Austin Child Custody Lawyer

Child Custody and You

There is no doubt that getting a divorce is a trying, stressful, and often emotional experience. Getting through it is a difficult experience, but having the right legal support helps, especially when it comes to what counts: custody of children. Regardless of the state that a marriage was in, children will often find the divorce process extremely unsettling. They will have to adjust to some significant changes. When custody issues become contentious, children often suffer. Their behavior is often a reflection of their stress. In Austin, as in other cities, deciding child custody and visitation is a major part of the divorce process.

In Austin, child custody is usually granted to the parent who was the primary caregiver before the divorce. This is generally the decision that will cause the least disruption to the children's lives. In all likelihood, they will have grown accustomed to the parenting style of their primary caregiver. Furthermore, there are generally very logical reasons why one parent becomes a primary caregiver while the other takes a secondary role. Employment conditions can make an enormous difference to one's ability to provide adequate levels of care and attention to their children.

A person's employment situation can have an impact on whether they are likely to be awarded child custody or not. If a parent has a job that requires them to work irregular hours, a frequently changing schedule, or take an inordinately high number of business trips, custody will often go to the other parent. Again, this is to provide the best living situation for the children.

Extenuating circumstances can have a significant effect on the outcome of the decision, especially if they involve domestic violence or abuse. In Austin, it is extremely unlikely that child custody would be granted to a partner with a history of inflicting domestic violence or abuse. Children are the primary consideration in child custody decisions. Placing them in an unsafe environment is not a reasonable option.

In Austin, as in the rest of Texas, children over the age of twelve will have an input into the child custody decision. Children over the age of twelve are considered mature and articulate enough to voice their opinions in the matter. Children over the age of twelve are able to comprehend the situation. If your children are under twelve years of age, they will not be consulted or interviewed.

You will already likely have a reasonable idea of which parent will receive child custody. In the majority of cases, your intuition is probably correct. If you feel that you are unlikely to receive child custody, you will need to decide if it is in your children's best interest to contest for it. If your soon to be former spouse can provide better care, then it might be better to leave the responsibility to them. In Austin, the non-custodial parent is entitled to visitation rights. Visitation will allow you to continue to provide parental input for your children. If you are seeking legal advice of an Austin child custody lawyer, you will find Slater and Kennon most helpful and effective.


Centrally located in the Arboretum area of north Austin, the Slater & Kennon law firm represents clients in Travis County, Bastrop County, Burnet County, Williamson County, and Hays County, including the cities of Austin, San Marcos, Bastrop, Burnet, and Georgetown.