Clients involved in family law disputes need both personal and professional support through times that are highly emotional, but require calm and reasoned decision-making.

We provide our clients throughout Texas with legal representation in the following areas of Texas family law:

Alimony and Post Separation Support -Alimony is support paid by a "supporting spouse" to a "dependent spouse". Alimony may be paid until the death, remarriage or cohabitation of the dependent spouse, or for a specified shorter period of time to allow the dependent spouse to become more self-supporting. Post separation support is like alimony, but it is usually paid after the separation of the parties until an alimony agreement or a court determination is made. The amount and duration of alimony or post separation support depends on a number of factors, including but not limited to:

• The length of the marriage
• The age of each spouse
• The health of each spouse
• Educational levels of each spouse
• The income of each spouse
• Standard of living the parties enjoyed during the marriage
• Other financial resources of each spouse
• Marital fault issues

We can help you determine whether alimony or post separation support is an issue in your situation and, if so, what amount and term would be fair to pay or to receive.

Child Custody- One of the most difficult issues facing parents who are separating is determining how their children are going to be parented. While many parents are able to resolve custody issues through the mediation process, the court is available to decide those issues if parents are unable to agree. While our philosophy is that it is normally best for your children if you and your spouse reach an agreement about a parenting plan, we have many years of experience successfully litigating custody claims in court. We can help you decide which route is best for you and your children.

Child Support- Child support is generally ordered by the court in situations in which a child lives with one but not both parents. All states, including Texas, have guidelines by which courts determine child support. Child support guidelines attempt to approximate the proportion of parental income that would have been spent for support of the child if the family had not been divided by divorce. Courts plug numbers into the formula and come up with an amount of support that should be paid for the child or children. The child support guidelines are not the exact method of calculating child support in every situation, and parties can argue that because of special circumstances, a court should order more or less support than the guideline amount.

Equitable Distribution- Equitable Distribution is the name of the process whereby assets and liabilities are divided and distributed between separating or divorcing spouses. While the presumption is that all marital property and debt will be equally divided between the spouses, there are many instances where an equal division may not be equitable, such as where one of the spouses has large separate property holdings or has much more income than the other spouse.

When dividing a marital estate, a court may consider a number of factors including but not limited to:

• Length of the marriage
• Separate assets and debts of the parties
• The incomes of the parties
• Tax consequences
• With which spouse children reside
• Economic fault

We can assist you in determining what a fair settlement would be and in achieving that result either by negotiation or litigation.

Mediation- Most family law disputes, including those involving child custody, child support, and marital property can be resolved without going to court. As court dockets in Texas have become more congested, there has been a greater focus on Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) such as mediation. Mediation is a process in which a third-party neutral, whether one mediator or more, acts as a facilitator to assist in resolving a dispute between two or more parties. It is a non-adversarial approach to conflict resolution, where the parties generally communicate directly; the role of the mediator is to facilitate communication between the parties, assist them in focusing on the real issues of the dispute, and generate options for settlement.

ADR provides a viable option for those who prefer to stay out of court and has many potential advantages for most litigants, including:

• Reduced cost
• Efficient resolution
• Less emotional stress
• Control over the results

Premarital Agreements- While not everyone who gets married needs a premarital or prenuptial agreement, if you have been married before and you have separate assets that you want to protect, or if you have children from a previous marriage who you want to provide for, a premarital agreement can assist you in achieving your goals. We can help you to understand whether a premarital agreement is right for you.

Separation Agreements- Many times, spouses are able to resolve their financial and marital issues without the need of going to court. A separation agreement is a formal settlement document prepared by your attorney that resolves all of your marital and financial issues. Many times, a property settlement agreement is included with the separation agreement to resolve issues of the division and distribution of property and debt. We can help you to determine whether such an agreement is in your best interest and prepare an agreement that meets your particular needs.