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Specialty tag(s): Child Custody, Visitation Rights

Do Texas Courts Take Parental Alienation Seriously?

Cassidy Pearson | February 17, 2026

When a child starts pulling away from a parent during a divorce, separation, or a high-conflict period at home, it’s not only scary; it can also be hard to tell what you are seeing. Sometimes it is a normal adjustment to two homes and new routines. Sometimes it is the result of one parent steadily interfering with the child’s relationship with the other, until the child begins to reject contact, repeat adult criticisms, or treat time together as something to avoid. For many parents, the concern is not about finding the perfect term for it. It is about protecting a child’s emotional well-being and keeping a stable, healthy bond in place.

Texas courts take alienating conduct seriously, even though the Texas Family Code does not explicitly define the phrase “parental alienation.” Judges focus on patterns of behavior and the impact on the child under the best interest standard. What matters is understanding what courts tend to look for, what options may be available, how HB 3783 affects certain therapy orders, and what practical first steps make sense if you suspect alienation or you have been accused of it.

What Texas Judges Actually Do About Parental Alienation

Texas courts do not define “parental alienation” in the Family Code. In practice, judges still address alienating conduct by applying the best-interest standard in Texas Family Code § 153.002 and the public policy that children should have frequent, continuing contact with parents who can act in the child’s best interest in § 153.001.

The legality is that Texas conservatorship law expects each parent to support the child’s relationship with the other parent. When a court is considering joint managing conservatorship, it must weigh “whether each parent can encourage and accept a positive relationship between the child and the other parent” under § 153.134(a)(3). If a parent is actively undermining the child’s bond with the other parent, that behavior weighs against them.

Judges assess parental alienation by looking at patterns of behavior and their impact on the child. Examples of conduct that often raise red flags include:

• Repeated disparagement of the other parent in front of the child.
• Interference with calls, texts, or electronic contact and access.
• Coached narratives where the child uses adult language or repeats adult accusations.
• Refusal to comply with possession and access orders.
• Withholding school or medical information that the other parent is entitled to receive under § 153.073 and the duty to keep the other parent informed under § 153.076.
• Knowingly false abuse reports, which can carry specific consequences under § 153.013.

Courts have several tools to respond when they see this pattern, including evaluations, appointed representatives, injunctive orders, enforcement through contempt, or changes to conservatorship and access orders.

Understanding Parental Alienation in Texas Custody Cases

In Texas, parental alienation is generally understood as a pattern where one parent manipulates or pressures a child to turn against the other parent without a legitimate safety reason. It often shows up as repeated negative comments, blocking or limiting contact, making a child feel guilty for enjoying time with the other parent, or rewarding the child for siding with one “team.” In practice, this can range from more active alienation (overt criticism and interference with contact) to more passive alienation (subtle guilt, emotional pressure, or quiet withdrawal of support for the relationship).

Alienation can take many different forms. Active alienation involves more direct and deliberate behavior. This may include openly criticizing the other parent to the child, blaming them for the divorce, sharing adult details about finances or court proceedings, blocking scheduled parenting time, or coaching the child on what to say to teachers, therapists, or the court. Loyalty tests are common, where the child feels pressure to choose sides or risks disappointing the alienating parent by maintaining a relationship with the other.

Passive alienation is often harder to spot. It may look like a parent who does not encourage contact, allows the child to skip court-ordered visits, avoids correcting false statements about the other parent, or subtly signals disapproval through tone, facial expressions, or silence. Over time, these small actions can still shape a child’s perceptions and behavior.

For example, a parent might tell a child, “Your dad never shows up,” while quietly cancelling exchanges, or praise the child for ignoring calls from the other parent. Courts understand that divorce is emotionally charged and that parents make mistakes. What raises concern is not momentary frustration, but a sustained pattern that undermines the child’s relationship with the other parent.

Alienation Versus Estrangement

Texas courts draw a careful distinction between parental alienation and estrangement because the underlying causes and the appropriate legal response are very different. Alienation involves a child’s rejection of a parent that results from the other parent’s influence or manipulation. Estrangement, however, reflects a child creating distance to protect themselves from a parent whose own conduct has caused harm, such as abuse, neglect, domestic violence, or persistent emotional unavailability.

This matters. Courts will not force a child to rebuild a relationship with a parent who has genuinely endangered or harmed them. At the same time, judges are cautious about cutting off a healthy parent-child relationship when the rejection has been influenced by the other parent.

Getting this wrong can mean either failing to protect a child or permitting unnecessary damage to an otherwise safe and meaningful bond.

In practice, judges look closely at patterns and context. Alienation often shows up as sudden or escalating rejection following separation, especially when the child uses adult language, repeats accusations they did not witness, or expresses hostility alongside blocked communication or cancelled parenting time. Estrangement tends to be tied to specific, documented incidents and appears consistently across settings, not just in relation to the targeted parent.

Courts also recognize that setting appropriate safety boundaries is not alienation. Problems arise when boundaries are used to eliminate the other parent rather than protect the child. Parents with legitimate safety concerns are sometimes accused of alienation for this reason. In those situations, clear documentation of the conduct that justified protective measures becomes critical to showing the court the difference.

Signs Your Child May Be Experiencing Parental Alienation

When a family is going through separation or a custody dispute, kids can react in all kinds of ways. Some changes are a normal response to stress. Others can be a sign that a child is feeling pulled into the conflict. Texas courts do not work from a checklist, and no single behavior proves alienation. What tends to matter is a pattern over time that suggests a child’s views are being shaped by pressure or influence, rather than their own lived experience.

One signal is a sudden shift in the relationship with a parent. A child who used to be comfortable and affectionate may become cold, angry, or unwilling to spend time with that parent. Sometimes the child cannot explain why. Or the reasons sound small compared to the level of rejection.

Another is your child using language that doesn’t sound like themselves. Kids may repeat criticisms in an unusually grown-up way, use phrases they are unlikely to come up with on their own, or describe events they did not actually witness. The story can start to sound very similar to what the other parent says.

Pay attention to the emotional tone, too. Some children show little guilt about being harsh or dismissive toward the targeted parent. They may defend the other parent automatically, even when that parent has clearly acted unfairly. Many children also strongly insist that the feelings are entirely their own, which can be true in the sense that the feelings feel real to them, even if they have been influenced.

Alienation can also spill over to extended family. A child may suddenly reject grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins on one side, even if those relationships were previously warm.

It helps to remember that kids are not trying to be difficult. Children often align with the parent who feels more powerful, more fragile, or more emotionally central, because that can feel like the safest way to keep peace in their world. Over time, repeated messaging can become something they genuinely believe.

If these patterns are building, they are usually worth taking seriously sooner rather than later. When the divide becomes entrenched, repairing trust can take much longer, and children can carry the stress into anxiety, low mood, or difficulty trusting relationships later on.

How Texas Family Courts Address Alienating Behavior

To understand what is happening in the family, the court can use several fact-finding tools. A judge may order a custody evaluation by a qualified mental health professional who can assess family dynamics and observe parent–child interactions. The court can also appoint a Guardian ad Litem to focus on the child’s best interests or an amicus attorney to help the court investigate and present information.

Evidence usually comes in through patterns, not one-off moments. That can include testimony from teachers, therapists, or family members, records showing blocked calls or cancelled exchanges, and documentation of missed parenting time or disparaging messages.

HB 3783 (effective September 1st 2025) limits certain “reunification therapy” practices. Courts may not order counseling that requires no contact with the aligned parent, overnight or out-of-state multi-day stays, forcible transport, custody transfers as a condition of therapy, or coercive or isolating tactics. It also requires family-violence training for providers and bars ordering a victim into counseling with a perpetrator when credible family violence evidence exists.

Courts still have room to order evidence-based, child-safe therapeutic support and can use the usual enforcement and modification remedies when parenting-time orders are being undermined.

The Role of Custody Evaluators and Forensic Psychologists

In Texas custody cases, custody evaluators and forensic psychologists can help the court understand why a child is rejecting a parent and whether that rejection is being influenced by someone else.

A custody evaluator (often a mental health professional appointed to conduct a custody evaluation) looks broadly at the family system. They assess parenting strengths and limitations, the child’s needs, and day-to-day functioning, then make recommendations about conservatorship, possession, and access. A forensic psychologist may be brought in when the court needs more clinical analysis, which can include psychological testing and opinions about mental health factors that may be shaping the child’s behavior.

Evaluations typically involve interviews with each parent and the child, observation of parent–child interactions, review of records (texts, emails, school notes, therapy records where available), and “collateral” input from teachers, counselors, or other adults who regularly see the child.

Judges often give these reports real weight because they are designed to be neutral and structured. Still, they are recommendations, not a verdict. A Guardian ad Litem or amicus attorney may also add child-focused observations that support or challenge the evaluation’s conclusions.

Legal Remedies When Alienation Harms a Child

Texas courts approach alienation concerns with proportionality. The goal is not to punish a parent, but to protect the child and restore a healthy relationship where possible. As a result, judges typically start with remedies that are less disruptive and escalate only if the behavior continues or worsens.

In many cases, courts first adjust possession and access. That can include ordering make-up time for missed visits, modifying the parenting schedule, or changing how exchanges occur, such as using neutral locations to reduce conflict. Judges may also impose behavioral requirements, like prohibiting disparaging comments in front of the child, requiring a parent to facilitate communication, or ordering the use of monitored co-parenting platforms to limit direct conflict.

Therapeutic support is another common tool. Courts may order individual therapy for the child, family therapy, or co-parenting counseling, always subject to the limits imposed by HB 3783. That law restricts coercive or isolating practices, but it does not prevent courts from ordering evidence-based, child-focused interventions when appropriate.

When orders are ignored, courts can turn to enforcement. Contempt proceedings may result in fines, attorney’s fee awards, or even jail time for repeated violations.

In more severe cases, especially where other remedies have failed, courts can modify conservatorship, including changing who has primary decision-making authority or requiring supervised visitation. Termination of parental rights is legally possible under Texas law, but it is rare and typically reserved for extreme circumstances well beyond alienation alone.

First Steps if You Suspect Parental Alienation

If you think alienating behavior may be happening, start with calm, consistent documentation. Keep a simple log with dates, times, and specific facts: what happened, what was said (as close to the exact words as you can remember), who was present, and what you observed in your child afterward. Try to avoid labels or conclusions like “they’re alienating” and stick to details a judge can evaluate later.

Move as much communication as possible into writing. Texts and emails create a record automatically, and co-parenting platforms can make this even easier to organize. Keep your messages brief, child-focused, and steady in tone, even if the other parent is not.

Stay present and reliable. Keep showing up for school events, activities, medical appointments, and any parenting time you can exercise. Courts notice the parent who keeps trying to be there for the child in a healthy way.

If the conduct is escalating or creating immediate harm, an attorney may discuss a temporary restraining order (TRO) to prohibit specific actions while the case is pending.

The evidence that tends to carry weight includes full communication threads (not snippets), a calendar of missed parenting time with context, and observations from neutral adults like teachers, coaches, or therapists. In many cases, a custody evaluation or forensic assessment becomes important because it offers independent analysis. Also, focus on conduct and impact rather than terms like “Parental Alienation Syndrome,” which is not how Texas courts frame these cases.

Understanding Child Protective Services’s Limited Role

Child Protective Services exists to investigate abuse and neglect, not custody interference or relationship breakdowns between parents and children. Parental alienation, on its own, does not fall within CPS’s mandate. Concerns about a parent undermining a child’s relationship with the other parent are addressed in family court, not through the CPS system.

Using CPS as a substitute for custody enforcement can backfire. Making a report when there is no good-faith belief that abuse or neglect has occurred diverts resources from children who need immediate protection and can be viewed by judges as part of the problem rather than a solution. Texas law allows courts to impose consequences for knowingly false abuse reports, and those reports often damage the reporting parent’s credibility in custody proceedings.

Do not call CPS for parental alienation concerns alone. Use the family court process unless you genuinely believe your child is being abused or neglected.

Navigating a High-Conflict or Narcissistic Co-Parent

Many parents describe an ex as “narcissistic” because the behavior feels controlling, unpredictable, and exhausting. In Texas custody cases, though, judges are not diagnosing personality disorders. What matters is what the co-parent is doing, how it affects the child, and whether it interferes with court-ordered parenting time.

Keep your focus on court-relevant behavior you can document, such as using the child as a messenger, refusing to share basic information, making unilateral decisions that cut the other parent out, creating last-minute “emergencies” that derail exchanges, or praising the child for avoiding calls or visits. Patterns like these are often more persuasive than labels.

Practically, aim for calm consistency. Communicate in writing when possible, stick to short, factual messages, and avoid getting pulled into arguments that go nowhere. If something needs escalation, let your attorney handle it. Your goal is to protect your child’s stability and build a clear, admissible record of conduct – not to win a debate about a diagnosis.

Working with a Texas Family Law Attorney

Seeing your child withdraw can be frightening and easy to take to heart. It is also easy to worry that any misstep will damage the relationship further. If alienation may be part of what is happening, staying calm and grounding your response in evidence is often the most effective way to protect that bond.

At Goranson Bain Ausley, we focus on what the court can actually evaluate: specific behavior, its impact on the child, and reliable documentation. When it is appropriate, we work with custody evaluators and other qualified professionals so the judge has a clear, neutral picture of what is happening.

We are also careful to distinguish alienation from justified estrangement. A child should not be pressured into contact that is unsafe. At the same time, Texas courts can step in when a parent is systematically undermining a healthy bond.

Our goal is to help you understand your options, avoid unnecessary escalation where possible, and use the court process strategically when intervention is needed to protect your child and your relationship with them.

With offices in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Granbury, Midland, Plano, and San Antonio, we support families across Texas. If you would like to talk through your situation, schedule a consultation, and we will help you understand your options.

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