How Can You Improve Your Chances of Gaining Custody?

Custody cases are always difficult. They are hard on the parents and hard on the children, but if you know that it’s right and best for your children for you to have custody, then it’s incumbent upon you to fight as hard as you can for them. A divorce lawyer in Houston, TX can help you present the best possible case to the court and improve your chances of gaining custody.

How Can You Improve Your Chances of Gaining Custody?

Get a Houston, TX Divorce Lawyer

The very first thing you should do, and possibly the most important, is to get a divorce lawyer who has experience helping parents with custody battles. A lawyer who has been through all of this before knows exactly what the law is and will be able to advise you on how that law applies in your case. 

They’ll help you understand all your options, explain what the courts are looking for, and present your evidence in the best possible way to convince the court that you know what’s right and best for your child.

Focus on the Best Interests of the Child

The second most important thing you can do is make sure that you have the same goal as the court: the best interests of your child. This is the standard the court will use, so keeping it in mind at all times will help you stay focused. Talk with your lawyer about how the standard is likely to be applied in your case and how you can demonstrate that what you are requesting is in line with the standard.

The court is going to consider the physical needs of your child, but also their emotional needs, the stability that you offer in the home, and your ability to prioritize your child’s welfare over your own preferences and needs when necessary. 

It’s important for you to show how you’ll be able to meet your child’s needs in all of these areas and how you are better able to do this than the other parent. Your lawyer can help you understand what evidence will be best here, but overall you’ll want to show concrete evidence of your intimate involvement in your child’s life, including times that you’ve put aside your own needs to support your child. 

Showcase Your Stable and Supportive Home Environment

If there are no issues of domestic violence or similar concerns that would make it obvious that one parent should have custody rather than the other, the court will be particularly interested in which parent provides a safe and stable home for the child. 

Safety and stability are about more than physical safety. They’re also about who is providing a consistent routine for the child, who gives them the emotional support they need to deal with those issues that often don’t seem all that important to adults but can be life-altering to children, and who offers a home situation that allows the child to retain important relationships with friends, neighbors, or other relatives. 

The court will also be interested in whether remaining with one of the parents will minimize disruption to the child’s life and routine compared to the other. You’ll also want to provide evidence that you have stable employment.

Prove Any Allegations Against the Other Parent

If you are concerned that the other parent cannot provide a safe environment for the child, you should be sure to tell this to the court. But be aware that the courts take these accusations very seriously, and that means they also take false accusations very seriously, too. Never, ever exaggerate the danger the other parent poses or make up things that aren’t true. 

If you are going to argue that the other parent is an unsafe guardian, you’ll need to be able to prove this. You may need police reports, previous court orders, the testimony of witnesses, and more. Be sure to talk to your lawyer about the best way to demonstrate any issues that you are concerned about with the other parent.

Address Any Allegations Against You Aggressively

If the other parent is making allegations about you, immediately deal with these, and do so aggressively. Don’t ignore them. If you are truly dealing with some sort of personal challenge that could potentially affect your parenting, such as substance abuse, you want to immediately compile evidence that shows you are dealing with the issue and working to resolve it. For example, if you’ve enrolled in a rehab rehabilitation program or have been attending therapy sessions, show evidence of this.

False allegations are very concerning, and as mentioned above, the courts will take allegations seriously. You’ll want to gather any evidence you have to refute the claims the other side is making, like testimony from friends, families, doctors, or teachers; drug tests showing that you are clean; and any other documentation that proves how stable your home life is. Your lawyer will help you present all of this carefully to the court in a way that shows you are acting calmly and rationally while the other parent makes things up: this will go a long way to show that you are the more mature one and can be best trusted with the welfare of your children.

Show Your Cooperation with the Other Parent

You might initially think this sounds strange. If you’re in a custody battle, surely you don’t want to cooperate with the person you’re battling against! But actually the courts always prefer arrangements where both parents are involved, whenever that’s possible. If you show willingness to cooperate with the other parent, but they do not show willingness to cooperate with you, then you greatly increase the chances that you will be given custody. 

You’re the one who’s showing that you’re able to put aside any negative emotions you suffer around the other parent because it’s what’s best for the child; and that demonstrates your parenting skill and maturity.

Be Careful What You Say and Do

Remember that as long as the case is going on, you are basically under the scrutiny of the court, and anything you say or do may end up as evidence used for or against you. The courts are looking for parents who are responsible and mature and who can manage their own stress and life without letting those things change the way they care for their child.

This means that when you’re in the courtroom, you always want to be calm, respectful, and conduct yourself appropriately. Even if the other parent is losing it, you should stay calm and avoid yelling or fighting back. But you also need to be careful outside the courtroom. Remember that things you say to friends and family could potentially be used against you, and so can anything you post on social media. It’s very easy to take social media posts out of context, so talk with your attorney before you put up anything while the case is going forward.

There’s more you can do to strengthen your case, and a lawyer who understands your unique situation will be best able to advise you. At the Clark Law Firm, P.C., we can help. Call us today to talk about your case.