Summer is upon us and it is time for moms and dads to exercise their summer visitation. Sounds easy enough. But for lawyers, this is a busy time of year as people try to understand this seemingly straightforward provision in most divorce decrees.
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The Texas Family Code's Standard Possession Order (SPO) provides for the possessory conservator (the non-possessory parent) to exercise 30 days during the summer. In most decrees, the parent exercising the summer possession must designate the 30-day period by April 1 st prior to the upcoming summer. If the designation is not made by then, the thirty-day period of visitation will be the month of July. The purpose of this time is to equalize the amount of time the child spends with the other parent, however, the SPO does not provide for the weekday visit during the summer like it does during the school year. In order to preserve this weekday visitation during the summer, parents must negotiate it in their settlement.
Some parents find it difficult to exercise a full 30-day period of visitation, while others can't imagine having their children away from them that long. A more preferable visitation might be to split the thirty days into two, two-week periods. This should be negotiated between the parents while the case is pending or before summer visitation. The decision to have your child, and when to have her, needs to be decided by the parents if at all possible; judges do not like making decisions that parents should be making.
Other forms of summer visitation are week-on - week-off or continuing standard visitation as usual, except each parent can designate a seven-day period of time during the summer or whatever arrangement is best for both parents and, most importantly, for the children.
Although it is very difficult to predict the realities of summer visitation during the litigation process, you need to be aware of the potential issues. It is important to hire professionals, like those at Albin Harrison Roach, to walk you through the divorce/custody cases armed with the knowledge necessary to protect you and your children.
