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Legal Information: Texas

Custody

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Laws current as of July 28, 2023

If the other parent's new partner committed domestic violence or is a registered sex offender, do I have the right to know?

Each conservator must notify the other conservator in any of the following circumstances:

  1. S/he lives with for at least 30 days, marries, or intends to marry a person who s/he knows is:
    • a registered sex offender; or
    • currently charged with a crime that would require the person to register as a sex offender if convicted. Note: The notice must be given as soon as possible – at the latest, 40 days after they begin to live together or 10 days after they get married. The notice must include a description of the crime that led to (or could lead to) the sex offender registration;1
  2. S/he begins living with a person who s/he knows has a final protective order against him/her (filed by someone else) that is in effect on the date they begin living together. Note: The notice must be given as soon as possible – at the latest, 30 days after they begin to live together;2
  3. S/he is living with a person against whom s/he gets a final protective after and s/he continues to live with that person even after 60 days have passed since the final protective order was issued. Note: The notice must be given as soon as possible – at the latest, 90 days after the date the final protective order was issued; or
  4. S/he allows a person against whom s/he gets a final protective after to have unsupervised access to the child and s/he continues to allow that person to have unsupervised access even after 60 days have passed since the final protective order was issued. Note: The notice must be given as soon as possible – at the latest, 90 days after the date the final protective order was issued.3

If the conservator does not properly notify the other conservator within the timeframe required, as explained above, s/he can be guilty of a Class C misdemeanor crime.4

1 Tex. Fam. Code § 153.076(b), (c)
2 Tex. Fam. Code § 153.076(b-1)(1), (c-1)(1)
3 Tex. Fam. Code § 153.076(b-1)(2), (c-1)(2)
4 Tex. Fam. Code § 153.076(d)