Title 2 › Chapter 35A

Texas Family Code § 35A.003

Petition for Temporary Authorization

Temporary Authorization for Inpatient Mental Health Services for Minor Child

A petition for temporary authorization to consent to voluntary inpatient mental health services for a child must:

(1) be styled "ex parte" and be in the name of the child;

(2) be verified by the petitioner;

(3) state:

(A) the name, date of birth, and current physical address of the child;

(B) the name, date of birth, and current physical address of the petitioner; and

(C) the name and, if known, the current physical and mailing addresses of the child's parents, conservators, or guardians;

(4) describe the status and location of any court proceeding in this or another state with respect to the child;

(5) describe the petitioner's relationship to the child;

(6) provide the dates during the preceding six months that the child has resided with the petitioner;

(7) contain a certificate of medical examination for mental illness prepared by a physician who has examined the child not earlier than the third day before the date the petition is filed and be accompanied by a sworn statement containing the physician's opinion, and the detailed reasons for that opinion, that the child is a person:

(A) with mental illness or who demonstrates symptoms of a serious emotional disorder; and

(B) who presents a risk of serious harm to self or others if not immediately restrained or hospitalized; and

(8) state any reason that the petitioner is unable to obtain signed, written documentation from a parent, conservator, or guardian of the child.

Official text of the Texas Family Code as published by the Texas Legislative Council.

Official source
Legislative history

Added by Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 988 (S.B. 1238), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2019.