Texas Family Code section 153.001 says it is the public policy of the State of Texas to assure children have "frequent and continuing contact" with both parents so long as each parent has proven the ability to act in the best interest of the child.
How do courts do that? They assure frequent contact with both parents with what is called geographical restrictions. A geographical restriction is an order of the court preventing the parent with primary custody moving the primary residence of the child outside of an identified geographic area. Sometimes the person with primary custody is called the custodial parent and the person with the possession schedule is the non-custodial parent. For both parents to have "frequent and continuing contact" with their child, the parents must be located in the same geographic area. If one parent is living in Lansing, Michigan and the other parent is living Fort Worth, Texas, there is no way both parents will have frequent or regular contact with his or her child. The non-custodial parent will not be able to go to the child’s soccer games or school events on a regular basis.
So what does a geographical restriction look like? In Tarrant County, Texas, a geographical restriction often says the custodial parent cannot relocate the child outside of Tarrant County and counties contiguous to Tarrant. Sometimes that restriction is limited to Tarrant County only. The parents can also agree to some variation. For example, parents might agree the parent with primary custody cannot move the child outside a specific school district or a 20-mile radius of a particular municipality.
It is common not to bind the parent with primary custody to this geographical restriction if the non-custodial parent moves out of that same area. For example, if there is a geographical restriction in place for Tarrant and contiguous counties, mom has primary custody and dad has a standard possession schedule. Mom cannot move with the child outside of this defined geographic area. However, if Dad, packs up and moves to Austin, Mom is free to move anywhere she wants with the child. The purpose of the geographic restriction in this situation is to allow Dad the opportunity to see his child frequently. If he moves to Austin, he has already forfeited that ability so Mom is free to move wherever she wants.
Is a geographical restriction automatic? Not necessarily. If a parent asks for it, that parent will most certainly get a geographical restriction in a Tarrant County court. Usually the parent who wants the restriction is the parent who does not have primary possession of the child.
So what happens if, several years after the divorce, the non-custodial parent lives in the geographically restricted area but the custodial parent wants to move somewhere outside of that area? Lifting the geographic restriction rarely, if ever, is allowed by a Court in Tarrant County if the non-custodial parent does not agree. If for some reason a Court allowed the custodial parent to move outside of the geographic area, that custodial parent usually is ordered to pay all travel expenses for the child to see the other parent.
This payment of travel expenses would also hold true if the non-custodial parent moved outside of the area and the custodial parent remained in the geographical area. Any parent who moves outside of the geographically restricted area ordered by the court will have to pay travel expenses for the child to visit so long as the other parent remains in the geographic area.
Just remember, the overarching requirement is for Courts to act in the best interest of the child at all times. It is presumed it is in the best interest of the child to have "frequent and continuing contact" with both parents. To get around a geographical restriction, you will have to prove to the Court that the other parent cannot act in the best interest of the child.
Ami J. Decker
www.famlawtex.com
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