Three Benefits to Having a Possession Order for Your Child

The Quander Law Firm PLLC — Tue, 22 Aug 2017 12:41:00 GMT

The 2017-2018 school year is upon us and we hope that it is off to a great start. While this is often an exciting experience for children, the school year can be overwhelming for parents. Between preparing lunch, getting the child to school on time, checking homework, and working long hours at work, chaos is sure to ensue. Luckily, parents who are co-parenting find that having a visitation order in place minimizes confusion during the year.

In Texas, a visitation order is often referred to as a “possession order.” Generally, when parents cannot agree upon a visitation plan for their child, the court will likely intervene and issue a standard visitation schedule.

If you are the non-custodial parent of a child, a possession order will help to ensure that you are able to exercise your legal visitation rights with your child.

Custodial parents will also benefit from a possession order because the non-custodial parent must visit with the child pursuant to the order.

Here are Three Benefits to Having a Possession Order

1. All Parties Will Have a Better Structured Life

The possession order will designate the dates and times that the non-custodial parent can spend with their child. This will minimize conflict between parents as they will no longer be fighting over what days the child can spend the night with the other parent. The order will also provide stability for a child who is having to go between two households.

Additionally, the frequent contact with the non-custodial parent will ensure that both parents have an opportunity to have a strong bond with the child.

2. Right to Enforce the Order

Without a possession order in place, the non-custodial parent has no recourse when the custodial parent refuses to let them see their child.

However, a possession order allows a party to seek court intervention when visitation is being denied.

Vice versa, the possession order will also protect the custodial parent if the other parent refuses to return the child at the end of their visitation period.

3. Uninterrupted Periods of Visitation

The benefit of obtaining a Standard or Expanded Possession Order is that the visitation will be uninterrupted during the designated time periods.

The Standard Possession Order is the most common possession schedule that provides the non-custodial parent with the minimum amount of time that the court deems appropriate as described below.

For parents who live within 100 miles of each other, the non-custodial parent has visitation:

The first, third, and fifth weekends of every month
Thursday evenings of each week
Alternating holidays
Extended periods of time during summer vacation (usually 30 days)

However, with the Expanded Possession Order, the non-custodial parent will receive more time with the child as follows:

Weekends: When school is dismissed, the non-custodial parent can pick up the child when school is dismissed on Friday and return the child when the child’s school resumes the following Monday.

Thursdays: During the school year, the non-custodial parent can pick up the child when school is dismissed on Friday and return the child when the child’s school resumes the following Friday.

Holidays: The Expanded Possession Order also provides greater periods of possession for some holidays (Christmas, Thanksgiving, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day) and for extended weekends due to the holiday.

Summer Vacation: The non-custodial parent will normally receive 30 days of visitation with the child.

Contact The Quander Law Firm PLLC Today

If you need a knowledgeable attorney to assist you with obtaining a possession order for your child, call us at (832) 930-7139 to schedule a consultation or send us an email at info@quanderlawfirm.com.

What to Do When the Other Parent Won’t Let You See Your Child

The Quander Law Firm PLLC — Tue, 22 Nov 2016 12:45:00 GMT

When a child is born, both parents have an equal right to care for and participate in the upbringing of that child. However, when the parents separate, one parent, the primary caretaker, generally has exclusive right to designate the primary residence of the child and the other parent has the right to possession of the child, also known as visitation.

One of the most common issues that a parent has to deal with is being denied their right to visit with their child. The primary care-taking parent often has several excuses to justify the denied visits. Regardless of the reason for denying visitation, absent extreme circumstances, a parent should never be prevented from seeing their child.

Having your visitation periods blocked by the other parent can be very frustrating and sadly, most parents feel that they have to settle for this type of behavior. If you are in this situation, I encourage you to seek court intervention immediately. The longer you take to address this situation; the more time you are spending away from your child. This article will address what to do when the other parent refuses to let you see your child.

Step 1: Act. If you already have a court order for your child, please proceed to Step 2.

If you do not have a current court order in place that outlines your rights and obligations to your child, please obtain one immediately. The court order will specify the custody rights that each parent has with respect to the child. Specifically, the order will state the visitation periods that the non-custodial parent is entitled to.

For example, generally, the Standard Possession Order grants the non-custodial parent the right to visit with the child on the 1st, 3rd, and 5th weekend of every month. Additionally, holidays and birthdays are also accounted for in this order.

There are many advantages of having a court order in place for your child. First, it prevents the custodial parent from having the power to choose when he or she wants you to see the child. Second, it helps to establish a consistent visitation schedule that both you and your child can look forward to. Third, without a court order in place, the court can never punish the denying parent for violating a non-existent court order.

Step 2: Record. Once you have a court order in place, be sure to record and keep a journal of the dates and times that you were denied your visitation periods with your child. This paper trail will be vital and useful in assisting you and your attorney with Step 3 below.

Remember, absent a mutual agreement with you and the other parent, you MUST exercise your visitation periods in the manner stated in the court order. For example, if the order states that you are to pick up the child from the other parent’s home on the 1st, 3rd, and 5th weekend of every month, at 6 p.m., then you need to comply with the court order. When you show up at the other parent’s house at the designated time period, and the child is not released to you, document this incident in your journal.

If your exchange location is at a restaurant or gas station, go inside the establishment and make a small purchase and keep your receipt. The receipt will show that you were at the exchange location ready to pick your child up as ordered by the court.

Additionally, don’t be afraid to call or send the other parent a text message stating that you are there to pick up the child. It will be hard for the other parent to explain to a judge why they didn’t show up to exchange the child knowing that you were there to pick the child up.

Step 3: Enforce. Once it is established that the other parent is violating the court order by denying you your visitation periods, you need to file an enforcement action for possession and access against the other parent. This will be your opportunity to reference each time and date that you have been keeping track of in your journal.

There are several consequences for violating a court order: contempt of court, fines, jail-time, and or probation. You are free to request either of these ramifications from the court when you file your enforcement action.

A hearing will be held on your enforcement action and at the conclusion of the hearing, the court will decide what is the appropriate sanction for the non-compliant parent.

Remember, the court cannot enforce what they do not know about. It is up to you to bring it to the court’s attention that you are being denied your visits with your child. You owe it to yourself and to your child to hold the violating parent accountable for their actions.

If you sit back and allow the other parent to continue violating the court order, you are only empowering them to continue behaving this way. Take the power back that you have as a parent and fight for your visitation rights with your child.

The Quander Law Firm believes in advocating for the mothers and fathers who want to be in their child’s life, yet are being denied the opportunity to do so. If you need help obtaining a court order for your child or enforcing an order, please contact us at (832) 930-7139 for an initial consultation.