The Woodlands Attorney with Experience Proving Unfit Parenting in Custody Battles

Safeguarding parental rights and fighting for your child’s health and welfare

Custody battles can get very ugly. Sometimes, the acrimony comes from one parent using the children to try to hurt the other, but at other times, the fight is totally justified. If you have a reasonable belief that your ex-spouse cannot be trusted with your children, you have a duty to protect your child from danger. At the Law Office of Jerry Porter, we care deeply about the health and welfare of children. In more than 30 years of legal practice, I’ve worked assiduously to advance the best interests of my clients’ children. Protecting those children from exposure to an unfit parent is sometimes necessary. On the other hand, unfounded accusations of unfitness or abuse often come up during emotional divorce proceedings. In such cases, I defend my clients and aggressively defend their parental rights.

What are the grounds for unfit parenting in Texas?

Accusations of unfit parenting, if substantiated, can lead the court to deny child custody or visitation rights to the accused parent. Facts that might lead a court to determine a parent is unfit include:

Alcoholism Criminal conviction Domestic violence Drug abuse

Immaturity Immoral lifestyle Mental illness Sexual abuse

In a fitness hearing, the court investigates thoroughly and weighs all the evidence before it. If the totality of the circumstances proves that placement with a parent would not be in the best interests of the child, the court will deny custody. The court may also order supervised visitation until it can be sure that the child is safe while in the presence of the accused parent.

Under certain circumstances, grandparents can also sue for custody by alleging that a parent is unfit. However, the court requires substantiation of charges before issuing an order that affects a mother’s or father’s rights.

Contact a family law attorney with fitness hearing experience in The Woodlands

Accusations of unfit parenting can make all the difference in a custody dispute. I assist parents by presenting well-founded allegations to the court and by opposing defamatory accusations made simply to win a custody battle. To schedule a consultation in The Woodlands, Montgomery County and throughout the greater Houston area, call 281.296.3131 or contact the Law Office of Jerry Porter online.