Courts give custody to the parent who demonstrates he / she is better capable of addressing the child’s best interests. Gender bias is not permitted.
They do this by looking at a variety of factors to assess which parent is better capable of addressing the child’s needs to serve as the child’s custodial parent. In Texas, this is commonly referred to as the parent who has the right to determine the primary domicile of the child. To start, the Courts typically look at the following when evaluating the parenting skills of the respective parents:
- Desires of the child;
- Emotional & physical needs of the child, now and in the future;
- Emotional & physical dangers to the child, now and in the future;
- Parental abilities of the parties requesting custody;
- Programs and family support available to assist the parties to promote the best interests of the child;
- Each parents prospective plan for the child and the child’s future care;
- Stability of each parent’s home; and
- Acts or omissions by the parties that affected the child and the reasons for each act or omission that impacted the child.
I have successfully obtained custody for mothers and fathers.