Terminating Parental Rights
Terminating Parental Rights does not mean terminating the fact that you are a parent to a child. Quite the opposite. If a parent terminates their parent’s rights to a child that parent has effectively affirmed that they are the child’s parent, otherwise they would have no parental rights.
What are Parental Rights
When a child is born the parents by law have certain Parental Rights. Each state’s Parental Rights may be different. In Texas there are about eleven Parental Rights. They are such rights as:
- to possession of the child,
- to received child support and government support for the child,
- to make educational and medical decisions for the child,
- to have access to the child’s medical and educational records,
- to authorize the child ot get married before the age of 18,
- to authorize the child to join the military before the age of age,
- and more.
What many people don’t realize is that when the child turns 18 years of age the parent loses these parental rights. At age 18 these rights go to the child. When a person turns 18 they get to make their own decisions regarding their life.
In many ways terminating parental rights or a child before the age of 18 is simply doing what will automatically occur at the age of 18; at least in regards to the parent’s ability to exercise those rights.
Terminating Parental Rights does not necessarily terminate child support. Child Support is an obligation, not a right. We can’t just terminate our obligations, or many people might just terminate their obligation to pay their car note, or their rent.
Terminationg of the Parent-Child Relationship
Please remember that this article is for information purposes only and is not intended to be or substitute for legal advice. Please contact Fathers Rights and consult with an attorney there or elsewhere for legal advice.
If you want to wash your hands of being a child’s parent, and no longer be recognized as their parent, then you need to do what is called, in Texas, Terminations of the Parent-Child Relationship. You may refer to an article about Terminating the Parent-Child Relationship.
Furthermore, you don’t get to terminate your own Parent Rights. Only a court of law can terminate a person’s parental rights. The individual can file a petition with the court asking the court to terminate their parental rights.
A person can, however, simply choose not to exercise their parental rights.
You can find more information about Terminating Parental Rights at the Texas State Law Library in the section titled Termination of Parental Rights.
English | Español
can be contacted by
phone or text at
Can you hug your child today? We can help!