In most cases, child support payments end in Texas when your child graduates from high school or turns 18 years old, whichever comes last.For example, if your child is still enrolled in high school after turning 18, support continues until they graduate. If they graduate at age 17 or younger, support typically ends the same month they turn 18 years old.

Support may continue for children with disabilities

There are exceptions. Support payments may be required beyond a child's 18th birthday and high school graduation in certain circumstances. If the child has a disability, support can be ordered for an “indefinite” period. For that to happen, the court must believe that:

1. The child requires substantial supervision and treatment.
2. The child cannot care for themselves due to a mental or physical disability, regardless of whether they live at home or in an assisted living facility.
3. The child's disability existed or was known to exist before they turn 18 years old.

The formula for calculating support for a child with special needs is different from a standard child support order. Payments are actually established on a case-by-case basis.

Going through a divorce can be a devastating experience. It can be even more challenging under the bright lights of the social media age. If you are a fervent user of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or other platforms, it's vital to your future to understand how these applications can affect the outcome of your divorce.

Social media dos and don’ts during divorce

So many Texans’ lives are chronicled these days on social media. But once you decide to end your marriage, you need to change your social media habits, since anything you post may be used against you in court. Here are some general rules for managing your online presence:

What you should do with your social media accounts:

• If possible, stop using Facebook, Twitter and Instagram until your divorce is final
• Change your passwords so your spouse or others can’t access your accounts
• Change your security to the highest level possible to restrict what others can see
• Monitor your children's social media activity

What you should NOT do on social media:

• Vent against your soon-to-be-ex or refer to them at all
• Mention anything about your divorce
• Post photos that cast you in a negative light
• Discuss controversial or unpleasant topics
• Mention or post photos of a new love interest
• Never post pictures of a new romantic partner with your children
• Boast about or show pictures of expensive purchases, such as a new car

Social media silence is golden

Sometimes, divorcing spouses attempt to mess with each other by posting unkind messages or pictures. Don’t take the bait. Instead, if your spouse makes threatening or rude comments or exercises any of the behaviors above, alert your attorney as it may be evidence that can help your case.

One of the central aspects of child care is parental visitation. When a married couple breaks up, they need to develop a child custody agreement. The custody agreement determines certain things such as who will have primary physical custody, shared legal custody, and so forth. Visitation rights are another key part of caring for the child shared between the parties. In this post, we will lay out the basics on how the State of Texas deals with this critically important matter.

Texas Believes in the Necessity of Dual Parental Involvement

The first thing to know when it comes to visitation rights in Texas is that our system believes that the welfare of children is best promoted by having involving from both parents. This is sort of the “first principle” when it comes to understanding how our visitation rights work. Unless a parent is unstable, or potentially dangerous, the State of Texas adheres to the notion that a child should have regular contact with both parents. This principle informs Texas's laws on visitation, as is reflects in Texas's “Standard Possession Order,” which we will discuss below.

Parents Can Develop Their Own Visitation Schedules

The next thing to know is that parents are able to develop their own visitation schedules if they choose to do so. In some ways, this is the best option, because parents often have unusual schedules which may make following a pre-arranged schedule a difficult task. Suppose one parent is a police officer or firefighter; that parent may be called into work at random times with very little notice. Or, that parent may have to work very long hours during a particular stretch of time, which prevents that parent from being able to see his or her child on a certain schedule. The key point is that Texas courts will generally approve a visitation schedule developed independently by parents.

If your spouse or partner avoids being served legal orders through conventional methods, Texas now allows service of process through social media and email. This change took effect at the beginning of 2021, after the Texas Supreme Court approved changes to rules in the state.

Some people try to evade service processors, so they can avoid receiving divorce petitions, custody orders, and other legal documents. The law change makes it much easier for you to serve legal documents on a current or former spouse. However, you still have to try the old-fashioned ways first.

First, try to serve documents the traditional way

Your first attempts to serve legal documents must include these traditional methods:

The thought of ending a once-loving relationship can be bad enough on its own, but adding an uncertain financial future to the equation presents an extra layer of fear and anxiety to any divorce between Texas spouses.

But the good news is there are steps you can take to protect your new life as a single person. First, consult with an experienced and compassionate family law attorney who can guide you through the process.

Five steps to protect your future financial well-being

In addition to charting a budget for paying monthly bills, including mortgage or rent, utilities and other expenses, it's vital to take steps to protect assets by:

Prenuptial agreements – also referred to as “premarital agreements” in Texas – are a curious thing in the context of marriage. On the one hand, many people insist that these agreements are necessary to ensure that no spouse is unfairly impacted by a divorce. On the other hand, prenuptial agreements are not exactly the most romantic things, and in some ways seem incongruous with the general purpose of marriage to begin with. The best approach is likely to be somewhere in the middle: use prenups when necessary, but they may not always be necessary. Texas is a community property state, which has a decisive role in property division in divorces without a prenuptial agreement. If a couple feels that this default position is fine, then perhaps a prenup is simply not necessary.

In this post, we’d like to give a basic overview of how courts treat prenuptial agreements. Most readers have at least a general idea of how these agreements work. A prenuptial agreement is a contract which predetermines things such as property division, asset protection, inheritance, debt responsibility, and so forth. But how do courts treat these agreements? Let's discuss in a bit of detail.

Texas Courts Apply Basic Contract Law Principles to Agreements

Chapter 4 of Subtitle (1)(B) within the Texas Family Code deals with both premarital and marital property agreements. This is where we can find the specific rules which govern prenuptial agreements. When it comes to the enforcement of these agreements, if we look at the code, we can see that Texas courts apply many of the basic principles of contract law. This means, for instance, that prenuptial agreements must be entered into voluntarily in order to be upheld. This is taken right from basic contract law which states that there must be a valid “acceptance” to create a contract.

Too many Texas spouses struggle going through the motions of an unhappy marriage. Often, it's due to the belief that things will get better, or they’re afraid of the impact divorce will have on their children.

However, in many cases, divorce is a positive step for the entire family. Once a marriage is broken beyond repair, it's vital to change course when anger, frustration and resentment consume the relationship.

Five “freeing” effects of divorce

Divorce is never easy, and families are forever changed. But it's often for the better as ex-spouses can focus on the needs of their children to forge a new dynamic. The benefits include:

Co-parenting after a divorce or separation is never easy. Every relationship is different, and some ex-spouses have more conflict than others.

While each marriage and divorce are unique, the common goal should be to ensure that children have a safe, stable and close relationship with both parents.

Remember! It's not about you

Putting aside negative feelings for a former spouse can be extremely challenging. However, unless abuse or neglect is present, Texas parents need to remember that children of divorce can still thrive when both mom and dad play a positive role in their daily lives. Here are some crucial things to remember:

The end of a marriage can take a heavy toll on spouses, children, close friends and family members. The emotional consequences can be even greater when private information surrounding your divorce is available for the public to see.

Keeping those details away from prying eyes depends upon your behavior and working with an experienced family law attorney who understands how Texas privacy laws can keep certain information from becoming public.

Avoid venting on social media

One key to minimizing the harm for children is for both spouses to remain civil. Avoid bashing the other party through digital communications, including emails, texts, tweets, Facebook posts or anything that could appear before a judge.

Nesting is a relatively recent trend among divorced and divorcing parents in Texas who share the family home, taking turns being with their children. As a result, kids remain in familiar surroundings, which can help them better adapt to their new situation.

The parents can stay in separate areas in the home, but most live in other locations. Some share an off-site apartment or house when they are “off-duty,” while others live part-time with family or even friends.

Putting the children first

Research shows children of divorced parents suffer more psychological and behavioral harm when their parents don’t get along. Nesting can give them a stable environment, especially in the early stages of a divorce.

When Texas spouses decide to end their marriage, nothing is more painful than telling their children they are getting a divorce. While it won’t be easy, kids should hear the news from both parents at the same time.

How your children respond will likely depend upon their age and what you choose to share. Younger kids will need reassurance that the breakup is not their fault, while high schoolers will want more details about the divorce and how it will impact their lives.

Keep it simple and skip the messy details

Present a united front with your spouse and avoid blaming each other, as it can force kids to take sides. Instead, keep the messaging uncomplicated and focus on the future, such as:

Divorce is a very “me-centric” process, understandably encouraging divorcing Texas spouses to focus on their own personal, financial and emotional well-being. If you’re a parent, that level of concern extends to your kids.

But divorce affects everyone close, regardless of whether they are related to you or your soon-to-be-ex. Likewise, it will significantly impact the future of all the friendships you have established on your own or through your spouse.

Control the narrative and avoid hurt feelings

Talking about the end of a marriage can be awkward. How you approach these conversations will likely set the tone for future relationships with:

A divorce changes all family dynamics. What once seemed easy can become fraught with difficulty, extra planning and second-guessing. This includes scheduling holidays like Mother's Day.

For moms, Mother's Day can be an exceptionally emotional event during or after a divorce. But both parents should understand it can be just as challenging for their kids.

Preparation is key when planning for holidays

When children live in two separate households, you and your ex (with the help of your lawyer) can accomplish much of the heavy lifting regarding where the kids will spend holidays and birthdays. When you are putting the details together for your Texas parenting plan, remember:

Going in front of a Texas judge for any family law matter can be a frightening and intimidating experience, especially if you aren’t familiar with the legal process.

However, doing a little homework and working with an experienced family law attorney can go a long way to presenting a persuasive and thorough case to achieve the best possible outcome.

Types of family court matters

A variety of circumstances exist where one or both parents, children, grandparents or others may be called before a family court judge. These include:

The key to a successful co-parenting relationship is creating a peaceful and loving environment for your child. Those goals can usually be accomplished when parents abide by the terms of their parenting plan while remaining flexible with their ex.

Regardless of whether Texas co-parents get along or try to avoid contact, it's crucial to detail the co-parenting relationship by keeping a journal, which may be a book or an app that keeps comprehensive records.

Details to include in a co-parenting journal

Diligence and consistency are the keys. You should make an entry after every exchange with the other parent. Include the date and time for items, such as:

Today, the Texas Legislature passed a law that would extend the statute of limitations on special education cases from one year to two! This will make Texas law consistent with Federal law. More importantly, it allows time for parents to gather information and make informed decisions about legally enforcing their child's right to a Free Appropriate Public Education.

This is a huge victory for parents of disabled children. It is not unusual for it to take the better part of a school year to realize the impact of schools either not implementing an IEP, failing to provide appropriate services, or the impact of an inappropriate placement. Frequently, parents realize the problem after almost a year has passed, and that leaves little time to hold schools accountable and pursue better services for their children. The expansion of the limitations period will offer greater protection to parents and children.

Parents and their attorneys and advocates have been pleading for this for years. Now the law has passed both the House and the Senate. Now it is up to the Governor to sign it.

After a year of lockdowns, health scares and stress over the pandemic, a Texas summer is finally on the horizon. The turmoil has been extra challenging for many married couples experiencing trouble in their relationships.

But vaccinations are increasing, and public health restrictions are loosening. This summer may be the time that couples who have been cooped up with each other for most of the past year decide whether it's time to take action.

Steps to prepare for a possible divorce

The reasons and outcomes for divorce are different for every person. But there are some basic things to consider while you are contemplating what to do next, such as:

When parents decide to end their marriage, the first year or two can be incredibly challenging for their children, who are likely to experience anger, anxiety and disbelief.

While it depends upon the child, many recover quickly from the shock and get comfortable with the new dynamics and routines. But many kids struggle to feel “normal” again.

Divorce can mean different things for kids of varying ages

Divorce is disruptive for everyone, but it can be terrifying and confusing for children. Kids typically react differently based on their age:

Most Texas parents agree to put their children's needs first after a separation or divorce. While their marriage may be at an end, they will continue to raise a family together as co-parents.

Divorce can be devastating for children, even if their parents still get along. The best arrangement for everyone involved is when parents maintain a respectful and civil relationship.

Five tips for amicable post-divorce parenting

Even divorced couples who come together to prioritize their parenting duties face many challenges, such as disagreements, feelings of abandonment and loneliness. But those feelings can often be overcome by looking at the big picture and pursuing these strategies:

Some Texas parents fear that divorce could be so devastating to their children that the best option is staying in an unhappy and unfulfilling marriage. Psychologists agree that divorce or separation can be destabilizing and stressful for kids.

The best situation is having a supportive, predictable and loving household where both parents are present. However, divorce is usually a better option in the long-term when the parents are incompatible.

Parents can ease the pain of divorce

It is well documented that children of divorce are more likely to experience emotional and behavioral issues than those with intact families. But kids are resilient and can usually bounce back quickly when at least one parent: