Divorce

Texas is a community property. As such, all income and assets acquired over the course of a marriage is considered to be equally owned community property of the spouses, unless it is proven to be otherwise. In many cases, community property will include retirement assets. Sometimes, the parties to the divorce will reach a mutual agreement not to divide retirement assets and will instead accept compensation in the form of more easily divided community property. If retirement funds are divided, however, certain formalities must be observed in order to avoid substantial tax penalties.

With the legalization of same sex marriages across the U.S., a lot changed in the legal landscape regarding same sex couples. For instance, it means that a Read more . . .

State laws pertaining to divorce can get complicated. Texas seems to take this one step further. You see, states are usually either community property states or equitable distribution states, with most jurisdictions following the equitable distribution model.

It’s likely you’ve never heard a person describing their divorce as “pleasant.” Divorce can be best for everyone involved, but that does not mean it isn’t the signal of a major life shift and that can be difficult, to say the least. Divorce, however, does not have to be the all-out battle that is so often depicted in popular media. In fact, many couples manage to find common ground in the process of divorce mediation.

What Happens During Divorce Mediation?

In divorce mediation, a neutral party, the mediator, oversees discussions between two spouses seeking a dissolution of their marriage and facilitates them moving towards mutually acceptable resolutions to some of the issues that can be most contentious in a divorce.
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Sometimes, there comes a point in a marriage when you start discussing divorce or separation. Legally speaking, these are two different things. Divorce is the legal termination of a marriage which begins with either spouse filing a formal petition for divorce with the court.
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The first thing to be done after filing for divorce is to serve your soon-to-be former spouse with the divorce papers. While this may seem simple enough, it is critical that service of process properly occur in order for the divorce to proceed as seamlessly as possible. Here are some details you should know about serving divorce papers in Texas.
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The truth of the matter is that divorce rarely brings out the best in people. It is personal, emotional, and can have significant financial impacts on those involved for years to come. When people are facing such proceedings with these kinds of consequences, there are some unsavory actions they may take.
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As a state, Texas takes drug offensive seriously. Penalties for drug-related climbs, including the manufacture and sale of controlled substances, are severe and law enforcement move swiftly to crack down on offenders as do prosecutors. The drug charge a person may face will depend on a number of elements. These elements will involve questions such as, how much of the drug was involved? Was it being manufactured or only delivered? Is this a first Read more . . .

Spousal support, commonly referred to as “alimony,” can be a controversial topic and a contentious issue in divorce proceedings. Under Texas law, there are three different types of alimony potentially available to those in the midst of a marital dissolution. Each type comes with its own conditions and requirement that must be met for a person to qualify for it.
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Among the many things you may be worried about in your pending divorce, asset division is probably a big concern for you. After all, asset division can be highly personal, impacting assets you have acquired over the course of your marriage, as well as highly relevant to your financial well-being. Asset division incident to divorce can be a complicated and confusing process.
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Texas, as a community property state, considers most property that was acquired during the marriage to belong to both spouses. Upon divorce, Texas law dictates that community property is subject to equitable distribution. As such, divorcing couples in Texas stand to lose a substantial chunk of their property in divorce proceedings.
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