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Recent Blog Posts
What if I Object to My Ex Moving My Child Out of Texas?
Divorced parents face many unique obstacles and challenges that married parents never encounter. Not only do divorced parents have to find a way to co-parent their children effectively they may also encounter complex child custody disputes. One such dispute arises when a parent wishes to move out of state. If your ex is trying to move your child out of Texas, it is important to understand your rights and explore your legal options.
Child Relocations and Joint Managing Conservatorship
Texas courts presume that it is best for children to maintain a relationship with both of their parents. Unless there is a history of parental abuse, domestic violence, or neglect, courts typically prefer joint custody or “joint managing conservatorship” as it is called in Texas law. This means that both parents have a say in the child’s upbringing – including where the child lives. However, even if there is a joint managing conservatorship arrangement, one parent may be the primary parent or primary custodian.
My Spouse Cheated on Me. Will it Impact Our Divorce?
Unfortunately, extramarital relationships are not uncommon. Studies show that up to 70 percent of married people have cheated on their spouses. Of course, what counts as cheating may vary by person. Some people define adultery as having sexual relations with someone other than your partner. Others consider emotional infidelity or online relationships cheating as well. If your spouse cheated on you and you plan to divorce, it is important to learn about how the infidelity may impact the divorce case.
Texas Law Regarding Divorce and Adultery
Divorce laws vary by state. Texas is one of the few states that still has fault-based grounds for divorce. Adultery is one of those grounds. However, Texas law defines adultery as having sex with someone other than your spouse. Emotional affairs do not constitute adultery under the law.
If your spouse cheated on you, this may impact the property division process. Texas is a community property state. Marital property, meaning assets acquired during the marriage, are divided by the courts in a manner that is “just and right.” If your spouse had an affair or cheated, this may influence how the court divides property in your divorce. You may be entitled to a greater share of the marital estate. However, several other factors also influence property division including each spouse’s financial circumstances, the size of the marital estate, and divorce provisions involving children.
How Can I Get Divorced in Texas if My Spouse is Abusive?
The unfortunate reality for many Texans who want to get a divorce is that fear of their spouse makes it feel impossible to leave an abusive relationship. Indeed, research has long supported the fact that victims of domestic violence are often at the most danger when they try to leave.
Nobody should be trapped in a terrible marriage and forced to deal with domestic violence. This blog explores Texas’s special laws that are designed to protect victims and give them immediate and effective relief. If you are a victim of family violence in Texas and you hope to get divorced, there is hope. An experienced Texas divorce attorney can counsel you and help you explore your options.
Protective Orders
Victims of domestic violence can file for a temporary restraining order (TRO) and other emergency protections to protect themselves and their children from their abuser. A protective order can prohibit abusers from coming within a certain distance of a person, their children, their home, or their workplace. Violating the restraining order carries serious penalties, including fines and jail time. Although a TRO is not a foolproof device, it can give spouses who need to leave time and space to strategize about their next steps. Under certain circumstances, a protective order can be continued indefinitely.
When Are Custody Evaluators Used in Texas?
Child custody evaluations are ordered by Texas courts when parents are locked in a custody battle, and judges need to get impartial information regarding the best interests of a child. Although custody disputes generally take place during divorce proceedings, they can also happen any time a parent requests a modification in their custody arrangement. Unfortunately, custody evaluations can be long, expensive, and invasive proceedings, and if you are worried that a custody evaluator may be appointed to your case, it is important to understand how custody evaluations work.
What is a Child Custody Evaluator?
Custody evaluators are trained professionals who are often appointed by the court, although parents can hire private evaluators as well. Evaluators in Texas must have the appropriate education, supervised experience, and must work within a rigorous set of guidelines.
What if My Spouse is Alienating My Children From Me?
One of the most unfortunate consequences of a Texas divorce is the tendency for parents to feel so hostile towards each other that they try to alienate their children from their other parent. In the worst cases, both parents actively try to develop a bias against each other. Other times only one parent is trying to undermine the parent-child relationship.
Regardless of whether one or both parents are responsible for alienation, it can have a terrible impact on children and Texas family courts take this behavior seriously. If you are concerned that your relationship with your children is threatened because of your spouse’s actions, it is important to understand what behaviors are generally understood as alienating and what options you may have.
What is Parental Alienation?
Although alienation can look many different ways, certain actions and behaviors may indicate that one parent is trying to cultivate distance or suspicion from a child towards their other parent. These include, but are not limited to:
Help! I Am Divorcing a Spouse Addicted to Gambling
Irresponsible gambling has destroyed the lives of many Texans, but the consequences of this behavior are, unfortunately, not restricted to the gamblers alone. A gambling addiction can take a serious toll on the relationship and finances of a couple, so much so that divorce is ultimately the only option.
Gambling, and the secretive and wasteful behaviors associated with it, complicate divorces in Texas. If you plan to divorce a spouse with a gambling problem, it is important to protect your finances and gather evidence to support your case in court.
What is Dissipation of Assets?
Dissipation of assets occurs when one spouse wastes, profligately spends, or otherwise abuses a couple's shared marital assets. Dissipative behavior can be done out of spite or to hide assets for later use, but dissipation can also occur when money is recklessly spent for purposes unrelated to the marriage. Some examples of dissipative behavior include:
What are the Most Common Small Business Valuation Methods?
Once a divorce process begins, you have endless things to think about and take care of. For small business owners, the list is even longer. You may worry that your divorce will permanently affect the success of your business, leaving you without a way to provide for yourself or your children.
Understanding how businesses are valued and treated in a Texas divorce is an important first step in making wise decisions during the divorce process. While this blog gives a brief overview of business valuation methods, your attorney is the most qualified source of answers to your questions.
What is My Business’s Market Value?
Using the market valuation method means looking around at the value of recently sold similar businesses with a willing seller and a willing buyer. Requiring both the buyer and seller to be willing excludes any businesses whose prices may have been artificially lowered by an unwilling seller in a tight situation.
Should I File For Bankruptcy During My Texas Divorce?
Conflict around finances is one of the most common reasons couples in Texas get divorced. Whether financial troubles are due to irresponsible spending or an unpredictable downturn in a family business, the added stress of financial woes makes divorce even more difficult.
Couples who are getting divorced may wonder if filing for bankruptcy would be beneficial. Each couple’s situation is unique, so it is important to understand how bankruptcy during divorce works and what your options are. This blog is a brief overview of how bankruptcy and divorce can influence each other. If you have questions about your divorce and financial situation, a qualified Texas divorce attorney is your best source for information.
Should We File For Bankruptcy Before or After Filing For Divorce?
Bankruptcy proceedings attempt to help couples or individuals reorganize their debt in a manageable way, but the bankruptcy process itself is not free. If couples wait until after they are divorced, they will have to pay the filing fees, credit counseling fees, and attorney’s fees twice - once for each spouse. If couples are still married, they can file a joint bankruptcy case.
What is a QDRO in a Texas Divorce?
Dividing marital property is generally one of the most difficult and contentious parts of a divorce. Couples, especially those who have been married for many years, have often accumulated a large number of valuable assets. Included in the assets that must be divided are individual and shared retirement accounts, such as pensions, 401(k)s, and IRAs.
Spouses who earned pensions through decades of hard work may understandably feel upset about having to divide money they view as being rightfully theirs. Likewise, other spouses will have supported a working spouse throughout a career and feel entitled to their fair share of the retirement funds. It is important to understand how retirement funds are generally handled in a Texas divorce so divorcees can set reasonable expectations throughout the process.
Are Retirement Benefits Always Divided Between Spouses?
What Happens When More Than One Man Claims to Be a Child’s Father?
Establishing paternity can be challenging even when the identity of the child’s biological father is clear. When there is uncertainty surrounding the father’s identity, it becomes even more complicated. In some cases, more than one man may have a presumption of paternity, or come forward with a claim of paternity in an effort to secure parental rights. It is important for both fathers and mothers to understand how these conflicts can be resolved to ensure that the correct man is recognized as the child’s father.
Competing Presumptions of Paternity
In Texas, a man is presumed to be the father of a child if he is married to the child’s mother when the child is born, as well as if his marriage to the child’s mother ended within 300 days before the child’s birth. While it is not especially common, it is possible for these presumption criteria to apply to two different men. For example, a child’s mother may have gotten divorced from one man and then remarried another man within this 300-day period. In other cases, only one man may have a presumption of paternity, while another man wishes to voluntarily acknowledge paternity because he believes himself to be the child’s biological father.
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