Common-law marriage, more accurately called an informal marriage under Texas law, is one of the most misunderstood areas of Texas family law. Many people believe that a couple automatically becomes legally married after living together for a certain number of years. Others assume that having joint bank accounts, sharing a residence, having children together, or referring to one

Divorce is rarely easy, but an uncontested divorce does not have to be financially devastating. When spouses are able to reach agreements about the important issues—such as property, debts, support, and, when applicable, parenting arrangements—the legal process can often be handled far more efficiently than a contested divorce. For more than 30 years, I have represented people going

Separate and Community Property in a Texas Divorce: What Belongs to Whom? One of the most important—and often most misunderstood—issues in a Texas divorce is determining what property belongs to the marriage and what property belongs to one spouse alone. The answer can dramatically affect the financial outcome of a divorce. Texas is a community-property state. But that

Issue During my 30 years representing clients in divorce cases, adultery is an issue that comes into the conversation very offer and is usually misunderstood by the client. Whether a spouse should allege adultery (infidelity) as a fault ground in a Texas divorce petition, what legal benefits and risks accompany such an allegation, and what must ultimately be

Issue Presented Whether a Texas court may grant a divorce when the wife seeks dissolution of the marriage but the husband refuses to consent, opposes the divorce, or declines to participate in the proceedings. Brief Answer Yes. Texas is a no-fault divorce state, and a spouse cannot legally prevent the other spouse from obtaining a divorce simply by

One of the most misunderstood aspects of divorce is the division of property. Many people mistakenly believe that divorce means everything is automatically split down the middle, while others assume that property remains with the person whose name appears on the title. In reality, the law governing property division depends largely on the state in which the divorce