Protecting Grandparents' Rights in Texas CPS Cases
Mike Schneider helps grandparents and other relatives and non-parent caregivers navigate CPS investigations, secure custody placements, and prevent their grandchildren from entering the foster care system at every stage of a Texas CPS case.
If you are reading this, your grandchild’s parents may be under investigation, or CPS may have already removed your grandchild from their home or yours. You may be the only person standing between your grandchild and a foster placement with strangers.
Mike Schneider has spent more than 25 years working inside the Texas child welfare system as a CPS prosecutor, as a presiding judge in the exact courts that oversee these cases, and now as a defense attorney fighting for children and families all over Texas. That combination of experience gives him insight that most attorneys will never have.
Who Mike Can Help
Grandparents come to Mike from different starting points. He can help if you are in any of these situations:
- Grandparents seeking emergency placement when a grandchild is removed from their parents
- Grandparents already serving as primary caregivers, whose arrangement is now under CPS scrutiny
- Grandparents who want to intervene in a pending CPS case to gain managing or possessory conservatorship
- Grandparents trying to prevent the termination of parental rights and adoption by a non-family placement
- Grandparents in contested situations where the other parent’s family is also seeking placement
- All relatives seeking to protect children in their families, including siblings.
If your situation isn’t listed above but involves your grandchild and CPS, tell us about your case. Mike works with Texas families in complex and unusual situations that don’t fit a standard case description.
If you are a grandparent living outside of Texas and need help, contact Mike about consulting arrangements for you and the family law attorneys handling your CPS case.
He has served as a consultant and expert witness for legal teams navigating complex CPS cases throughout the country and the world.
How Mike Approaches These Cases
- Immediate case assessment.
Mike’s first step is understanding where the CPS case stands: who has been removed, what has been signed, what placements are being considered, and what the current timeline looks like. In CPS cases, what has already happened shapes what is still possible.
- Establishing legal standing.
Grandparents do not automatically have the right to be involved in a Texas CPS proceeding. Mike works quickly to establish the legal basis for your involvement so that your voice is recognized by the court and by DFPS, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, which oversees CPS, before key decisions are made.
- Pursuing placement before foster care.
If your grandchild has been or may be removed from their parents, the goal is to secure a family placement instead of a foster placement. Mike knows how DFPS evaluates potential placements and how to present your situation to meet that standard.
- Representing you through every stage.
CPS cases rarely end with an investigation. They move through family court, and sometimes through criminal court. Mike’s experience on both sides of those proceedings means you won’t get caught off-guard if the case shifts.
- Trial preparation.
Most CPS grandparent cases resolve without going to trial, but Mike prepares every case as if it will. That preparation produces better outcomes for you and your grandchild, whether or not a courtroom is ever involved.
What Makes Mike More Than A
Child Welfare Lawyer?
With decades of diverse trial experience—from every side of the bench and bar—and a deep institutional knowledge of the many agencies with whom he has worked, Mike Schneider has protected mothers, fathers, foster and adoptive parents, grandparents, siblings and anyone accused in countless high-profile cases featured in national and global media.
He has extensive experience representing clients before numerous state agencies, including:
- Child Protective Services (CPS)
- Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS)
- Texas Health and Human Services
- State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH)
- Title IX Departments
When Mike is on your side, you get More Than a Lawyer.
- Former State District Court Judge
- Former Assistant Harris County Attorney
- Seasoned Trial Attorney with Years of Courtroom Advocacy on Behalf of Caregivers
- Expert Witness & Consultant
- Court-Appointed Amicus in Child Custody Cases
- CPS Administrative Insider
- Child Welfare Researcher & Policy Analyst
- CLE Trainer & Educator for Lawyers
Decades of Diverse Trial Experience
Mike has successfully tried hundreds of trials as a lawyer and state district judge, ranging from thorny child custody battles to felony criminal investigations and capital murder.
Early in his judicial tenure, the Houston Chronicle praised his “demonstrated competency” in handling high-profile cases and consistently endorsed him his entire judicial career, noting, “Schneider has devoted his career to protecting children‚ both as an assistant Harris County attorney and as general counsel of Houston’s renowned Children’s Assessment Center.”
History of High-Profile Success
Judge Schneider is known for his aggressive defense of the most consequential criminal and CPS investigations and in the courtroom at every stage—with clients across the United States. Mike has protected mothers, fathers, foster and adoptive parents, grandparents, siblings and anyone accused in countless high-profile cases featured in national media and across the globe.
Due to his deep understanding of the child welfare systems and agencies, he has an 80–90% success rate in preventing CPS lawsuits through his involvement in administrative and investigation cases.
Understands Every Side of the Bench & Bar
Mike joined the Harris County Attorney’s Office in 1999, serving as Chief of the 313th District Court and managed and tried thousands of child custody cases involving the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (CPS).
In 2001, he became Deputy Division Chief of the office’s Children’s Protective Division, and from 2004 until he took the bench in 2006, served as General Counsel to the world-renowned Children’s Assessment Center in Houston’s Rice Village.
He proudly served as Commissioner of the Supreme Court of Texas Children’s Commission and Chair of the State Bar of Texas Juvenile Law Section.
Deep Knowledge of Child Welfare Investigations and Administrative Hearings
The goal is to keep clients out of the courts. The moment CPS or law enforcement investigations begin, parental rights—and those of foster parents, grandparents and other caregivers—are in immediate jeopardy, and the risk of criminal prosecution is heightened. Mike’s experience navigating this complex maze of law enforcement and child welfare investigators, pediatric hospitals, social workers, and often the media is unmatched.
Most caregivers, including those accused of neglect, abuse, and crimes against children have no idea how to protect their rights in situations where they or a family member are being investigated or accused of wrongdoing. They don’t know who to talk to, what to share, or what to say when they are aggressively targeted by an entire system with which they are unfamiliar. How these events unfold will impact a caregiver’s legal rights—and freedom—for years to come.
Developed the Child Welfare Section of the State Bar of Texas
Trained & Educated Thousands of Lawyers
Mike has created and taught Continuing Legal Education (CLE) programs that have trained thousands of lawyers on topics including CPS and child abuse, substance use, complex custody litigation, ethics, expert witnesses, human trafficking, record sealing, and many more at the following institutions:
- Advocacy University
- Healing Specialties Texas
- Houston Bar Association
- University of Houston Law Center Juvenile & Capital Advocacy Program
- Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison, Sing Sing Correctional Facility
Conducted Years of Legal Research & Policy Analysis
In 2017, Mike was appointed Adjunct Research Scientist in the Psychology Department of Columbia University in the City of New York by Dr. Carl Hart and in 2022 to the Board of the Center for Science and the Law.
In 2019 Mike served the Texas Legislature as Policy Analyst on child welfare issues for State Representative Gene Wu.
Mike has a deep understanding of the policies that affect his clients the most.
Advocacy Founder & Leader
Mike has founded or served as a leading member of numerous advocacy courts, programs and organizations including:
- Commissioner, Supreme Court of Texas Permanent Judicial Commission for Children, Youth and Families (Children’s Commission), Austin (2015-21)
- Founder of first Juvenile Drug Court in Harris County
- Founder, Harris County Juvenile Human Trafficking Court, Creating Advocacy Resilience and Empowerment (“CARE” formerly “GIRLS” Court)
- Founder, Juvenile Sealing Program, with Houston Bar Association and University of Houston Law Center Juvenile and Capital Advocacy Program
- Founder, org, an Online Resource for Children in Texas Foster Care
- Council & Founding Member of Child Welfare Section, State Bar of Texas, Austin
- Board Member, The Way Home Adoption, Inc. (2019-24)
- Chair, Officer, Juvenile Law Section, State Bar of Texas, Austin
- Board of Directors, Center for Science and Law, Palo Alto, California
- Board Member, Criss Cole Children’s Foundation, Houston
- Member of Data Committee, Children’s Commission, Austin
Press & News
Over the years, Mike’s involvement in countless high-profile cases has earned him national and global recognition in news and media:
Why Most Family Attorneys Aren't Enough
Most family attorneys don’t see enough CPS cases to navigate them well. Even a competent, well-meaning attorney without specific CPS experience is likely to miss:
- The investigation stage is where the case is won or lost. Most attorneys engage after removal, but Mike’s best results come from involvement before the investigation is closed, when the trajectory can still be changed.
- DFPS has its own playbook. The way caseworkers document findings, the standards for “reason to believe,” the internal review process — these are not how courts operate, and they are not taught in law school. Mike knows this system because he managed it.
- Grandparent rights are not assumed. Intervening in a CPS case involving your grandchild requires a specific legal foundation. Missing that step or timing it wrong can delay or prevent your access to the proceeding entirely.
- The family court and CPS proceedings are connected. Decisions made in one case affect the other. An attorney who sees only the family law piece is managing half the problem.
- Termination timelines are strict and unforgiving. Under Texas law, DFPS is required to move toward termination of parental rights if a child has been in foster care for a defined period. If you want to be the placement that prevents that, you have to be legally positioned before that clock runs out.
Mike fills these gaps because he has handled these cases as a judge and attorney. He uses that knowledge to protect the grandparents and families the system is working against.
How Grandparents' Rights Work in Texas CPS Cases
Grandparents occupy a specific and sometimes misunderstood position in Texas child welfare law. Texas law does not grant grandparents automatic rights to visitation or custody, but it does provide meaningful pathways to both if pursued properly at the right time. There are a few aspects of Texas child welfare law that grandparents should understand:
- Kinship placement preference. Texas law and DFPS policy both prefer placement with family members over licensed foster families when the family member is appropriate and willing. This preference does not enforce itself. Grandparents must request consideration and be evaluated.
- Managing conservatorship vs. possessory conservatorship. Managing conservatorship gives you legal authority to make decisions for the child. Possessory conservatorship gives you the right to access and time with the child. In CPS cases, the goal is usually to manage conservatorship — temporarily at first, then permanently if the parents’ rights are terminated or restricted.
- Intervention under Texas Family Code § 102.004. Grandparents with a substantial past relationship with the grandchild may intervene in an existing CPS case affecting the parent-child relationship. This is the legal mechanism that gives grandparents a formal voice in the proceedings.
- Independent suit for access or conservatorship. In some circumstances, grandparents can file their own suit for access or conservatorship under Texas Family Code § 153.433, even without being part of the existing CPS proceeding.
- Parental rights termination. If DFPS moves toward terminating the parents’ rights, grandparents who want to adopt their grandchild or be named permanent managing conservator must be legally positioned before that stage. The window to intervene after a termination decree is narrow.
The law gives grandparents real options, but those options require a real legal strategy to use them effectively. Mike will help you weigh all available options and develop a strategy to achieve the best possible outcome for you and your grandchild.
What Happens After CPS Removes Your Grandchild
The case moves on a legal clock from day one. Texas law sets hard deadlines for every stage of a CPS case. Grandparents who don’t understand this timeline often find that important decisions were made before they even knew there was a hearing to attend.
A full adversary hearing happens within 14 days. Under Texas Family Code § 262.201, the court must hold this hearing no later than the 14th day after DFPS takes possession of a child. At this hearing, DFPS has to show the court why removal was necessary and why the child should stay in state care rather than go home. This is often the first real opportunity for a grandparent to be heard, but only if legal standing has already been established before the hearing date.
A status hearing follows at day 60. Texas Family Code § 263.201 requires the court to review the child’s status and the family’s service plan by this point. If you haven’t formally asserted your interest in placement by now, this is the last easy opportunity to do so before the case moves further along.
Permanency hearings begin at day 180, then repeat every 120 days. These hearings evaluate whether the child is moving toward reunification with the parents or toward some other permanent arrangement, including placement with a relative. This is where a grandparent’s legal position, or lack of one, starts to shape the outcome.
The case must go to trial within one year, or it’s automatically dismissed. Texas Family Code § 263.401 sets this deadline, and a court can extend it by up to 180 days, but no further. If parental rights are headed toward termination, this is the outer boundary. A grandparent who wants to be named permanent managing conservator, or to adopt, has to be legally positioned well before this date arrives, not after.
Every one of these hearings happens on a schedule, even if a grandparent isn’t in the room. Getting legal representation early determines whether you’re a part of these decisions or have to read about them after the fact.
What You Should Do Immediately
CPS cases involving grandchildren do not pause while you figure out what to do. DFPS is making placement decisions, and those decisions are difficult to reverse once made. If your grandchild is involved in a CPS case, or if you believe one may be coming, take these steps immediately:
- Contact an attorney who specifically handles CPS cases. General family law experience is not sufficient. You need someone who understands the CPS procedural system, not just family court.
- Assert your interest to DFPS as soon as possible. Contact the assigned caseworker and make it clear that you are willing and available for placement consideration. Document the call. Do not assume DFPS will find you.
- Do not speak to CPS investigators about the parents’ case without guidance. Anything you say will be documented. What you say in an effort to help can sometimes be used in ways you didn’t intend.
- Gather documentation of your relationship with the grandchild. School records, medical authorizations, photos, correspondence — anything that demonstrates the nature and duration of your relationship with the child.
- Do not sign any DFPS documents without reviewing them with an attorney. Safety plans, placement agreements, and voluntary relinquishment documents all carry legal weight. Signing without understanding what you’re agreeing to can limit your options.
- Act before the next court hearing. CPS cases have scheduled hearings with legal deadlines attached. Grandparents who are not legally represented before a hearing takes place often find that the decisions made at that hearing are binding.
Mike’s best results come from early involvement. Eighty to ninety percent of his CPS cases resolve before they ever reach litigation, and the difference is almost always the timing. The cases with the widest range of options are the ones where Mike was contacted first, not last.
Other Practice Areas
Administrative Law
Navigating complex state and agency proceedings impacting families and children, including CPS investigations, licensing actions, and regulatory disputes.
Family Law
Custody, divorce, adoption, and parental rights representation for spouses, families, grandparents, foster parents, and caregivers fighting for the children in their care.
Criminal Law
Strategic defense in state and federal cases, including felony and juvenile matters impacting or triggered by child custody investigations and litigation.
Child Welfare & CPS Defense
We fight for clients at every stage of child custody battles, including CPS involvement—preventing cases from escalating to litigation or appeals whenever possible.
Civil Rights Law
Advocacy for caregivers, professionals, and individuals facing agency investigations or constitutional rights violations.
Your Advocate in and Beyond the Courtroom
When your grandchild’s future is at stake, you need More Than a Lawyer—you need someone who has been involved in every aspect of the child welfare system.
Judge Mike Schneider (Ret.) brings decades of courtroom, judicial, agency, and policy experience to defend you and your grandchildren with unmatched insight and compassion.
Schedule Your Consultation Today
Every moment counts when facing CPS, criminal, or family law issues. It is essential that we build your defense strategy as soon as possible. Let’s schedule a confidential consultation.
Consultation Fee Policy: Consultations for criminal defense matters are free. Consultations for family law and CPS/child welfare matters are subject to a consultation fee, which can be applied to a retainer or flat fee if hired. Mike Schneider Law PLLC reserves the right to charge a consultation fee based on the nature of the matter. Submitting this form acknowledges this policy.