When parents of minor children divorce or go their separate ways outside of marriage and divorce, the matter of child custody takes center stage. In Texas, legal matters that directly affect the well-being of children are always based on their best interests, and the involved legalities are challenging. Reach out for the professional legal counsel of an experienced Waco child custody attorney today.

Establishing the Children’s Best Interests

Texas looks to varying factors when determining the best interests of the children addressed by child custody cases. The prevailing belief, however, is that children fare better when they maintain a close, loving relationship with both parents. This means that both legal custody and parenting time are generally shared. 

The degree and manner of sharing these joint terms, however, can vary considerably. Finally, it is important to note that, when there is a serious reason for doing so, a parent can be cut out of both physical and legal custody or can face serious restraints, such as supervised visitation. 

Legal Custody

Texas uses the term conservatorship for legal custody, and it determines how the parents will make important parenting decisions moving forward. The kinds of decisions involved include those that determine the children’s schooling and daycare, health care, extracurriculars, and religious upbringing.

When legal custody is joint, the parents make these decisions together, but one parent may be granted the authority to break a tie in the event that reaching a compromise is not possible. These decisions can also be divided between the parents according to category.

Physical Custody

Texas uses the term possession and access for physical custody. Best interest factors that help determine the parenting time schedule in Texas include the following:

• The children’s ages and needs, including any special needs
• Each parent’s ability to effectively address the children’s needs
• The suitability of the home each parent offers
• The level of each parent’s involvement in raising the children to date
• Each parent’s commitment to successful co-parenting and to bolstering the other’s close and ongoing relationship with the children
• How well the children’s current situation in terms of home, school, and community serves them
• The distance the parents live from one another

There are situations in which the children’s best interests are better served when one parent takes on the primary custodial role. This means receiving more overnights with the children and deciding where they make their primary residence within the mileage limits set by the court. In these cases, the other parent is likely to receive a standard possession order or a visitation schedule that the parents hammer out between themselves. 

An Experienced Waco Child Custody Lawyer Cares about You and Your Case 

Brett Pritchard at The Law Office of Brett H. Pritchard is a dedicated Waco child custody attorney who understands the immensity of these cases and never waivers in his focused commitment to our clients’ legal rights. We are here to help, so please do not delay contacting or calling us at 254-781-4222 and scheduling a free consultation today.