How to Increase Your Chances at Obtaining Custody

The Quander Law Firm PLLC — Sun, 15 Apr 2018 12:10:00 GMT

Deciding who will have custody over a child is a very tough decision for the court to make. After all, you are asking a complete stranger to make a decision that will impact your child for years to come. In the State of Texas, the courts are guided by the principle of doing what’s in the best interest of the child. The court will evaluate several factors in deciding whom to award custody to.

While there is no absolute way to guarantee that you will get custody, here are a few tips to help increase your chances at doing so.

1. Be Involved from Day One

From the moment that your child enters this world, you should make every attempt to be involved in their life. Some ways to showcase your involvement in your child’s life include: caring for their needs, supporting them emotionally and financially, having frequent and regular visitation with your child, taking them to the doctor, and being active in their schooling and academics.

Basically, you need to show the court that you are serious about being a full-time parent. Absent extreme circumstances, a parent who has never been involved in their child’s life has very slim chances of obtaining custody of their child.

2. Be Willing to Compromise and Co-Parent

When the court issues a custody order, the order will also have several orders regarding visitation for the non-custodial parent, child support, and much more. Generally, the court will only award custody to the parent who is more likely to abide by the orders of the court to ensure that the child’s best interest are carried out. That means, if you show the court that you can co-parent in a positive manner, you have a better chance at obtaining custody. If you are constantly causing trouble with the other parent, or if you refuse to let the other parent see the child, the court will not see you as the parent who should have custody.

3. Be Careful With Your Actions

One of the quickest ways to ruin your chances of obtaining custody is to commit domestic violence against the other parent or anyone else for that matter. Domestic violence is an issue that courts take very seriously. In fact, if you commit domestic violence, not only will you not be given custody, but you may only be given supervised visitation with your child.

Additionally, avoid posting negative thoughts or feelings about the other parent on your social media accounts. These posts can negatively impact your custody proceedings and decrease your chances of obtaining custody. Keep in mind, if you send any negative or vulgar text messages to the other parent, most likely, those messages will be used against you in court.

Lastly, never speak negatively about the other parent to your child or involve the child in any parental conflicts. Doing so can leave the court with a bad perception of you as a parent.

The Quander Law Firm PLLC | Houston Child Custody Attorneys

If you are considering obtaining custody of your child or have been served with custody papers, a Houston child custody attorney at the Quander Law Firm PLLC can guide you through the process. Contact the Quander Law Firm PLLC by calling (832) 930-7139 or submit your contact information through our online contact form. The Quander Law Firm PLLC handles child custody case in Harris County and the surrounding counties.

Child Custody Order…. Should I Get One?

The Quander Law Firm PLLC — Mon, 05 Mar 2018 12:18:00 GMT

When a child is born between two unwed parents, there is always a possibility that the parents may split up. While the relationship may end, it won’t change the fact that there is now a child in the picture who needs to be accounted for. Often times, parents are able to co-parent and reach some form of agreement as to custody, child support, and visitation.

But what happens when the parents can’t be amicable in reaching an agreement that is in the best interest of the child? It may be time for the parties to consider obtaining a court order. The court order that I speak of is called an order in Suit Affecting the Parent Child Relationship (SAPCR).

If you are co-parenting without a child custody order in place, here are some things to consider in deciding if it’s time to get a court order:

1. Contempt/Enforceable Order: Without a court order, the parties can mutually agree on child support and visitation terms. However, if the one parent stops paying child support or denies the other parent visitation with the child, there will be no consequences for the parent’s behavior. However, if there is a court order in place, in these two instances, the violating party can be held in contempt of court and subject to jail time, fines, and/or probation.

2. Geographic Restriction: Courts in Texas encourage parents to live close to each other to encourage a positive co-parenting relationship with the parties. A court order will give the non-custodial parent a piece of mind in knowing that the custodial parent whom the child primarily lives with will be prohibited from moving with the child beyond a certain county or city.

Always keep in mind, without a court order, the parent who the child lives with is free to move wherever he/she pleases. It is much easier to ask the court to issue a geographic restriction than it is to ask the court to order a party to move back after they have already relocated to a new state, city, or country.

3. Structured Visitation Schedule: The non-custodial parent will have set days to visit with the child: usually the 1st, 3rd, and 5th weekends of each month, alternating holidays, spring break, summer vacation, and more. Without a court order, the non-custodial parent is limited to visiting with the child on the other parent’s terms. Having a structured visitation schedule will minimize the confusion between parents and provide the child with more stability.

4. Clear Explanation of your Rights and Duties: A court order will explain the rights that each parent has to the child including the right to medical and school records, consent to surgical treatment, and so much more. Additionally, the non-custodial parent’s duty to pay child support and provide medical and dental insurance will be addressed in the order as well.

5. Police Assistance: If you have been the parent whom the child has primarily lived with and you encounter a situation where the other parent refuses to give the child back to you, you will wish that you had a court order already in place. Because without a court order, the police will tell you “this is a civil matter and we cannot assist you if the other parent is the child’s father or mother.” At that point, you will have to go through the trouble of filing a lawsuit against the other parent, waiting for a hearing date, and then obtaining a court order. But if you have a court order, most police officers will assist you in peacefully getting your child back. Additionally, if you already have an order in place and the other parent won’t return the child back to you, you can immediately seek the court’s help in ensuring that the child is returned to you in a quick and safe manner.

Even if you and the other parent are operating under an informal agreement and things are going well, you can have those same terms reduced to writing in an enforceable agreed court order. The last thing you want to do is find yourself in an emergency situation wishing that you had obtained a court order for your child.