is at stake. Call Horak Law today at (713) 225-8000 to set up your first consultation, or simply submit an online contact form.
