409-392-1511
Recent Blog Posts
Can Spousal Support Be Modified or Terminated After a Texas Divorce?
Getting a divorce can be a challenging and emotional process, and it will involve numerous issues related to a couple's finances, the property they own, their children, their living situations, and much more. While completing the divorce process can be a relief, there are some issues that may continue to affect ex-spouses after their marriage has been terminated. In some cases, spousal support (alimony) may be ordered, and one party will be required to make ongoing payments to the other. However, circumstances can change in the years following a divorce, and couples will need to understand when alimony payments may be modified or terminated.
When Can Changes Be Made to Spousal Support Orders?
According to the Texas Family Code, spousal support, which is also known as "maintenance," is awarded based on various factors, including the ability of each party to provide for their own needs, the property and financial resources available to each spouse, and their respective levels of education and other factors that may affect their employability. If any significant changes occur in the circumstances of either party after the divorce decree has been finalized, an ex-spouse may file a request to modify or terminate spousal support.
If I Am Unmarried, Will I Need to Establish Paternity for My Child?
To ensure that children will have the ongoing love and support they need, it may sometimes be necessary to establish legal parent/child relationships. For mothers, this usually will not be necessary, since at the time of a child's birth, the mother will be recognized as the child's parent and listed on the birth certificate. However, a father may not always be officially recognized as a parent, and it may be necessary to establish paternity.
Paternity Establishment When Parents Are Unmarried
There are some cases where the law presumes that a man is a child's father. These include situations where a mother and father are married to each other, as well as cases where parents were formerly married within a short period before a child was born. That is, if a couple got a divorce or had their marriage annulled, or if the marriage ended when the husband died, the man will be presumed to be the father of the mother's child if they were still married at any time during the 300 days before the child's birth.
Can I Get Sole Custody of My Child in Texas?
Nothing is more important than your child’s welfare. If your marriage has broken down, if you have separated from your partner, or if you are no longer in a relationship with your child's other parent, you will want to ensure that you will be able to continue to provide the love, support, and care your child needs. During a divorce or family law case, you may be uncertain about how issues related to child custody will be handled. Based on the circumstances of your case, you may believe that you should have sole custody of your child. However, it is important to understand when this type of custody may be possible and the factors that courts will consider when making decisions about custody arrangements.
Understanding Conservatorship in Texas Family Law Cases
Child custody is often broken down into two components: legal custody and physical custody. In Texas, legal custody is known as conservatorship, and it involves the right to make decisions about how a child will be raised, including the medical treatments they will receive, where they will attend school, and where they will primarily live. In most cases, courts prefer to put joint managing conservatorship arrangements in place, giving both parents a say in how their children will be raised. In fact, Texas law presumes that joint managing conservatorship is in the best interest of the child.
Unique Property Division Issues in a High Net Worth Divorce
During a divorce, a couple will need to decide how to divide their property. This can be complicated and emotionally-difficult process, regardless of the circumstances of the case. However, property division can be especially complex in high net worth divorces, because higher amounts of money and more valuable assets will be involved. While the basic principles of property division remain the same, there are some unique issues that must be considered when it comes to a high net worth divorce.
Characterization of Assets
The first step in dividing property is determining how each asset should be characterized. In most cases, assets will either be defined as either community or separate property. Community property typically includes any assets acquired during the marriage, while separate property includes assets acquired by either spouse prior to the marriage or through an inheritance or gift.
What Expenses Are Covered by Child Support in Texas?
For married parents going through a divorce in the state of Texas, as well as unmarried parents who expect to share custody of one or more children, child support will be an important aspect of the proceedings. Most of the time, one parent will be responsible for paying monthly child support to the other parent to help cover the costs associated with raising the couple's children. However, parents may be unsure about what expenses are actually covered by child support. By understanding how Texas' laws affect these cases, parents can make sure their children will have the necessary financial resources.
Expenses Included in Child Support
Under the Texas Family Code, child support is determined by taking a percentage of the paying parent's "net resources," which consist of all sources of income they receive minus certain types of taxes and mandatory expenses such as union dues. When children live primarily with one parent, the other parent will be responsible for paying child support. These support payments may address child-related expenses such as:
Can I Receive Spousal Support Following My Texas Divorce?
If you are currently going through a divorce in Texas, you may be wondering if you are entitled to receive spousal support. While the answer is not always easy to determine, there are some general rules and guidelines that can help guide your understanding of how spousal support works in the Lone Star State.
What Is Spousal Support?
Spousal support—sometimes referred to as "alimony"—is an economic contribution from one spouse to the other following a divorce. Generally speaking, it is designed to provide financial stability to a spouse who may have been financially dependent on their partner during the marriage. Depending on the circumstances of each case, spousal support may be ordered by a court or agreed upon by both parties during mediation or the negotiation of a divorce settlement.
Depositions in a Divorce Proceeding
While the vast majority of divorce cases are resolved between the spouses before going to trial, for some, litigation is unavoidable. In other cases, the parties begin preparing for litigation while continuing to negotiate and are able to reach an agreement before the matter is brought before a judge. As your case gets underway, your attorney may request discovery from your spouse and your spouse’s attorney may request discovery from you. Discovery—or the gathering of all information pertinent to the case at hand—may include depositions, and if you have been asked to give a deposition, there are several things you should know.
What Is a Deposition?
You may have heard the word “deposition” on television procedural dramas, but, until they are required to give one, many people are not fully clear on what the term means. A deposition is testimony given under oath in advance of a courtroom hearing or trial, the transcript or video of which may be used later in court. In a divorce-related deposition, the testimony typically takes the form of a series of questions asked by one party’s attorney to be answered by the other party. For example, if you are being deposed, your spouse’s attorney will usually be asking relevant questions.
Why You Need a Lawyer for Your Texas Divorce
Whether or not to hire an attorney to help you end your marriage is always a complicated question. While many young couples without children or significant debt or assets can successfully file for divorce on their own, the majority of divorcing individuals would be taking a major risk by not hiring an attorney. Although many people are concerned that hiring an attorney will be too expensive, employing the help of an attorney actually increases the chances you will save money on child support, spousal maintenance, and other costs. Hiring an attorney to represent you during your divorce can benefit you in many ways.
Save Time and Frustration
The American legal system is one of the best in the world, but it can be tedious to navigate. Divorces, especially complicated or high net-worth cases, can require seemingly endless amounts of paperwork, signatures, meetings, and legwork. Because divorce is often a deeply emotional process, some people find that they are simply unable to handle the added stress of managing the legal aspects of their divorce alone. An experienced family law attorney can help streamline the divorce process, saving you valuable time and resources.
If I Am a Grandparent, Can I Get Visitation Rights?
Grandparents frequently play a major role in their grandchildren’s lives. This can be especially true when one or both of a child’s parents struggle to maintain a positive parental presence due to criminal behavior, drug abuse, neglect or abuse, or even death. In difficult situations like this, a grandparent’s presence and influence can be an invaluable support system for a child who needs guidance and love.
If this sounds familiar to you, you may be relieved to learn that, in certain situations, grandparents in Texas can petition a court to get visitation rights for their child. If a court awards a grandparent visitation rights, that visitation is enforceable just as it would be for a parent. To learn more, read on and then contact a Galveston grandparents’ rights attorney.
When Can a Grandparent Get Visitation of a Grandchild in Texas?
Although grandparents often have good ideas about how to raise children born out of years of experience, differing opinions from a child’s parent or a strong relationship with a child are not sufficient by themselves for a grandparent to be awarded visitation. Before a court can hear a case authorizing grandparent visitation, one of the following must be true:
Can I Move Out of State with My Child After Divorce?
Texas family law courts start child custody cases with the assumption that it is in the child’s best interests for both parents to share legal custody or to have “joint managing conservatorship.” Having legal custody of your child, however, does not mean that you have the authority to do whatever you want with your child when he or she is in your possession. Parents must agree to abide by a parenting plan that is enforceable by law and violating the terms of this plan can have serious legal consequences.
One of the most serious violations of a joint parenting plan is when a parent relocates out of state and takes a child with them without permission. Parenting plans will generally address whether one parent has the exclusive right to designate a child’s residence or whether a parent can move within a certain area without needing to request permission from the other parent or a Texas family law court; however, rarely is an out-of-state move is permitted without prior approval. If you want to move out of state with your child, or if your child’s other parent has the intention of moving out of state and you object, get help from a Texas family law attorney right away.
Connect With Us
To learn more about our services or schedule a free consultation, call 409-392-1511 or fill out the form below:
