I am writing to ask about the child abandonment laws in Texas because my 3 yr old nephew's mother has left her son to live with either my mom or his father. She goes months at a time without seeing him and has not been of financial support either. She is living from place to place, working in bars and had totalled her car and gotten 2 DWI's in the last 6 months. Without legal guardian ship my mother can get no financial assistance and my nephew is a very hyperactive, out of control 3 yr old.

The father can go file for full custody. He will more likely win when the court sees she has no permanent address and she is not there for the child. Document everything she does and doesn't do. When she is with the child and when she is not there.

This is an oft asked and oft misunderstood question. Child abandonment laws are a criminal charge that occurs when a child is left without any supervision. Clearly not the case here.

The issue that needs to be addressed here is who has custody and legal responsibility for the child. The best bet would be for the father to get custody of the child. In lieu of that, the grandmother can apply for legal guardianship.

In both cases, the mother's leaving the child with other people can be used to terminate her custody.

I would strongly suggest trying to get an attorney to help prepare the petititon for custody or guardianship.

In Texas, an interested person who is not a parent may seek what we call "conservatorship" of a child under certain circumstances. If the child has been left with your mother (the child's paternal grandmoter, I presume) for six months or more, she can seek either joint managing conservatorship with the child's father or, if he's not terribly interested, sole managing conservatorship. The father may also seek conservatorship, either joint with his mother, joint with the child's mother, or sole. Have your mother and the child's father talk to an attorney.