McKinney, Collin County
McKinney Child Custody Attorney
Texas does not use the word custody. It uses conservatorship, possession and access — three separate questions that people collapse into one, and that courts decide separately.
Child Custody in McKinney
Possession schedules in McKinney are written around McKinney ISD. That sounds administrative until the first Christmas, when a decree that says "the day school recesses" and a district calendar that recesses on a Thursday produce two different answers than the parents expected. Getting the district's calendar into the order is worth the ten minutes it takes.
Collin County applies the same statutory framework as every other Texas county — the joint managing conservatorship presumption (Tex. Fam. Code § 153.131) and the standard possession order presumption (Tex. Fam. Code § 153.252). What varies locally is how a particular court handles temporary orders, and how fast it will hear an emergency.
Conservatorship is about decisions, not overnights
Conservatorship is the bundle of parental rights and duties: who decides on schooling, on non-emergency medical care, on psychiatric treatment, who can access records, who holds the right to determine the child's primary residence. Texas starts from a rebuttable presumption that naming both parents joint managing conservators is in the child's best interest (Tex. Fam. Code § 153.131).
Joint managing conservatorship does not mean equal time. It is common for parents to be joint managing conservators while one holds the exclusive right to determine primary residence and the other has a possession schedule. Parents who hear "joint" and assume "half" are frequently surprised, and that surprise is usually avoidable with a clear explanation early.
Possession and access — the schedule
Texas has a standard possession order, and there is a rebuttable presumption that it provides reasonable minimum possession and is in the child's best interest (Tex. Fam. Code § 153.252). Its general terms apply without regard to how far apart the parents live (Tex. Fam. Code § 153.316); distance changes the weekend and holiday mechanics, not the framework.
Judges depart from the standard order when the facts warrant it — a child under three, a work schedule that makes Thursday evenings impossible, a parent who has not been part of the child's daily life, safety concerns. Departures are argued, not assumed.
More on child custody for McKinney specifically is at McKinney Child Custody.
Questions
Where is a McKinney divorce case filed?
In Collin County. Texas Family Code § 6.301 requires that at the time of filing, one spouse have been a domiciliary of Texas for the preceding six months and a resident of the county of filing for the preceding 90 days. The Collin County courthouse is located at Collin County Courthouse, 2100 Bloomdale Rd., McKinney, TX 75071.
Do I have to live in McKinney to file there?
You have to meet the county residency requirement for Collin County, not for the city itself. Under Texas Family Code § 6.301 that means 90 days of residency in the county before filing, in addition to six months of domicile in Texas. Neighbouring cities in the same county satisfy it equally.
How does the McKinney ISD calendar affect my possession schedule?
Substantially. A standard possession order keys holiday and summer periods to when school recesses and resumes rather than to fixed dates, so the district calendar determines the actual exchange days. Naming McKinney ISD in the order avoids arguments in years when the district's calendar differs from a neighbouring district's.
Is child custody handled differently in Collin County?
The governing law is identical statewide — Collin County applies the same Texas Family Code provisions as every other county. What differs locally is procedure: how quickly the court sets contested hearings, its standing orders, and whether it requires mediation before granting a trial setting. Those differences affect timing and cost more than outcome.
Does Texas favor mothers in custody cases?
No. Texas Family Code § 153.003 prohibits the court from considering the sex of a parent or the child in determining conservatorship. The governing standard is the best interest of the child under § 153.002, and § 153.131 creates a rebuttable presumption that appointing both parents joint managing conservators serves that interest.
Does joint custody mean equal time?
No. Joint managing conservatorship under Texas Family Code § 153.131 allocates decision-making rights and duties between the parents. It is separate from the possession schedule. Parents are commonly named joint managing conservators while one holds the exclusive right to determine the child's primary residence and the other exercises a possession order.
Can my 12-year-old decide which parent to live with?
A child cannot decide, but a child 12 or older has a right to be heard. Under Texas Family Code § 153.009, on a party's application the judge must interview a child 12 or older in chambers about conservatorship or about who determines primary residence. The judge weighs the child's wishes alongside every other best-interest factor and is not bound by them.
Lisa G. Garza represents McKinney families from the firm's Dallas and McKinney offices.