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Texas Custody

Texas custody isn't hard to understand once you realize how the system in this state works.

And that's too bad, because what the politicians in Austin tell you about child custody in Texas isn't necessarily accurate.

The system isn't quite as fair as you'd like to believe.

If you look at the child custody guidelines in Texas, there will be references to "primary caretaker" and "more qualified" parent.

In none of the official guidelines will you find the intangible criteria actually used to establish child custody in the real world.

If you and your spouse can't decide child custody yourselves, the state of Texas will decide where your children live.

The establishment of child custody starts with filing a motion at your local Texas county family law courthouse.

Eventually, the county will assign a Texas custody evaluator to meet with all the parties involved; including the school, doctors, etc.

The county will conduct an evaluation to establish which of the two of you is the best parent for your children.

This process starts with an evaluation done by an assigned custody evaluator.

Even better, expect to be subjected to a psychological profile and at the end of this process, the custody evaluator will write a report and submit that to family court.

You'll also receive a copy of this evaluation report.

Many people think custody is determined by the judge in your case, the fact is custody is determined by the evaluator, not a judge.

The evaluators report is simply read by the judge and rubber stamped, because they know almost nothing about you, your spouse, your children, or your family situation.

Because the evaluator has conducted extensive research and issues a report, there's no way the judge will overrule the evaluators recommendation.

In a highly contested dispute, a judge will order the guardian ad litem to protect the children's interests during the custody evaluation.

A guardian ad litem doesn't determine custody, but will act as a advocate of the children to ensure the children's interests are protected while you and your spouse argue about custody.

The guardian ad litem can be a either a lawyer or social worker as long as they are approved by the court and there are private guardians along with public ones employed by your local Texas county.

Private guardians charge from $50 per hour to $400, where a public guardian ad litem will generally charge less.

Typically each spouse shares the cost of the guardian.

If you can't afford a guardian, often one will be provided free of change.

If you want your Texas custody case executed properly, Matt O'Connell's divorce guide is the ultimate resource for you. Matt O'Connell is the leading expert on the Internet and has been providing divorce advice in Texas since 2005.

Matt is the leading expert on the Internet and has been providing divorce advice since 2005.

In his guide, he details the entire divorce process and common pitfalls.

Even if you're using a attorney, his advice will still save you thousands and get you a better result.

So Click Here to give Matt's advice a try.