New Standard for Grandparent Rights to Possession or Visitation to a Grandchild

Grandparent rights to possession or visitation to a grandchild in Texas have undergone some changes under the Texas Family Code to require that denial of such possession and or visitation would "significantly impair" the child's physical health or emotional well-being.  Under the old standard, the requirement was if the possession or visitation is in the "best interest of the child."  With the change in the Family Code, the standard is more stringent so as to require "significant impairment" in the child's physical health or emotional well-being. 

Section 153.433 of the Texas Family Code states in part that:

The court shall order reasonable possession of or access to a grandchild by a grandparent if:

(1)  at the time the relief is requested, at least one biological or adoptive parent of the child has not had that parent's parental rights terminated;

(2)  the grandparent requesting possession of or access to the child overcomes the presumption that a parent acts in the best interest of the parent's child by proving by a preponderance of the evidence that denial of possession of or access to the child would significantly impair the child's physical health or emotional well-being; and

(3)   the grandparent requesting possession of or access to the child is a parent of a parent of the child and that parent of the child:

(A)  has been incarcerated in jail or prison during the three-month period preceding the filing of the petition;

(B)  has been found by a court to be incompetent;

(C)  is dead; or

(D)  does not have actual or court-ordered possession of or access to the child.

Under the new standard the requirement for significant impairment can be proven up through expert testimony.  In other words, an expert witness such as a psychologist or medical professional would have to give an opinion that to deny access by a grandparent to a grandchild would significantly impair that child's physical health or emotional growth or maturity.

The Austin Texas grandparent and family law attorneys of the Lorenzana Law Firm, P.C. provide experience representation in grandparent cases seeking custody, access or visitation to a grandchild or grandchildren.  Our attorneys work with our clients individually to arrive at solid cases to prove up the required elements in a grandparent access and visitation case. 

We serve the following States, Cities, Zip Codes and Counties:
Texas, Austin TX 78731, Georgetown TX 78626, Cedar Park TX 78630, Westlake TX 78746, Pflugerville 78660, Bastrop TX 78602, San Antonio TX 78248, Corpus Christi TX 78401, Harlingen TX 78550, Houston TX 77024, Waco TX 76701, Killeen TX 76540, Alamo Heights TX 78209, Hill Country Village TX 78232, Lakeway TX 78734, Southlake TX 76092, Lago Vista TX 78645, Dallas TX 75225, Ft. Worth TX 76177, Del Rio TX 78847, Laredo TX 78040, Eagle Pass TX 78853, Brownsville TX 78520, Edinburg TX 78539, El Paso TX 79901, Giddings TX 78942, Goliad TX 77963, Gonzales TX 78629,Helotes TX 78023, Hewitt TX 76643, Hutto TX 78634, Liberty Hill TX 78642, Burnet TX 78611, Katy TX 77450, Kerrville TX 78028, Kyle TX 78640, La Grange TX 78945, Laguna Vista TX 78578, Lampasas TX 76550, Las Colinas TX 75062, League City TX 77573, Lockhart TX 78644, Hutto TX 78634, Lubbock TX 79401, Lufkin TX 75901, McAllen TX 78501, Midland TX 79701, Nacogdoches TX 75961, Fredericksburg TX 78624, New Braunfels TX 78130, Odessa TX 79760, Pearland TX 77581, Pharr TX 78577, Pleasanton TX 78064, Port Aransas TX 78373, Port Arthur TX 77640, Port Isabel TX 78578, Port Lavaca TX 77979, Poteet TX 78065, Rockdale TX 76567, Rockwall TX 75032, Round Rock TX 78664, San Angelo TX 76901, San Antonio TX 78259, Schertz TX 78109, Seguin TX 78155, Seagoville TX 75159, Shavano Park TX 78231, Shreveport TX 71101, South Padre Island TX 78597, Sugar Land TX 77478, Sulphur Springs TX 75482, Sweetwater TX 79556, Taylor TX 76574, Texarkana TX 75501, The Woodlands TX 77380, Tyler TX 75701, Universal City TX 78148, Uvalde TX 78801, Victoria TX 77901, Waco TX 76701, West Lake Hills TX 78746, Wichita Falls TX 76301, Woodlake TX 75865, Woodlands TX 77381, Westlkake TX 76262, White Oak TX 75693, Zavalla TX 75980, Travis County, Williamson County, Hays County, Bell County, Bexar County, Anderson County, Bandera County, Baylor County, Bee County, Blanco County, Brazoria County, Brazos County, Bricoe County, Brooks County, Burleson County, Burnet County, Caldwell County, Cameron County, Collin County, Dallas County, Denton County, Ector County, Ellis County, El Paso County, Fort Bend County, Galveston County, Grayson County, Gregg County, Guadalupe County, Harris County, Hays County, Henderson County, Hidalgo County, Hunt County, Jefferson County, Johnson County, Kaufman County, Kerr County, Lamar County, Liberty County, Lubbock County, McLennan County, Matagorda County, Midland County, Montgomery County, Nueces County, Orange County, Parker County, Potter County, Randall County, Smith County, Tarrant County, Taylor County, Travis County, Val Verde County, Victoria County, Walker County, Webb County, Wichita County, Williamson County