Texas divorces of same-sex couples can involve unique legal issues. Recently, a Texas appeals court considered three related cases involving one spouse’s relationship to a child born during the marriage. According to the appeals court, the parties, A. and J., signed an agreement with a reproductive services agency during the…
When individuals with a high net worth marry, they often bring significant separate assets to the marriage. When marriages with complex estates end, there may be disputes over whether property is community property or the separate property of one of the spouses. The trial court in a divorce must divide…
Parties to a high net worth Texas divorce may choose to arbitrate disputes because arbitration can be less expensive, less contentious, and more private than litigation. An arbitration award can be difficult to challenge, however. Under the Texas Arbitration Act, a trial court may only vacate an arbitration award based…
Parties in a high profile divorce might want to enter an agreement that goes beyond dividing the property. Celebrities, business owners, or CEOs might seek an agreement that prohibits their former spouse from disclosing private information, disparaging them or their business, or engaging in other behaviors that might damage their…
The court in a Texas divorce case must divide the parties’ estate in a just and right manner. Tex. Fam. Code § 7.001. Complex estates may include both community and separate property, acquired from various sources. The court can only divide community property, which is any property acquired by a…
When a parent petitions for modification of a Texas custody order, the parties may raise multiple issues. In a recent case, a mother challenged a modification order, arguing the trial court had erred in not submitting one of her proposed questions to the jury. Original Modification Proceedings The parties had…
Texas custody cases involving multiple children can be complex, because the children may not have the same needs. In a recent case, a father challenged a modification that gave the mother rights with regard to the youngest child that he was awarded for the older two children. The parents got…
A party who does not participate in a Texas divorce hearing may have a default judgment entered against them. If they meet certain criteria, however, they may be eligible for a restricted appeal. Those criteria are: filing notice of the restricted appeal within six months of the judgment being signed;…
Parents are obligated to support their minor children and cannot avoid their obligation through voluntary unemployment or underemployment. If a parent’s actual income is significantly less than what they could earn due to intentional unemployment or underemployment, the court may apply the Texas support guidelines to their earning potential. Once…
Texas spousal maintenance is generally intended to provide temporary rehabilitative support to spouses who are unable to support themselves. The appeals court recently reviewed a case in which spousal maintenance was ordered “in lieu of child support” for the parties’ now adult daughter, who is disabled. The parties divorced in…