The Judge Ruled Against Me in a Child Custody Suit, What Now?

Experienced family law attorney | Divorce lawyer

The Judge Ruled Against Me in a Child Custody Case, What Can I Do?

As a Family Lawyer serving Montgomery County, Harris County, Walker County and all surrounding counties, I frequently encounter potential clients that didn’t do well in their custody case and they want to know what can be done to fix it. Thankfully, in many cases, there are options available.

Temporary Orders Hearing

The best scenario is the individual that had a judge rule against them only at the Temporary Orders hearing, which normally occurs at the beginning of any Texas Divorce or Texas Child Custody Suit.  In many larger counties such as Harris County, the Temporary Orders hearing is not heard by the main District Judge because an Associate Judge normally handles this initial hearing.  In other counties such as Montgomery, Walker, Fort Bend, Galveston and similar counties, the Main District Judge assigned to your case may not be able to preside over your case’s Temporary Orders hearing for a variety of reasons such as sickness, vacation, overloaded docket, or a trial.  For these reasons, you may be assigned to have your Temporary Orders hearing before a visiting judge.  Either way, whether it is an Associate Judge or a Visiting Judge, you will have the opportunity to file a request for a De Novo.  Hearing in front of the main District Judge.  De Novo is a Latin Term that simply means “new.” A De Novo Hearing essentially gives you a “second bite at the apple” by trying the Temporary Orders hearing again with a clean slate.

However, to qualify for this type of hearing you must immediately contact an experienced Family Law Attorney / Divorce Lawyer because a request for this type of hearing must be filed with a certain time frame according to Texas Family Code Section 201.015(a) or you cannot pursue this option.

Trials in A Child Support Case

Child Support Trials are similar to a Temporary Orders Hearing conducted by an Associate Judge / Visiting Judge.  In some counties such as Harris County, child support cases are heard in the “IV-D courts.”

These are special courts setup to only hear child support cases.  These judges are not the main district judge although they can make final decisions on child support and even custody matters.  It is crucial to know that if your case is decided by a IV-D court that you can also Request a De Novo Hearing but you must act quickly and hire an experienced Texas Child Support Lawyer.  Just like in a temporary orders proceeding, if your request is not filed quickly, it is final and then other options will have to be explored.

Motion for New Trial

If the De Novo hearing is not an option or if your case was decided after a final trial, then you have the option of filing a Motion for New Trial.  This is not ideal because in most cases the judge that decided the final trial will be considering your Motion for New Trial and will probably not want to hear the case again, but it should be pursued in the event you wish to pursue and appeal or if you have good reasons to allege the decision was granted in error or was simply not fair.

To file a Motion for New Trial, an experienced Divorce Lawyer | Family Law Attorney must prepare and file the Motion within 30 days from the date the Judge signed the Final Decree of Divorce.  The good news is that the Trial Court has broad discretion in granting a new trail.

If a New Trial is granted, then your case will start over essential from day 1 and a new scheduling order that controls the case deadlines will be entered by the court and a new trial date will be set.

Default Judgment

If you failed to file an answer to a divorce or child custody lawsuit after being served with notice, a Default Judgment can be taken against you resulting in serious and often unconsidered consequences.  Many people fail to respond to a divorce or custody suit under the erroneous assumption that nothing can happen if they don’t respond or that things will only get worse if they respond.  Rarely is this type of rational true.  Many individuals that fail to answer a lawsuit are shocked to learn that their spouse was awarded essential all the marital assets (even the retirements & pensions of a spouse) or that they are denied possession and access to their children or that they are ordered to pay a crazy amount in child support.

When this happens, a new trial must be pursued within 30 days from the date the judge signed the final order.  However, to overturn a default judgment an experienced Divorce Lawyer | Family Law Attorney must be prepared to attack the following:

• Defects in the Citation
• Defects in Service
• Defects in the Return
• Defects in the Petition
• Prove that failure to answer wasn’t due to conscious indifference but by mistake or accident.

If you have found yourself in a situation where a Default Judgment was entered against you, don’t attempt to file a Motion for New Trial on your own.  Chances are you will screw it up.  Hire an experienced Divorce or Family Law Attorney experienced in these types of proceedings in Montgomery, Harris, Walker, Fort Bend, Waller, Grimes, Liberty, Brazoria and Galveston County.

Appeal

If you explore any of these options above, you can pursue an appeal to the Texas Court of Appeals. However, the court of appeals will not be considering new facts but will defer the trial court’s finding of facts because the trial judge or jury is deemed to be the fact finder and in the best position to hear and determine the facts of the case.  The court of appeals only considers if the trial court erred in interpreting or applying the law.

To appeal a trial court’s decision the appeal must be filed within a specific time frame.  To determine if you have a good case to take up on appeal, you should contact an experienced Divorce Lawyer | Family Law Attorney to evaluate the circumstances surrounding the trial court’s decision and the case proceedings in general.

Motion to Modify

If you do not qualify for any of these scenarios above, then your only option is to file a Motion to Modify Suit Affecting the Parent Child Relationship.

Schedule an Initial Consultation

If you are ready to pursue a Texas Divorce, please contact Nick Davis Law to schedule a free case evaluation with a Divorce Lawyer in The Woodlands and Bryan | College Station to learn how we can help you.