Parent-Child Relationship Modification

[StepMom in Tx]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Texas

Ill start by saying I understand I am a legal stranger in this situation just wanted some advice for my husband,he is not the best on a computer.

My husband and his ex-wife were both awarded Joint Managing Conservators in 2007.His lawyer tried to get possesion and access times to as close to 50/50 as possible,Mother getting child during school and Father every weekend,also Father all of summer vacation,rotating holidays.No child support is to be withheld from either parties earnings due to each parent has child half of the year and is ordered to support child while in there possesion.


Now mother has filed a petition to modify possesion and access time also child support.She is currently pregnant with her 4th child,she is on probation with the attorney general's office for being behind 10.000 on another child.My husband knows this because he speaks to the other childs father. Based on this information will the courts take into consideration that she owes on another child or only look at the child in this case?

Just wanted to add the child has gotten use to the visitation schedule and is very happy being able to see his Dad every weekend,he would be upset if anything was to change.

 

[Ohiogal]

Dad should also sue to keep the child on the same schedule.

 

[StepMom in Tx]

He has hired a lawyer and currently counter suing her, I was just hoping to see if anyone had knowledge of what will happen in court and what factors they will be looking at, the original decree states she is to give written notice of controversy and go through mediation instead she decided to sue.

 

[LdiJ]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Texas

Ill start by saying I understand I am a legal stranger in this situation just wanted some advice for my husband,he is not the best on a computer.

My husband and his ex-wife were both awarded Joint Managing Conservators in 2007.His lawyer tried to get possesion and access times to as close to 50/50 as possible,Mother getting child during school and Father every weekend,also Father all of summer vacation,rotating holidays.No child support is to be withheld from either parties earnings due to each parent has child half of the year and is ordered to support child while in there possesion.


Now mother has filed a petition to modify possesion and access time also child support.She is currently pregnant with her 4th child,she is on probation with the attorney general's office for being behind 10.000 on another child.My husband knows this because he speaks to the other childs father. Based on this information will the courts take into consideration that she owes on another child or only look at the child in this case?

Just wanted to add the child has gotten use to the visitation schedule and is very happy being able to see his Dad every weekend,he would be upset if anything was to change.

Her child support issue with another child would not be relevant.

Here is the problem. Judge's recognize that children need some non-school, quality time with BOTH parents. If your husband gets all the weekends, all the summer, and all the holidays, that leave virtually no non-school quality time for mom and the child.

Therefore, its very possible that the judge may give mom at least one weekend a month, and a couple of weeks of the summer to vacation, and split holidays. I think it would almost be a slam dunk for mom.

 

[StepMom in Tx]

Sorry, She has child on the weekends during summer break, Also father has child on most holidays. Thanksgiving,Christmas and July4th are alternated yearly.

 

[StepMom in Tx]

Different couties, approximately 45 mile difference.

 

[LdiJ]

Sorry, She has child on the weekends during summer break, Also father has child on most holidays. Thanksgiving,Christmas and July4th are alternated yearly.

Well, that's a little better, but think of it this way....

The child has relatives on mom's side. His only opportunity to see any relatives that don't live close by are summer weekends, and alternating Thanksgiving, Christmas and the 4th of July.

He also has a sibling that apparently lives with the father, and he has little opportunity to spend time with that sibling either.

I really think that a judge could very well give her a weekend a month during the school year and a couple of summer weeks for vacation.

Of course, dad could also move closer to mom so that they could do week on week off, and eliminate the entire problem.

 

[StepMom in Tx]

Let me just say what in my opinion brought this all about,my husband and the mother were getting along great the mother was going out of town to see her family one weekend she asked my husband if she could have child that weekend and it was fine my husband understood.That happened maybe 3/4 times since 2007,fast forward April of this year my step son came to me and said his mom and her new husband had been smoking weed around him I went straight to my husband who was at work at the time and told him what was said we both agreed the best way to handle it was to report it w/ CPS. The case is still open my husband keeps in contact with her caseworker but the caseworker will not release any details over the telephone she has sent a letter in the mail with the details,that has not come in yet.


The date on the papers my husband was served was 2 weeks after CPS opened the case.

My husband cannot move closer as we both have full time jobs,me working 60hour weeks him working 50,we also have a child together.

 

[Ohiogal]

Well, that's a little better, but think of it this way....

The child has relatives on mom's side. His only opportunity to see any relatives that don't live close by are summer weekends, and alternating Thanksgiving, Christmas and the 4th of July.

He also has a sibling that apparently lives with the father, and he has little opportunity to spend time with that sibling either.

I really think that a judge could very well give her a weekend a month during the school year and a couple of summer weeks for vacation.

Of course, dad could also move closer to mom so that they could do week on week off, and eliminate the entire problem.

Or mom could move closer to dad. I do not believe it is a definite that a court will give mom a weekend a month. SHE AGREED TO THIS ORDER. She decided it was a good order. So what has changed that requires a change in custody? Except mom's mind?

 

[StepMom in Tx]

Thank you all for your insights,my husband was both surprised and upset when he was served with this.


The other child's father that she owes back child support on told my husband he spoke w/ the childs mother earlier this year and she was asking him how he ended up making her pay child support,that is when she said ill just take so and so (my husband/childs father) back to court and just use his child support to pay yours,she also stated because she didnt want to work or go to jail.

Sorry if I lost any of you there.

Would the other childs fathers words be worth anything in the courts ?

 

[LdiJ]

Or mom could move closer to dad. I do not believe it is a definite that a court will give mom a weekend a month. SHE AGREED TO THIS ORDER. She decided it was a good order. So what has changed that requires a change in custody? Except mom's mind?

As you are fond of pointing out, frequently, a change in parenting time (not custody) does not require a change in circumstance.

 

[LdiJ]

Thank you all for your insights,my husband was both surprised and upset when he was served with this.


The other child's father that she owes back child support on told my husband he spoke w/ the childs mother earlier this year and she was asking him how he ended up making her pay child support,that is when she said ill just take so and so (my husband/childs father) back to court and just use his child support to pay yours,she also stated because she didnt want to work or go to jail.

Sorry if I lost any of you there.

Would the other childs fathers words be worth anything in the courts ?

Maybe, maybe not...its that whole credibility issue. Members of dad's family or mom's other ex generally are going to be assumed to be biased, even if they have very relevant testimony to provide.

Mom could honestly take your husband to court for child support because the current situation really is NOT 50/50.

Ignoring major holidays, because they balance out, dad has about 150 days a year with the children and mom has about 215 on the average. Therefore mom absolutely could ask for child support and get it, despite the fact that she agreed to forego it originally.

Mom getting a weekend once a month and a couple of weeks in the summer wouldn't change that one way or another in TX, because the TX calculation doesn't take that into consideration.

I also don't think that your husband can count on the CPS case to help him, because obviously CPS didn't yank the kids.

 

[CJane]

My husband cannot move closer as we both have full time jobs,me working 60hour weeks him working 50,we also have a child together.

Were those roughly the work schedules y'all had when this order was created?

What was Mom's work schedule? What is it now?

Did the 45 mile distance already exist?

Who created that distance?

CPS for smoking Pot? (Maybe, if you believe that kiddo knows what pot is and blah blah blah) I hope no kids who're ACTUALLY in danger died while you were wasting the investigator's time.

 

[StepMom in Tx]

Were those roughly the work schedules y'all had when this order was created?

What was Mom's work schedule? What is it now?

Did the 45 mile distance already exist?

Who created that distance?

CPS for smoking Pot? (Maybe, if you believe that kiddo knows what pot is and blah blah blah) I hope no kids who're ACTUALLY in danger died while you were wasting the investigator's time.

Yes those were the same work schedules as when the order was put in place.

The mother did not work at the time and hasnt worked since.

The distance has always been the same.

CPS for weed YES,when a 6 yr old child comes to you and says his mother and stepdad are smoking weed yes his exact words so he must have heard what it was from somewhere and that he has a hard time breathing from it there is a serious problem that needs to be adressed.

 

[StepMom in Tx]

Ignoring major holidays, because they balance out, dad has about 150 days a year with the children and mom has about 215 on the average. Therefore mom absolutely could ask for child support and get it, despite the fact that she agreed to forego it originally.

I acually counted out the days for 2009 just to get the exact number ... Mom getting 201 days Dad getting 164 so Mom has 34 more days than Dad does.