Mansfield-Fort Worth Visitation Rights Attorney
When a divorce is looming in the near distance, it is natural to start feeling anxious about things like visitation rights. Two very common questions we hear at the Law Office of Wendy L. Hart is, “When will I see my children?” and “What if it’s not enough?”
Visitation is often a serious issue among fathers, non-custodial parents, grandparents, and other family members, and whether you are applying for more visitation rights, modifying visitation rights, or seeking to reduce the visitation rights of the other parent, you’ll need the services of an experienced and capable Mansfield-Fort Worth visitation rights attorney.
At the Law Office of Wendy L. Hart, we have helped thousands of Fort-Worth residents with their visitation rights, and we are prepared to help you too.
Basics of Texas Visitation Rights
A child’s legal parents are based on several factors, and unless a family court makes specific orders about visitation, you don’t have greater rights to visitation as long as one of the following is true:
- You are the child’s mother
- You were legally married to the child’s mother when the child was born
- You signed an Acknowledgement of Paternity
- You were declared the child’s parent in a court order
During a divorce, and especially when issues of custody and child support are being settled, visitation rights almost always come up. Usually this can be done in the court’s order granting divorce; it can also be done with a Paternity Decree or in a Suit Affecting the Parent-Child Relationship.
Generally speaking, the non-custodial parent (the parent who does not have primary custody of the child) has the right to spend time with the child and know the whereabouts of the child; the noncustodial parent cannot, however, decide where the child will live.
Also, if the noncustodial parent lives within 100 miles of the child, he/she may have the following visitation rights:
- First, third, and fifth weekends of every month
- Thursday evenings of each week
- Alternating holidays
- An extended period of time (30 days) during summer vacation
If the parents live more than 100 miles apart, then the following visitation rights may apply:
- Weekend schedule may be the same or reduced to one weekend a month
- No mid-week visitation
- Holiday schedule remains the same
- Noncustodial parent has child(ren) every spring break and for a longer period extended in the summer
Contact Your Mansfield-Fort Worth Visitation Attorney
Visitation rights can be a complex, emotionally difficult endeavor, especially when it involves the court’s determination of the child’s best interests. Whether changing or modifying visitation rights, going to court because the other parent isn’t upholding the visitation rights, or so forth, you may need the legal counsel and representation of an experienced family law attorney.
Mansfield-Fort Worth visitation rights attorney Wendy L. Hart will devote extensive resources to protecting your rights and interests. Call our Mansfield law office at (817) 842-2336 and we’ll get started today.
