Sometimes, the conflicts regarding child custody between parents in Travis County will continue even after a final order has been issued. In those cases, parents can use Travis County’s Visitation Dispute Program to try to reach a solution.
Why was the program created?
The Visitation Dispute Resolution Program was created to assist parents who have conflict regarding custody. It is a free program with the goal of encouraging parents to cooperate when it comes to parenting their children. For this reason, the program has several goals, including:
- Helping parents to understand how court-ordered visitation works
- Developing healthy communication and cooperation between parents regarding visitation with their children
- Teaching parents about co-parenting practices that are in the best interests of their children
- Assisting parents with conflict resolution
While the program aims to ensure that parents can work out their conflicts, this might not always be possible. If the conflicts are very serious and cooperation and negotiation might not work, litigation might be the only option. In those cases, an attorney might help with the case.
What are the requirements to use the program?
For parents to be able to use the program, the child custody case must be fully completed with a parent being denied court-ordered visitation. Additionally, the final child custody order must be based in Travis County or it must have been transferred there.
How does the program work?
If a parent chooses to use the program, they must include current contact information for the other parent so that parent can be notified about the process. For the program to work, both parents must agree to participate in the conflict resolution process.
It is in the best interests of the children to have their parents cooperate to solve conflicts and develop positive co-parenting practices. While it might be difficult, using the program might show the children that they remain the priority for their parents.