In Texas, courts believe that spending consistent and regular periods of time with both parents during and after the divorce process helps the child feel safe and secure. In order to make this possible, courts lean toward awarding joint conservatorship and requiring parents to create a parenting plan.
A parenting plan is a document that details the specific rights and responsibilities of each parent. The goal of a parenting plan is to promote stability and decrease conflict, keeping the child away from adult drama as much as possible. In Texas, most parenting plans are governed by a Standard Possession Order, or SPO. However, the State of Texas encourages families to create whatever schedule fits their own unique needs. It’s when they can’t agree that they have to use the Standard Possession Order. Once they create a plan they both agree on, they present it to the court for approval.
In Texas, the court tries to award joint managing conservatorship whenever possible. This means both parents share in making decisions regarding the child and typically, only one parent has the right to determine the child's permanent residency. However, the parents can agree that neither parent has that right and that the child’s primary residence will be within the school district or county where the child is living. According to the SPO, one parent will have the child the first, third, and fifth weekend of each month, alternate holidays, and extended time during the summer. Parents may create a modified plan if the child has special needs, their school or extracurricular schedule varies, or a parent's work schedule varies.
In the beginning, each parent creates their own plan, being as specific as possible. They then compare plans and decide how they can work together to create one plan that will benefit both parents and the child. Important issues to consider should be:
- Physical custody – Parents should decide if one of them will be the custodial parent and the other the noncustodial parent. The custodial parent will have the right to decide the child's primary residency. One other option is neither parent is “primary” and the child’s primary residence is within a school district or county.
- Legal custody – Parents decide how they will share or divide decision-making rights and responsibilities when it comes to the child's education, as well as the culture and religion in which they will be raised.
- Exchange times – Parents decide when they will meet to drop the child off for the next parent's assigned visitation time.
- Communication rules – Will one parent be allowed to contact the child during the other's visitation time? If so, must the parent be present?
- School events – Will both parents be allowed to attend school events at the same time, or will one parent attend academic and musical events while the other attends sports events?
- Transportation – Parents decide specific times for school pick-up and drop off.
- Medical health – Who will take the child to doctor's appointments?
- Child's birthdays – Will each parent have access to the child during their birthday, or will one parent have to celebrate on a different day?
Other issues to consider should include, among other things:
- Dispute Resolution – How will parents handle any problems that arise without returning to court?
- Must one parent tell the other if they remarry?
All of these things together create a day-to-day life for the child that is as stable and dependable as possible. A parenting plan should both support the child's best interests, as well as strengthen their relationship with each parent during this difficult time.