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Recent Blog Posts
A Detailed Look at the Process for Creating a Prenuptial Agreement
Prenuptial agreements can be highly useful tools to preserve certain property interests in the event of divorce. More and more couples are utilizing these tools as people see the value in being able to predetermine certain outcomes with respect to property division. Prenuptial agreements can also be useful in predetermining spousal maintenance and other issues as well. When a prenuptial agreement is created in Texas, the creators need to follow certain steps to ensure that everything is done properly. In this post, we will go over these steps, one by one, so readers can have a sense of what this process looks like.
Step 1: Identify Goals / Interests
The first step is to simply identify the goals and interests of the parties involved. If neither of the parties have any goals which might be furthered by a prenuptial agreement, then a prenup won’t even be necessary. Prenups can only be used for specific purposes, they can’t achieve everything. So, for instance, if people want to use prenups to predetermine child support, this can’t be done, because it would be against public policy requiring both parents to support their children.
How Do I Obtain an Annulment in Texas?
Most people have heard of the idea of “annulment,” but few people besides family law attorneys know what this idea really means. If you’re married, you are likely curious about the details of this concept and how this concept can potentially impact your marriage. In this post, we’re going to discuss the basics of this concept and then discuss the process for obtaining an annulment here in Texas.
Annulment vs. Divorce
When a married couple obtains an annulment, this means that the marriage itself was never valid from the beginning. Annulment therefore is a declaration that the marriage was “void.” This is the critical difference between annulment and divorce. A divorce is the formal dissolution of a valid marriage, whereas an annulment means that the marriage never existed in the first place. When a marriage is declared void through annulment, this declaration carries important ramifications.
Do Mothers Always Get Primary Custody in Texas?
It is a common, but incorrect, belief that in a divorce, the mother will prevail and have child custody issues decided predominantly in her favor. Under Texas law, all judicial decisions regarding child custody must be decided in the best interests of the children involved. The gender of a parent is rarely relevant to this consideration.
In many cases, living primarily with the father is found to be in the best interests of the child. This is especially true if there is any factor suggesting that the mother could be potentially harmful to the children or is a less fit parent than the father. Fathers are frequently apprehensive at the outset of child custody proceedings out of concern that courts may be biased against them. While on a subtle level, some judges may have a slight bias in favor of the mother, outright discrimination is verboten. It is still prudent for a father entering child custody proceedings, incident to divorce or otherwise, to be represented by an attorney who is experienced in protecting the rights of fathers.
Understanding Inheritance Rights in a Texas Prenup
In many cases, spouses enter into marriages without even considering the potential benefits or usefulness of a prenuptial agreement (also called “premarital agreements” in some jurisdictions). In the popular imagination, prenuptial agreements are “tools of the rich,” used almost exclusively by wealthy couples in order to selfishly guard their premarital assets. Or, other people feel that a prenuptial agreement necessarily lowers the amount of trust in a relationship. The truth, however, is that prenuptial agreements are simply contractual agreements that spouses can use to predetermine how certain property will be distributed. Prenuptial agreements allow spouses to predetermine certain outcomes which would otherwise be left up to the courts. And, as we know, sometimes courts don’t always render decisions that are fully consistent with a person’s desires.
In this post, we will go over how prenuptial agreements can impact inheritance rights. Spouses need to be aware of how the “default” inheritance rules operate so that they can determine these default rules may be adequate, or if a prenuptial contract is necessary.
Assets That May Need To Be Appraised During Divorce
A significant portion of the conflict in many divorce cases stems from the need to divide the entire marital estate evenly. It is not an easy task to accomplish a division that is agreeable to both parties. In many cases, particularly those involving high-net-worth divorce, there is often a dispute as to the value of certain assets. Whether you and your current spouse are preparing for litigation or attempting to settle your divorce through alternative dispute resolution methods, it is necessary to have a concrete valuation for marital assets.
There are several methods for establishing the value of an asset through appraisal. Some spouses mutually agree on an appraiser, while others each have the asset appraised separately and take the average. The method by which you establish the value of an asset can have an important impact on the ultimate outcome of your divorce. An attorney can provide you with more information about valuation methods.
4 Difficult Divorce Situations and How to Handle Them
You may not realize just how complicated or challenging divorce will be until you are in the thick of it. Between conflict with your spouse and the difficulties your children are experiencing, you may find that the path to divorce is rocky. This could be because you have significant marital assets to divide, or because your spouse is mentally ill. Maybe your attempts at resolving your divorce through mediation are going nowhere, or your split is leading to financial difficulties. Whatever difficult divorce situation you are facing, the important thing is to handle it with a clear head instead of giving into emotional reasoning. Your attorney can offer you additional advice that pertains to your particular situation.
Challenging Divorce Situations and Solutions
Some difficult divorce situations people face include:
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High level of conflict - Divorcing a person you can no longer tolerate being in the same room with can be quite challenging. Every mediation session turns into a shouting match. You send your sister to pick up the kids so you do not have to see your spouse. Your ex is disparaging you on social media. One solution - other than going through litigation - is attorney-facilitated negotiation. This way, you never have to deal directly with your spouse; each of you need only communicate with your own lawyer.
Back-to-School Tips for Divorcing Parents
If you are in the process of ending your marriage, there is a good chance that you are beginning to realize that your life is much different compared to when you were married. If you have children, the differences are probably even more notable. For many divorced parents, the first school year after the divorce is the most challenging, as they must establish new routines for their children and boundaries for the parents. When back-to-school season falls in the midst of your divorce, you will need to take steps to ensure that your children have every possible opportunity to succeed.
Figure Out a Way to Cooperate
Every situation is unique, and there is no easy way to decide how you and your spouse will work together regarding school. Decisions regarding child custody or conservatorship may still be pending, so you might both still share decision-making authority for school-related concerns. The best option is for you and your spouse to put your differences aside and to create a plan designed to let your child thrive in the new school year. If this is not possible, you may need to ask the court to issue a temporary order allowing you to make education plans on your own.
Family Debt Could Affect the Well-Being of Your Children
Financial debt is a major cause for concern around the United States, at the individual and family levels, as well as on a collective scale. Families fractured by divorce or other types of similar stresses may be particularly susceptible to growing debt, as financial obligations may be harder to meet on a single income, combined with countless other contributing factors. However, a recent study suggests that parents with certain types of debt may place their children at increased risk for behavioral problems in the future.
Quality of Life Connections
The study was conducted by researchers at the Institute for Research on Poverty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and looked at data from more than 9,000 children and their mothers over a period of nearly 40 years. The research also categorized debt into four distinct types: home, education, automobile, and unsecured debt, which included credit cards, certain loans, and medical debt. Looking for possible connections, the team also examined the socio-emotional health and behavioral concerns of the participating children.
How Social Media Could Negatively Affect Your Divorce
We all know people who invest substantial time and energy in posting the details of their lives on social media networks such as Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram. In some situations, the attraction of social media is strong enough that it causes people to lose touch with the things that are happening in real life. While most people are able to use social media in a reasonable way—such as to connect with distant family and friends, others want to broadcast more to the outside world. When you are in the midst of a legal action that affects you personally, such as a divorce, it is important to recognize the dangers of putting your life out there for all to see.
Mixed Messages
The first thing you need to keep in mind about social media and divorce is that literally anything you post could eventually be presented as evidence in your case. Posting on the internet does not require ink and paper, obviously, but emails, text messages, and even screenshots of posts can be printed and presented in court. This is especially important if your social media profiles are at odds with what you have presented in your filings. For example, if you reported in your divorce paperwork that you are currently between jobs, but your profile on LinkedIn says you work for a buddy’s business—maybe under the table—questions are likely to be raised.
Why You Must Take Your Divorce Seriously
If you and your spouse have reached the point where a divorce seems inevitable, you might be inclined to try to get through the process of divorce as quickly as you are able. In fact, a large number of attorneys and law firms seem to suggest that faster is automatically better. However, a quick divorce is not always the best route to take, especially if you and your spouse have accumulated substantial assets or have other complicating factors. It is critical to make sure that each aspect of the divorce is addressed properly, even if doing so means taking a bit more time than you would prefer.
Change Your Way of Thinking
You probably have perfectly valid reasons for wanting your divorce to be finalized quickly. Maybe you met someone and are anxious to start a new relationship. Perhaps, you are just ready to be done with your spouse after many years of fighting and bitterness. Or, maybe the thought of a long divorce just does not sit well with you. Whatever your reasons may be, a fast divorce might be possible, but you must be certain that you are not giving up too much to get there.
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