Texas Family Code 35A.003 – Petition for Temporary Authorization
Terms Used In Texas Family Code 35A.003
- Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
- Person: includes corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- Signed: includes any symbol executed or adopted by a person with present intention to authenticate a writing. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- sworn: includes affirm or affirmed. See Texas Government Code 312.011
- Written: includes any representation of words, letters, symbols, or figures. See Texas Government Code 311.005
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.