Houston Divorce Lawyers: In your divorce or child custody case you may
be faced with a difference of opinion between yourself and your opposing
party on who should have the right to determine the primary residence
of your child. When it comes to child custody issues this is the most
basic and important dispute that you and your child’s other parent could
have.
While you all may come to an agreement on how to settle
this issue down the road in your case, as of now you are faced with the
prospect of a longer than average case length and the possibility of
having to rely on your judge to decide the case. If either of these
eventualities could be avoided that would be for the best but in some
situations you cannot do so.
A social study evaluation will
occur in almost every situation where you and your opposing party
disagree on this subject. When conservatorship, possession and/or access
to your child are in dispute then a social study will likely be ordered
by your judge. Today’s blog post from the Law Office of Bryan Fagan,
PLLC will discuss what a social study is, how it will impact your case
and its possible effects on the outcome of the legal matter that you are
engaged in.
What does the law in Texas say about social studies?
The Texas Family Code contains the state law on family law cases like
the one that you are going through. This includes subjects related to
social studies. The key thing to understand about social studies is at
their conclusion the person who conducts the study will make a
recommendation to the judge regarding which parent should have the right
to designate and determine the primary residence of your child. While
not every case will hinge on what the social study recommendation is,
many cases will. Knowing what to expect could mean the difference
between you reaching your goals and falling short.
How long can a social study last?
From my experiences a social study can last anywhere from six months to
a year and a half in length. Interviews are conducted during the course
of the social study of you, your child’s other parent, and any other
persons that are relevant to your case. Your child will be interviewed
where age appropriate with you and your opposing party. A solo interview
of the person conducting the study with your child occur as well.
You will be asked, along with your child’s other parent, to provide the
social study evaluator with a list of references can be contacted in
regard to your parenting skills and history. The interviewer will ask
your references for an explanation of their history with you as a parent
and their judgments of you regarding your involvement with your child.
School teachers, counselors, physicians and other people in your child’s
life may be interviewed as well.
When an evaluation is complete what happens next?
Family Law Attorney Houston: When all interviews and inspections of
your home have been completed the evaluator will have everything that he
or she needs to begin writing a report for the judge in your case. That
report will detail their findings and will explain the recommendation
regarding which parent should win the right to determine the primary
residence of your child. Other recommendations that are commonly made
involve whether or not a geographic restriction should be put in place
that limits where your child can live as well as a finding regarding
visitation schedules for the parent who does not win the right to
determine your child’s primary residence.
I will reiterate that
the judge does not have to listen only to the recommendations made in
the report that the social study evaluator creates. In fact, it would be
a rare instance where your judge only relies on the recommendations
when it is all said and done.
With that said, the social study
evaluator was likely chosen by the judge and that means that he or she
must feel strongly that the opinions of this person are worth
considering. With that said the social study is something to take very
seriously even if it is not necessarily issue determinative.
When is a social study begun in your case?
Houston Divorce Attorney: A social study is usually ordered to begin at
the conclusion of a temporary orders hearing. If you are involved in a
contested child custody case it is likely that you have to go to a
temporary orders hearing to decide this issue. The same can be said of a
divorce (in addition to any property issues that need to be resolved on
a temporary basis). A judge will give you and the opposing party an
opportunity to agree to what person will conduct the study but if you
cannot agree one will be appointed by the judge.
Who will conduct the social study in your case?
Therapists, counselors and people with mental health backgrounds are
typically the sorts of people who are appointed to conduct social
studies in family law cases. Licensed social workers, psychiatrists and
psychologists typically fit the bill in this regard. Once you find out
who the social study evaluator will be look into their professional
history on the internet. If you do not believe that the person has the
minimum qualifications to do the job you need to contact your attorney.
At the very least your attorney can speak to you about the person’s
resume or can raise their being appointed in a hearing with opposing
counsel, the judge and the social study evaluator.
What to expect when you are interviewed in the social study
As I mentioned a moment ago you will be interviewed during the social
study along with your child’s other parent. Your child will also be
interviewed by themselves as well as with you and your opposing party in
groups of two. In order so that coaching cannot occur all of these
interviews will likely take place on the same day.
The social
study evaluator will want to learn how you relate to your child and vice
versa. It is helpful to be able to learn this information outside of
the distractions of other people and things. Preparation for these
interviews is important. Even if you consider yourself to be a great,
involved parent you will likely encounter questions and subject matter
that you never really consider in your day to day life. In order to
provide answers that address the concerns of the social study evaluator
you will want to work with your attorney beforehand so that you can
fully prepare.
Whatever parenting skills you have will be on
display during this interview. A lot of people have told me over the
years that the social study interview feels forced or unnatural. I can’t
necessarily disagree with these folks, but I would argue the whole
premise of a family law case feels unnatural and hard to stomach a lot
of times. With that said, this is the position that you are in and it is
recommended that you enter the process fully prepared
More on social studies in tomorrow’s blog post
Houston Family Lawyer: When we pick up on the topic of social studies
in tomorrow’s blog post, we will focus on home visits and the ever
exciting topic of paperwork that is associated with social studies.
If you have questions about the subject matter that we touched on today
please consider contacting the Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC. We
offer free of charge consultations with licensed family law attorneys
six days a week where your questions can be answered in a comfortable,
pressure free environment.
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