One Texas father is resting a bit easier these days, now that he has regained official custody of his teenage son. The father, Ron LaFond, was awarded custody by the Texas Court of Appeals earlier this year, but the child's mother, Stephanie Pearson, had sought to have the decision reviewed by the Texas Supreme Court. The Supreme Court denied Pearson's petition, effectively upholding the Court of Appeals' decision.
Pearson was awarded child custody after she and LaFond divorced in 2001. Unfortunately, the child frequently found himself getting in to trouble - he was failing classes, getting in fights and was thought to be involved in gang activity.
After the boy struggled through his eighth grade year, Pearson agreed to send the child to live with LaFond, who was in the military and stationed in Norway. Pearson said she made it clear that the arrangement was only supposed to last for one year, something LaFond denied.
The boy flourished while living with his father, even after the family moved back to Texas. His grades improved and he started getting involved in local sports and volunteer activities. The boy's teachers attributed much of his newfound success to the active role LaFond and his wife were playing in the boy's life.
After weighing all of the different factors in the case, the court decided that it would be in the child's best interest to live with his father.
Texas Child Custody Law
Usually, in Texas divorce cases that involve minor children the court will issue an
"order of conservatorship" that, among other things, establishes which parent will have the right to make decisions about where the child lives. Courts will modify an order of conservatorship only if it is in the best interest of the child and one of the following three conditions are met:
- The circumstances of the child or the named conservator have significantly changed since the order was issued
- The child has told the court that he or she would prefer to live somewhere else, and the child is over the age of 12
- The named conservator has voluntarily relinquished the primary care and custody of the child to another person for at least six months.
Ultimately, the court's primary focus is the best interest of the child. Although the principle is not strictly defined in law, courts usually look at the following factors when determining a child's best interest for the purposes of parenting and custody:
- The desires of the child
- The child's emotional and physical needs, now and in the future
- Emotional and physical dangers to the child, now and in the future
- The parenting abilities of the involved parties
- Programs available to the parties that would help them promote the best interests of the child
- The stability of the home or proposed placement
- Acts or omissions that may indicate the existing parent-child relationship is improper
- Any excuses for the acts or omissions of the parent
Child custody hearings are often delicate and emotionally-charged proceedings. If you are facing a custody challenge, it's best to have an experienced family law attorney by your side.
