Texas courts take visitation seriously in both directions: a custodial parent generally can’t deny court-ordered visitation without a legitimate reason, and a non-custodial parent has to actually show up and exercise it.
Things that generally do NOT justify denying visitation
- The child being mildly sick (as opposed to hospitalized)
- Disliking the other parent’s new spouse or partner
- Conflicting plans, relatives visiting, or school or church activities not cleared with the other parent in advance
- The other parent being behind on child support — support and visitation are legally separate issues
Consequences for violating a visitation order
A parent found in contempt for denying court-ordered visitation can face fines, be ordered to pay the other party’s attorney’s fees, lose custody, or in some cases face jail time and probation. Courts take this seriously in both directions — making false abuse allegations to justify denying visitation can also lead to a change in custody and civil penalties if the allegations are found to be false.
If pickups and drop-offs are contentious, a court can order exchanges to happen at a neutral, supervised location. Violence in front of children is never acceptable, regardless of who’s at fault.