Considering a child custody case in Texas? Having young children go through a family law case can be difficult. Managing their emotions as well as your own is no small task. Being able to walk the fine line of being a good parent and managing your child custody case is not simple. Feeling certain emotions during the case may cause you to go through a great deal of feelings that need processing. Understanding that many parents feel this way when entering a child custody case is reassuring. However, being a good parent and managing your case effectively is exactly what you are called upon to do.
Anticipating the issues in a child custody case means looking forward to what can impact your child most significantly. Working through the issues can also mean thinking about what matters the most to you. Factoring in the present circumstances of your family and those in the future, visitation ends up being a focus point much of the time. Having the ability to spend time with your children matters a great deal. Spending time with your child, visitation, and possession are especially relevant.
The attorneys with the Law Office of Bryan Fagan can help
Talking about subjects like visitation and possession means having a plan. Do you know what your plan is to win the rights, duties, and time you need with your child? If not, that is the place you need to get to. Wandering into a child custody case is possible. Wandering out of a child custody case having achieved any goals is downright impossible. Therefore, thinking ahead of time about your goals is the great equalizer.
The Law Office of Bryan Fagan is here to help you. Our attorneys work inside the courtrooms of Texas, serving clients. However, we also take the time to get to know you, your family, and your circumstances. Setting goals with our clients is an important part of representation. Knowing that the first step towards goal setting is learning about the process you are involved in helps.
Our attorneys have the heart of a teacher. We do not dictate to clients what to do. Rather, we educate you on the issues relevant to your case and allow you the space to make your own choices.
Scheduling a free-of-charge consultation with our experienced family law attorneys is simple. Contact us today by phone or through our website for a free of charge consultation. These are thirty-minute phone calls that make a huge difference in your life and your case. Imagining all these things about a family law case is not the same as learning about them. Worrying about what could happen in your family law case does not make sense. Removing the fear from your case means gaining knowledge. The Law Office of Bryan Fagan is here to help.
Custody matters in a Texas family law case
Reading through this blog post, it is apparent that you are a parent who cares about your child. Or else, why read this blog post? Considering the different activities available to you, reading a family law blog post doesn’t seem like fun. That said, it is important to know about these issues before your case begins. When your case has already started, that importance level is ramped up even higher.
Forgetting this essential point is a mistake. Having a thorough understanding of issues related to child custody puts you in rarified air when it comes to a child custody case. Imagining success in a child custody case means putting yourself in a position where you can possess as much knowledge as possible. Denying this reality serves no purpose and does you no good. You need to spend time learning about the basics of family law to achieve success.
This blog post is your first lesson in that endeavor. Joining up with the attorneys with the Law Office of Bryan Fagan means growing your knowledge base. For instance, child custody is not an actual family law term. Rather, conservatorship is the appropriate term utilized when referencing time, rights, and duties associated with your child. Custody is a familiar term but it is casual and not legal.
Visitation rights in a child custody case
Beginning a child custody case means determining what parent you want to be. In a child custody case, there is a noncustodial parent and a custodial parent. Sharing rights and duties concerning your child is the typical result of a child custody case. However, figuring out how those rights and duties are shared matters a great deal. Some of these rights and duties are shared equally. On the other hand, there are conservatorship rights not shared equally, as well.
Focusing on the differences in these conservatorship rights is a good decision. Rights mean the ability to make decisions on behalf of your child. Duties means providing certain necessities for your child. Both parents in your child custody case provide for and have rights to your child. The key is determining how that division occurs. What rights go to you and what rights go to your co-parent?
Typically, one parent is the primary conservator of your child. This parent has the right to determine the primary residence of your child. Along with this right is the ability to receive child support. Expect that this designation is the most sought-after title in your entire child custody case. Becoming the primary conservator of your child is the likeliest reason why a trial is necessary in your case.
Standard Possession Order
On the other hand, the parent who is not the primary conservator gains visitation rights. These visitation rights mean having consistent and predictable time with your child. This is good in multiple ways. For one, possessing your child consistently is good for your relationship. Your child benefits from seeing you consistently. Also, your relationship with your co-parent is more stable due to the predictable nature of your visitation schedule.
Visitation rights are covered under a Standard Possession Order. You and your co-parent can create whatever possession schedule you prefer. However, not being able to agree on a possession schedule means that a Standard Possession Schedule is more likely to be ordered. A judge presumes that a Standard Possession Order is in your child’s best interests. Here are the hallmarks of a Standard Possession Order.
First, the Standard Possession Order allows for predictability in visitation. You do not need to worry about planning when it comes to a Standard Possession Order. The Order determines when both parents see your child. Looking to your court order provides you with clarity and direction regarding the possession of your child. Reviewing your court order regularly to familiarize yourself with its orders is a good idea. Being prepared for upcoming weeks and months for possession is the result.
Sharing custody and time with a co-parent
Remember that under a Standard Possession Order, you share possession with your co-parent. Even though you are not always on the same page with this person when it comes to parenting, respecting him or her is essential. Honoring your commitments under the Standard Possession Order is how you do this. Abiding by the Standard Possession Order also holds you both accountable to your objective of looking out for the best interests of your child.
For many parents in your shoes, this is the most difficult of the entire shared parenting part of the equation. Learning how to co-parent does not come naturally. You need to take steps to learn how to co-parent effectively. This means paying attention during any necessary co-parenting classes during your case. It also means addressing the day-to-day needs of your child with your co-parent.
Confirming the timing and logistics of dropping off and picking up children with your co-parent is especially important right after your child custody case comes to an end. This is the period when parents are learning about the schedule and how to manage periods of possession. Take the time to learn your schedule so that no issues arise with your co-parent.
Complex lives require creative possession schedules
Having a complex life is a reality that many of us have to face. Multiple jobs means having multiple start and stop times for work on any given day. This makes coordinating time with our children more difficult. Going through a child custody case with a difficult-to-manage work schedule means being able to think creatively. Coming up with a possession schedule that works for you and your co-parent is challenging.
Therefore, having the advice and perspective of an experienced family law attorney is important. An attorney with the Law Office of Bryan Fagan provides you with a distinct advantage regarding this subject. We have the experience you need to be able to draft a possession order that reflects the realities of your family. Our attorneys walk with people needing custody orders that suit their complex lives every day. Serving your family is something we take seriously.
What is a geographic restriction?
The topic of discussion today is geographic restriction. Starting a child custody case means not being familiar with every term utilized in the world of Texas family law. Geographic restrictions are not the most well-known term in family law. Most people coming into a family law case are unfamiliar with this term.
Geographic restrictions are how courts control where children can live after a family law case. Consider this hypothetical situation to illustrate this point. Finishing out your child custody case, you and your co-parent both want to serve your children well. You are both happy with the children’s school and their life in your area. However, each of you is concerned that the other may decide to leave.
Considering your options means accounting for the needs of your child now and in the future. One of those needs relates to stability for your household. Being able to account for where your child goes to school depends on where he lives. Restricting where your child lives means having more control over the rest of your child’s life.
This is where geographic restrictions come in handy. You and your co-parent agree to a certain area where your child can live on a primary basis. This is a geographic restriction.
More on geographic restrictions
You and your co-parent have options when it comes to creating a geographic restriction. Creating a restrictive geographic restriction has its advantages. Having a set place in mind where you want your children to reside it makes sense to specify this in your court orders. Specifying a particular school district, zip code or other identifying marker are among the more restrictive and specific geographic restrictions available.
Creating a broader area in your geographic restriction has its advantages, as well. For example, knowing the general area where you want your child to live is a normal situation. Many parents create a geographic restriction involving their home county and all adjacent counties. For Houston, this would look like Harris County along with each county that surrounds Harris. Putting your child in a position where he or she is thriving and active in the community is a great motivator to creating a geographic restriction.
Why do geographic restrictions not work well sometimes?
Being careful about instituting a geographic restriction is a good decision. Deciding on the geographic restriction is an important juncture in your case. The specific limitations of your geographic restriction may look good now. However, not being able to predict the future makes it difficult to determine whether the restriction makes sense in that period. Therefore, careful consideration is necessary when you are deciding about geographic restrictions. Acting carefully before selecting a geographic restriction is prudent.
Imagine a scenario where you land the job of a lifetime. This job checks all the boxes: great pay, great benefits, and professional fulfillment. The job checks all these boxes except one: it is located in Dallas and you live in Houston. What’s more- there is a geographic restriction on where your child can live from your divorce. Your children cannot live outside Harris County. What are you going to do about this?
In some situations, it makes sense to negotiate an informal modification to different areas of your child custody orders. Simple things like child support payments and weekend possession are examples where temporary modifications make sense. However, a new job in Dallas is anything but simple or minor. This is a huge shift in your life and that of your children. Take this seriously and understand that an informal modification with your co-parent would not work.
Options for lifting a geographic restriction
First, discuss the new job with your co-parent. This is not something that you can hide from him or her for long. In some situations, your co-parent may agree to lift the restriction. This is far-fetched, I will grant you that, but parents have made trickier visitation arrangements than this workout. The only way you will find out is through talking with your co-parent.
Assuming that your co-parent will not willingly allow you to leave for Dallas you need to consider how to get the geographic restriction lifted. This is done through a modification case. A modification of the geographic restriction means convincing a family court judge of two things. First, lifting the geographic restriction is in the best interests of your child. Next, the reason for lifting the geographic restriction is based on a material of substantial change in circumstances.
It is an uphill climb to have a geographic restriction lifted for this reason. Moving across the state severely limits your co-parent’s ability to have a relationship with your children. Therefore it is difficult to argue that the move is in your child’s best interests. However, finding yourself in this position does not mean giving up. It means having a good attorney to provide you with information and context about the case.
Closing thoughts on child custody geographic restrictions in Texas
Restrictions on where your child can live limit both parents, as well. As a parent with visitation rights, you cannot necessarily live wherever you want. Moving outside that geographic area means that your co-parent and the kids can do the same. A geographic restriction is intended to protect the relationship between a noncustodial parent and their children.
There are many moving pieces in a geographic restriction-related child custody case. Hiring the right family law attorney to represent you is important. Combining great legal skills and superior communication skills is an important combination for your lawyer to possess. Thank you for spending time on the blog for the Law Office of Bryan Fagan. We post unique and interesting information each day on our blog for our community to read and benefit from.
Questions about the material contained in today’s blog post? Contact the Law Office of Bryan Fagan
If you have any questions about the material contained in today’s blog post please do not hesitate to contact the Law Office of Bryan Fagan. Our licensed family law attorneys offer free-of-charge consultations six days a week in person, over the phone, and via video. These consultations are a great way to learn more about the world of Texas family law. How your family is impacted by the filing of a divorce or child custody case is also conveyed in these consultations.
Evan Hochschild was raised in Houston, TX and graduated from Cypress Creek High School. He went on to graduate from Southwestern University in Georgetown, TX with an undergraduate degree in Political Science. While in college, Evan was a four-year letterman on the Cross Country team.
Following in the footsteps of his grandfather and uncle before him, Evan attended law school after he completed in his undergraduate studies. He graduated from St. Mary’s University School of Law and has practiced in a variety of areas in the law- including family law.
Mr. Hochschild is guided by principles which place the interests of clients first. Additionally, Evan seeks to provide information and support for his clients with the heart of a teacher.
Evan and his wife have four small children together. He enjoys afternoons out and about with his family, teaching Sunday school at his church and exercising. A veteran attorney of fourteen years, Mr. Hochschild excels in communicating complex ideas in family law simply and directly.
