Modifications

Once a Court has issued an order related to children, that is not always the end of the story. During your child’s life, both you and your child will experience many changes. Under Texas law, a material and substantial change in the circumstances of a party is grounds for modifications.

Modifications of the Right to Designate the Primary Residence
In Texas, only one parent can have the right to designate the primary residence of the child. Once this is done, there are some very specific circumstances that have to occur in order to change that designation.

In order to change the person who has the right to designate the primary residence, the person seeking the change must establish one of the following:

1. That there has been a change that is significant enough to warrant such a change;

2. That the child is over 12 years in age, desires to live with the other parent and it is in the best interest of the child that this change occur; or

3. That the other conservator has voluntarily relinquished the child for a period of at least six months.

You may also change specific rights of either conservator – for example the right to make educational decisions so long as there has been a circumstance that would warrant such a change. Speaking with an attorney about your specific fact situation is usually the best way to determine if you would qualify for a modification. Let us help.

Modifications of Visitation
People move, children grow up and have extracurricular activities, parties change employment – all of these can wreak havoc on your possession schedule. Changing a possession schedule can be done either by agreement or by Court order.

Modification of visitation can mean anything from covering extracurricular activities, to setting up electronic visitation through FaceTime. Because of the number of different options, please call us to discuss what you modification may entail.

Modifications of Child Support
Once a child is under the jurisdiction of the Court, the Office of the Attorney General, by law is responsible for processing child support payments. If you have ever had the pleasure of working with this agency, you know how time consuming and frustrating the situations can be.

Sometimes they never receive the original Order, or by the time they do, you have an arrearage that you actually paid, but because the other parent won’t fill out the appropriate paperwork, you are stuck with a large balance due and owing in the Attorney General’s record. There is help.

There are motions and orders that can modify and ultimately fix this situation.

Additionally, either parent is entitled to seek a modification every three years if the amount of child support is in accordance with the guideline of the Texas Family Code. So you may not need to establish a material and substantial change to qualify for a modification. If you have questions, let our team help.