Child Custody and Visitation

Knowing the laws regarding visitation in Texas makes planning visitation time easier on all members of the family. Texas has precise laws governing parental visitation after divorce and also has laws regarding grandparent visitation, as well as, parent visitation when the child is in foster care. In all situations, the child's best interests are taken into account when scheduling visitation times.

Texas Family Code supports having parents make their own written custody plan. Parents may have joint custody or one parent may be the "sole managing conservator," giving the other parent visitation rights. If the parents agree on a custody plan that the judge deems is in the child's best interest, the family may maintain the agreed upon schedule. In cases where the parents are unable to agree, or the judge feels the child's best interests are not being addressed, the parents may enter arbitration or accept the court's recommended visitation schedule.
Standard Possession Order

The standard possession order is a court-specified visitation schedule for parents who are unable to agree on a visitation plan or who are seeking the court's assistance. The order provides a detailed visitation schedule for situations including parents who live within 100 miles of each other, parents who live more than 100 miles from each other and military parents. The standard possession order addresses weekday and weekend visitation, as well as holiday visitation, visitation during school breaks and a plan for summer visitation.
Foster Care Visitation

Children in foster care or otherwise under the care of Texas's Department of Family and Protective Services are encouraged to maintain contact and visitation with their parents and other family members, when visitation is in the child's best interest. According to the Child Protective Services (CPS) handbook, in cases where family reunification is sought, parental visitation should take place at least once a month and may be either supervised or unsupervised, depending on the child's best interests at the time. In cases where reunification is not a possibility, CPS works to determine a visitation schedule that meets each child's best interests.
Grandparents Visitation

Texas grandparents may petition for visitation when they feel it is in the child's best interest, according to the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services. Grandparent visitation is only granted if a court decides visitation is in the best interest of the child and if the parents have divorced, the child has been abused by a parent, a parent's rights have been terminated by a court, the child has lived with the grandparent for a minimum of six months or one of the child's parents is in prison, deceased or incompetent. Grandparents are not granted visitation when the child has been adopted, except in cases of step-parent adoption.

If you are in need of a Frisco, TX family lawyer, contact Thering McCarley, Attorneys at Law.