Divorce is a complex legal matter, and if you’re facing a divorce, you likely know that you need skilled legal guidance on your side – but you may not be entirely clear on why that is.
The bottom line is that your practiced Round Rock divorce attorney can make a significant difference in the outcome of your case – in a wide range of important ways – which is why it’s so important to reach out for their skilled legal guidance today.
One: Skillfully Guiding You Through the Legal Process
If you are facing a divorce, you recognize the difficult journey ahead, and while a big part of this is the emotional fallout, there are also complicated legal terms that will directly affect your parental and financial rights involved.
In other words, there is a lot on the line, and your capable divorce lawyer will help to ensure that you move effectively and efficiently forward with your rights intact.
In fact, your professional legal counsel will ably handle all of the following on your behalf:
Ensuring that you know what to expect on your journey forward
Helping you establish your divorce priorities, which will be used to build a solid negotiation strategy moving forward
Ensuring that you understand your parental and financial rights and that you make the kinds of choices that uphold them throughout the legal process
Helping you avoid the kinds of mistakes that far too many people in your position make
Helping you focus on what matters most to you – without getting caught up in every little detail, which can dilute your efforts
Engaging in skilled negotiations with your spouse’s divorce attorney in pursuit of terms that favor your rights
Knowing when to call it quits when it comes to negotiations and to proceed directly to court, such as if your soon-to-be ex simply refuses to engage in reasonable negotiations
Two: Ensuring Compliance with Texas’ Filing Requirements
You can file for divorce in Texas as long as you, your spouse, or both of you have resided in the state for at least the last six months. Further, you can file in the county in which at least one of you has resided for at least the last 90 days.
If you and your divorcing spouse each qualify in separate counties, you can file for divorce in either, and your seasoned divorce attorney will help you choose the jurisdiction that benefits you.
There is also a 60-day cooling off period before your case can be finalized, which must elapse from the date of filing, but even relatively simple divorces can take significantly longer to complete.
After filing for divorce, you’re required to have your spouse officially served with the divorce papers, but if you’re both in agreement on the matter, you can skip this step and simply give them the papers.
Three: Protecting Your Legal Rights Every Step of the Way
Your formidable divorce attorney’s focus is your parental and financial rights as they relate to each of the following primary divorce terms:
Your child custody arrangements, including legal custody and parenting time
Child support
The division of your marital property
Let’s consider each in more detail.
Your Child Custody Arrangements
Child custody includes both legal and physical custody. Legal custody addresses each parent’s right to make primary decisions on behalf of the children, and physical custody determines the parenting time schedule.
Texas courts always focus on the best interests of the involved children in the determination of child custody arrangements. Because prevailing wisdom maintains that children are better off when both parents remain active in their children’s lives, both physical and legal custody tend to be shared in Texas.
One parent may, however, fill the primary custodial role, which means receiving more overnights with the children and having the authority to determine their primary residence – within the mileage restrictions set by the court.
Child Support
Child support is generally calculated according to straightforward state guidelines. Even when parents share parenting time evenly, the parent who earns more typically pays child support to the other. Child support is determined as a percentage of the paying parent’s net monthly income, which is based on the number of children addressed by the order.
The Division of Marital Property
Those assets that you purchased or acquired, your spouse purchased or acquired, or that the two of you purchased or acquired together during your marriage are considered marital assets, and in a Texas divorce, they must be divided between you in a just and right manner. This means fairly in relation to the relevant circumstances.
Separate property refers to the assets that either of you owned prior to your marriage and that you were able to keep separate during your marriage. There is a wide range of factors, such as the commingling of assets, that can weaken the dividing line between separate and marital property.
Any increase in the value of a separate asset qualifies as a marital asset, and the spouse who claims the separate nature of a specific asset is called upon to prove that it belongs to them alone.
Alimony
In Texas, alimony is called spousal maintenance, and the state employs harsh restrictions that limit its application to cases in which one spouse is unable to cover their reasonable needs while the other is able to help.
Texas employs an alimony cap, generally doesn’t award alimony unless the marriage lasted 10 years, and usually bases the duration of alimony on the length of the marriage.
Four: Negotiating a Fair Settlement
One of the most important jobs your compassionate Round Rock divorce lawyer will fill is negotiating a fair settlement that honors your parental and financial rights, and that is based on your carefully considered preferences. This includes informing you of how your case is likely to be resolved and working in accordance with your divorce priorities from here.
A big part of the negotiation process is helping you pinpoint what you’re willing to fight for and what you’re willing to let go of, which is the basis of every strong negotiation strategy.
Throwing yourself headlong into every divorce detail will exhaust you and cost you, but it’s unlikely to do you any favors. A far better approach is proceeding with a well-considered plan, and that’s why you have a dedicated divorce attorney in your corner.
Five: Helping You Calm Your Anxiety
Divorce is an exceptionally stressful endeavor, and worrying about the outcome and what it will mean for your future can be excruciating. While there is no crystal ball when it comes to divorce, there is the best path forward, and that involves working closely with your savvy divorce lawyer from the start.
They will make sure that you not only know what to expect but are also well-informed regarding your options.
To obtain an optimal outcome in your divorce, it’s important to do the necessary legwork, which may include hiring forensic accountants, bringing in witness testimony, and beyond. In the end, your focused divorce attorney will leave no stone unturned in their quest to obtain advantageous terms for you, and this can go a long way toward calming your anxiety.
Your attorney’s dedication to the legal intricacies of your case can also afford you the space you need to address stress in a productive manner. This can mean sharing your feelings with a trusted family member or friend, spending some time doing what you enjoy, focusing on your children’s needs during this challenging transition, and beyond.
Six: Helping You Make Well-Informed Decisions
The emotional upset that goes hand in hand with divorce can leave you ill-prepared to make major decisions that will play a critical role in your future, and your accomplished divorce lawyer will help to ensure you don’t make rash decisions that come back to haunt you.
While it is your divorce, and every decision is ultimately yours to make, it’s not unusual for those slogging through the divorce process to get caught up in their feelings – which can include both rage and profound sorrow – and to make poor decisions as a result.
Your knowledgeable Round Rock divorce lawyer is well prepared to help you refocus your attention on the decisions at hand and to help you consider them from a legal – rather than an emotional – perspective, which could save you from terms that don’t serve your best interests.
Seven: Preventing Costly Mistakes
Too many people going through divorce are baited by their divorcing spouses into a seemingly endless battle that never goes anywhere, and it can take up a lot of time, can cost a lot of money, and can be emotionally draining. There are also matters such as failing to meet deadlines and failing to adequately address discovery requirements that can trip clients up.
Both parties in a divorce are required to exchange key financial information openly and honestly. These disclosures form the foundation for future financial decisions. If you fail to meet your obligations in this area, it could lead to serious legal trouble—and costly consequences.
Your well-respected divorce lawyer will take the necessary steps to help you avoid mistakes that could derail your case.
Eight: Identifying Financial Discrepancies on Your Spouse’s Part
You and your divorcing spouse both face the same financial disclosure obligations, and your diligent divorce attorney is well acquainted with the tell-tale signs of financial shenanigans. If your spouse isn’t on the up-and-up regarding financial information, it can leave you with less than the amount that you deserve – unless you fight back.
Your lawyer has a wealth of experience getting to the bottom of these kinds of less-than-fair dealings, and they will spare no effort in the protection of your financial rights.
If your divorce involves high or complicated assets, if your divorcing spouse has considerably more involvement in your family’s finances, or both – the more wiggle room there is in relation to taking financial liberties. Your financial rights are too important to leave to chance, and your reliable divorce lawyer is standing by to help.
Nine: Saving You Time and Money
The difference that your persuasive divorce attorney can make in how your case is resolved can be significant and is likely to save you both time and money in the long run.
Better divorce terms can add up to serious savings over the course of time, and when it comes to achieving favorable child custody terms, it’s hard to put a price on. Never underestimate the advantages of having a resilient divorce lawyer backing you up.
Ten: Understanding
If you're facing a divorce, you may feel like a fish out of water. The emotional impact is immense, and the uncertainty regarding your future can be terrifying. Fortunately, one thing that you don’t have to worry about is being understood. You can count on your trustworthy divorce attorney to get it, which can go a long way toward helping you feel less alone.
Your patient divorce lawyer has seen it all, and they appreciate how challenging the situation is for you. The attorney-client relationship is a no-judgment zone. They are there to fiercely advocate for your rights, to help you make the right decisions for you, and to make sure that you feel heard when the going gets tough.
In short, it’s difficult to overstate how important having a well-rounded divorce lawyer on your side can be.
It's Time to Consult with an Experienced Round Rock Divorce Lawyer
Brett Pritchard at The Law Office of Brett H. Pritchard is a savvy Round Rock divorce attorney who is squarely on your side and is well prepared to unleash the full force of his formidable experience and legal skill in pursuit of your case’s best possible resolution. To learn more, please contact or call us at 254-781-4222 to schedule a free consultation today.