Like courts everywhere, the Texas courts will do everything possible to promote a mutually beneficial agreement between the parents in the matter of child custody, with the children's best interests always being the primary goal. What you or your spouse want regarding the custody of your children is irrelevant until the court says otherwise.
Joint Managing Conservators
Texas courts may award sole or joint custody, but they start with the presumption that both parents will be "joint managing conservators" of the children. In short, that means that the parents will share the rights, duties, privileges, and powers of parenthood, although the exclusive power to make certain decisions may be awarded to one parent alone. If there has been neglect or violence in the family, however, the court may not allow the abusive parent to be a joint managing conservator. The court usually designates a primary residence for the child; parents may or may not have equal periods of access to the children. The judge may also order that one parent pay child support.
Parenting Plans and Parenting Coordinators
To make the parents' divorce as painless as possible for the children, Texas encourages parents to come up with their own written parenting plans. A parenting plan establishes the parents' rights and duties with respect to the children and provides for dispute resolution if disagreements come up later. If you can work out a parenting plan with the other parent before you go to court, everyone will be far better off than if you leave custody matters up to a judge to decide. You'll not only save money and time, you'll avoid some of the acrimony that is always a part of a child custody battle in court.
Parents can get help from a number of different sources to make a parenting plan. You can hire a private mediator to help you arrive at a plan. You may also be directed to a court-appointed parenting coordinator, who is a trained and impartial third party who can help you create a reasonable parenting plan.
What Will Determine Parental Custody?
If you and the other parent can't work out a custody agreement, you'll have to let the court decide on custody. Don't go into your court hearing on custody planning to argue only that you deserve custody of the children. The judge will fully expect to hear both sides state only what directly benefits the children.
Texas courts generally use the following criteria when determining custody:
- The ability of the parents to reach shared decisions in the child's best interests and to give top priority to the child's welfare.
- Whether the appointment of joint managing conservators will fully meet the physical, psychological, and emotional needs of the child.
- Whether both parents are able to maintain a positive relationship between themselves and between the child and the other parent.
- To what extent both parents participated in child rearing before filing for divorce.
- The geographical proximity of the parents and the logistics of shared custody.
Other factors may be considered as well; if your children are older than 12, for example, the court will probably take into consideration their preferences regarding custody.
