Kelly Burris Explains Texas 50/50 Custody Bill
A bill making its way through the Texas state legislature would give parents equal custody of their children following a divorce.
Cordell & Cordell Regional Partner Kelly Burris recently appeared on WOAI San Antonio to explain the significance of the “50/50 custody bill.”
Men still face many gender stereotypes in family court that often result in unfair settlements. Last year, the National Parents Organization released its Shared Parenting Report Card, which revealed that across the board, most states fail to promote equal parenting time.
Currently, Texas allows one parent to have custody while the other is given unequal visitation rights. The bill would level the custody playing field for each parent by allowing judges to more easily grant equal time.
“It basically gives them permission to do that 50/50 outright, right off the bat instead of saying, ‘Prove to me why we should do a 50/50,’” Ms. Burris said.
If passed, Texas would join 35 other states that have similar joint physical custody laws. Research shows that equal parenting often offsets many of the negative effects of divorce.
“Sometimes they work simply because nobody has the upper hand,” Ms. Burris said. “So you have both parents having equal control of what’s going on with the kids and the time spent with the kids, and so nobody has that power to control what’s going on in the other person’s family.”
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Written by Joseph E. Cordell
Joseph E. Cordell is the Principal Partner at Cordell and Cordell, P.C., which he founded in 1990 with his wife, Yvonne. Over the past 25 years, the firm has grown to include more than 100 offices in 30 states, as well as internationally in the United Kingdom. Mr. Cordell is licensed to practice in the states of Illinois and Missouri and received his LL.M. from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. Joseph E. Cordell was named one of the Top 10 Best Family Law Attorneys for Client Satisfaction in Missouri.