How Can a Parent Get Custody Rights Back?

It may break your heart knowing that your child is missing out on a relationship and experiences with their other parent. But you may not lose sight of the bigger picture, which is that maintaining contact may not be best for their overall physical safety, mental health, and emotional well-being. With this, your hands may be tied, so to speak, and you may have to get their other parent’s custody rights stripped away from them. Their other parent may not let this happen without a fight, though. Please continue reading to learn how a parent can get their custody rights handed back to them and how one of the experienced Clarksville child custody lawyers at Fendley and Birch can work toward a positive outcome for your child.

How can I get my child’s other parent’s custody rights revoked?

In the state of Tennessee, you may fight to get your child’s other parent’s custody rights revoked through a process known as termination of parental rights. First, you must file this petition with a family court, typically the same one that decided on your initial child custody arrangement. Then, you must present clear and convincing evidence that the other parent has exhibited one or more grounds for termination. Specifically, these grounds include the following:

• The other parent may have failed to pay court-ordered child support for a certain period.
• The other parent may have failed to visit your child during their scheduled parenting time on a certain number of times.
• The child may have been removed from the other parent’s living space due to unsafe conditions that have existed for a certain period.
• The other parent may have been convicted of aggravated rape, child sexual abuse, or another serious crime that puts the child in danger.
• The other parent may have been deemed to have a history of substance abuse, domestic violence, or mental incompetence that has not been rectified.

How can my child’s other parent get their custody rights back?

Though it may pose a challenge, your child’s other parent may fight to reverse the court’s termination of parental rights order. This is specifically through submitting a post-judgment modification for their child custody arrangement. Here, the other parent must show that, without a doubt, they have made positive changes in their personal life that counteract the initial grounds for termination. For example, they may have paid off their outstanding child support debt, moved to a safer living space, gone to a rehabilitation facility for their substance abuse issue, etc.

From here, they must establish that re-entering your child’s life would work to their benefit. After all, the court may want your child to have a healthy relationship with both their parents post-divorce. What’s more, if your child is deemed old enough, they may testify on whether they wish to reinstate contact and visitation with their other parent. This matter may obviously be important to you, and you may want the best possible outcome. So please, do not fight this without one of the skilled Clarksville family lawyers in your corner. The team at Fendley and Birch is here at your command.