{"id":3239,"date":"2026-08-21T13:32:07","date_gmt":"2026-08-21T18:32:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mcclure-lawgroup.com\/blog\/?p=3239"},"modified":"2026-08-11T10:58:49","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T15:58:49","slug":"texas-supreme-court-clarifies-that-cps-cannot-require-a-parent-to-divorce-to-keep-parental-rights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mcclure-lawgroup.com\/blog\/texas-supreme-court-clarifies-that-cps-cannot-require-a-parent-to-divorce-to-keep-parental-rights\/","title":{"rendered":"Texas Supreme Court Clarifies That CPS Cannot Require a Parent to Divorce to Keep Parental Rights"},"content":{"rendered":"

A recent opinion<\/a> from the Texas Supreme Court addresses an important limitation on the State’s authority in parental termination cases involving domestic violence. Although Texas law requires parents to protect their children from abusive environments, the Court reaffirmed that the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) cannot require a parent to divorce an abusive spouse as a prerequisite to retaining parental rights. Rather, termination must rest on the statutory requirements established by the Texas Family Code and the evidence presented in the individual case. In re H.S., B.S., and M.S., Children<\/em>, No. 24-0307 (Tex. June 5, 2026).<\/p>\n

Background of the Case<\/strong><\/h2>\n

DFPS became involved with a family following repeated incidents of domestic violence between the parents. The record reflected that the father physically assaulted the mother on multiple occasions, including sexually touching her, threatening her with a firearm, damaging property during violent outbursts, and engaging in self-harming behavior in the presence of the children.<\/p>\n

Continue Reading \u203a<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A recent opinion from the Texas Supreme Court addresses an important limitation on the State’s authority in parental termination cases involving domestic violence. Although Texas law requires parents to protect their children from abusive environments, the Court reaffirmed that the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) cannot require a parent to divorce an […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3239","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-divorce"],"yoast_head":"\nTexas Supreme Court Clarifies That CPS Cannot Require a Parent to Divorce to Keep Parental Rights — Texas Divorce Attorney Blog — August 21, 2026<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A recent opinion from the Texas Supreme Court addresses an important limitation on the State's authority in parental termination cases involving domestic — August 21, 2026\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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