4 Things You Should Know About Parental Alienation and Child Custody in Texas

It is common to see one parent trying to turn their child against the other when contending for child custody during or after a divorce. This act is called parental alienation and can affect children’s and their parents’ relationships. 

In Texas, parental alienation can affect the Judge’s verdict on child custody. Nothing should come between you and your relationship with your child; any co-parent intentionally undermining that relationship or knowingly and recklessly trying to turn your child against you may be responsible for parental alienation.

Generally, the courts try as much as possible to protect the child’s interest and agree that both parents should be involved in the child’s life. However, if one parent tries to alienate the other, the court may see this as detrimental to the child and ultimately allows the other parent to take custody of the child.

Read on to learn about  four things you should know about parent alienation and child custody in Texas, and they are;

1. Parental alienation is recognized in Texas family law.

Parental alienation is considered a form of emotional damage in the family law. It is determined as a factor that determines child custody decisions; if a parent is found guilty of such an offense, it can lead to loss of custody or even restriction of child visitation. Although, proving parental alienation might hard and strenuous and need concrete evidence of deliberate manipulations and harm to the children’s relationship with the co-parent

2. False accusations of parental alienation can be counterproductive.

At times, some parents can accuse the co-parent of parental alienation. And if the investigation is carried out and the accused parent is found innocent of the accusation, the parent who laid the false accusation would lose custody of the child, which can even lead to the withdrawal of visitation rights of the child because the parent already caused a lack of trust and unnecessary trauma for the child.

3. Co-parenting helps in preventing parental alienation.

Co-parenting can also go a long way in preventing parental alienation because if parents work together to train, their child is less likely to engage in parental alienation. Both parents must work together to encourage and support the child’s relationship with the other parent, even in conflict or disagreement. 

4. The court takes parental alienation as a serious offense.  

The Texas court takes parental alienation as a severe offense and sees it as a threat to the child if a parent is found alienating a child. The court might order counseling for the child and alienated parent, and the alienating parent will be called to attend counseling classes to address the issue.

Conclusion

Parental alienation is a serious issue that affects the child, hence, the determination of child custody. Remember that co-parenting is the best way to avoid parental alienation. However, if you are accused of parent alienation or feel alienated, kindly contact our professional family lawyer, experienced in handling complex parent alienation cases today, to get started.