The Texas law on child conservatorship encourages parents to share the duties and rights of raising their children after separation or divorce. In simple words, this is known as co-parenting. While co-parenting is a challenging task, it is often essential for the well-being of children whose parents are no longer in a romantic relationship. In this article, we will discuss some tips and strategies for successful co-parenting.

Be Flexible

Being flexible is a key strategy for successful co-parenting. Be willing to adjust your schedules, routines, and plans to accommodate your co-parent and child's needs. Flexibility shows your child that you're committed to co-parenting and that you're willing to put their needs first. Also, be open to compromise and find solutions for everyone involved.

Keep Your Child's Best Interests in Mind

Co-parenting is all about putting your child's needs first. Keep in mind that your child is the priority, and their happiness, health, and well-being should be the focus. Avoid using your child as a bargaining tool, and don't use them to send messages or communicate with your co-parent. Focus on your child's needs, and work together to provide them with a stable, loving, and nurturing environment.

Child custody and relocation are two highly complex issues that can greatly impact the lives of children involved in a divorce or separation. Following a separation or divorce, Texas courts often encourage joint conservatorship so both parents share rights and responsibilities in raising their children. Parents considering relocation must understand the potential impact it may have on their child custody arrangement and the emotional well-being of their children. 

In this guide, we will discuss the impact of relocation on children and the legal considerations that must be taken into account in such cases.

Legal Considerations for Child Custody and Relocation

When parents separate, one of the most challenging issues they face is determining their children's custody and visitation schedule. When one parent desires to move to a new location that is a significant distance away, it can add complexity to child custody issues. The court examines various factors when deciding custody arrangements, such as the child's age, requirements, and relationship with both parents. In situations where a parent wants to relocate, the court considers additional factors that are as follows:

In a perfect world, parents who decide to end their marriage are able to come to an agreement on custody and visitation. Unfortunately, it is far more common for parents to disagree on child custody arrangements and a complex court battle often ensues. In these cases, the court will typically order a custody evaluation, also referred to as a social study in Texas family law. The following is a brief overview of this process. If you are divorcing your spouse and anticipate a complex child custody dispute, make sure to contact Powers and Kerr, PLLC for legal assistance.

What Is Involved in a Custody Evaluation?

When parents are unable to present an agreed-upon parenting plan to the court, the judge may order a custody evaluation in order to obtain additional information regarding the background and lifestyle of each parent, their parenting styles, the type of home environment they could provide the child, their employment situation, and relationship status. The evaluations are usually conducted by social workers or some other professional whose background includes working with children and families.

One of the most difficult issues to work through in many Texas divorces is child custody. Even if the couple agrees that divorce is the best option for their future, agreeing on what happens with their children is something that they may not agree on.

However, if the couple cannot negotiate and agree on child custody and parenting plan, the judge presiding over their divorce will make that decision for them and their decision may not be one that either parent wants.

Negotiating a Parenting Plan

A parenting plan puts in writing how the couple will co-parent in the future. Some of the issues that need to be addressed include:

Determining child custody and parenting time in a Texas divorce can be a complex issue to navigate around. It can become even more complex if the two parents do not live in close proximity to each other. When this is the case, there are certain factors besides the typical custody and parenting time decisions that need to be addressed.

The State of Texas

In many other states in the nation, traveling issues do not often need to be addressed when the parents live in the same state. Their state is small enough that distance does not really become a problem. Traveling does need to be addressed if the parents live in different states.

But Texas is the second largest state in the country. It takes up almost 10 percent of the total land size of the United States. Going from Point A to Point B often involves hours of driving or a trip to one of the state’s four major airports.