In Texas, custody is called conservatorship. This guide explains what it means, the types available, and how each type affects decision-making rights, parental rights, and legal duties.
Texas courts determine conservatorship in four types of cases:
Conservatorship defines the court-ordered decision-making rights, parental rights, and legal duties a person has regarding a child. A conservator is a parent, or in some cases a non parent, who holds court-ordered conservatorship.
There are three types of conservatorship, each with its own title:
In extreme circumstances, the court may decline to award a parent conservatorship at all. Even then, the parent may still owe legal duties to the child, such as the obligation to pay child support.
Joint Managing Conservatorship (JMC) is an arrangement where two conservators, usually both parents, share in making child-rearing decisions and divide decision-making rights, parental rights, and legal duties for the child’s care. JMC generally works best when parents can communicate well enough to reach agreement on important decisions most of the time.
When parents cannot agree on conservatorship, the judge applies statutory factors to determine whether joint managing conservatorship is appropriate.
Yes. Parents can be joint managing conservators even when the judge grants one parent the exclusive right to make specific important decisions, such as decisions about the child’s education. Having exclusive rights over some decisions does not change the overall conservatorship designation.
When ordering a JMC, the judge must designate one parent as having the exclusive right to determine the child’s primary residence. That parent is called the primary or custodial parent. The judge will also set a geographical area, such as a county or school attendance zone, within which the child must reside, or may leave the residence unrestricted.
In most cases, the parent who carried the primary caregiving responsibility before the suit was filed is appointed as the custodial parent. The judge may occasionally order that neither parent holds this exclusive right, but that typically happens only when the parents have already agreed to that arrangement.
Texas law changed in September 2025 to create a specific parental right to designate the school a child will attend and to enroll the child there, subject to the school’s eligibility and admissions requirements.
As a result, judges must now allocate this right, assigning it to be exercised independently by both parents, by joint agreement, or exclusively by one parent. This change may also provide grounds to modify custody orders entered before September 2025 to address how this right will be exercised going forward.
No. The type of conservatorship and the possession schedule (visitation) are separate matters. JMC does not require that the child spend equal time with each parent.
No. A JMC designation does not prevent the judge from ordering one joint managing conservator to pay child support to the other. Conservatorship and child support are determined independently.
Sole Managing Conservatorship (SMC) gives one parent, or in some cases a non parent, the exclusive right to make the most important decisions about the child, including decisions about education, medical care, and psychological or psychiatric treatment.
SMC is typically appointed when there is a serious reason not to place parents in a joint arrangement, such as:
A parent who is not appointed as a joint managing conservator or a sole managing conservator is generally appointed as the child’s possessory conservator. A possessory conservator has the right to possession of the child, that is, scheduled time or visitation, but has limited rights to make major decisions about the child’s care.
This article is intended for general informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice.
For guidance specific to your situation, please schedule your consultation with Pierce-Nichols Law Firm, LLC.
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