Divorce
At Midence and Skillern, P.L.L.C, before anything else, we will listen to you and answer all of your questions. We will evaluate your situation and advise you of all of your options under the law. Our goal is to help you make the decisions that protect your legal rights, and that are in the best interests of your family and your children.
After consultation, if it is your decision to proceed with dissolution of marriage, we will represent you throughout the process. We will advise you with respect to legal grounds for divorce, residency requirements and required waiting periods, as well as in the filing of the divorce petition.
We will represent you through all negotiations and work toward crafting a divorce settlement that meets your individual needs. When out-of-court divorce settlement cannot be reached, we have the skill and resources to prepare your case and effectively represent you in court. We have successfully represented many clients to achieve the results they desire through the process of divorce litigation.
In Texas, under the current no-fault system, you can get a divorce based on insupportability (irreconcilable differences) without needing permission or approval from your spouse. This doesn’t mean that divorce will be easy. Your spouse or their lawyer can still put roadblocks in your way and make unreasonable demands.
At Midence and Skillern, P.L.L.C., we will help resolve divorce issues such as community property division, alimony or spousal support, child custody and child support. We will work to move your case toward resolution whether through settlement, trial or a collaborative law approach.
Most Judges require mediation to occur at some point during a family law suit, and some judges will not let your case be presented before the court without the parties attending mediation first. At Midence and Skillern, P.L.L.C., we often recommend mediation for reaching settlement agreements involving child custody, support, marital property division and other vital issues. Mediation is cost effective and has many advantages over litigation. Benefits include:
- The divorcing partners can achieve creative solutions for their unique family situation.
- The client maintains control of important life decisions, those decisions are not left in the Judge’s hands.
- The client does not need to share private family information with a judge, and private family information need not be placed in the public record.
Mediation may not work for everyone, and litigation is sometimes necessary. This can occur when mediation is attempted but an agreement cannot be reached. As experienced courtroom attorneys, we are not intimidated by the courtroom or having a hearing, if your case does not settle at mediation or mediation is not right for your case, we will aggressively represent your interests in court.
Texas introduced no-fault divorce in 1970 to avoid the necessity of drawn-out legal battles and unscrupulous tactics to prove or defend against allegations of misconduct such as cruelty, adultery and abandonment. The no-fault system also prevents one spouse from withholding consent to divorce as a means of extracting an unfair division of assets or child custody agreement.
While the majority of divorce cases in Texas are resolved out of court through negotiations, difficult issues can still be litigated before a judge. In addition, allegations of misconduct are still often raised to argue for a particular child custody order, visitation schedule or division of assets.
In certain cases where a husband or wife is financially dependent upon the other spouse, temporary alimony, or spousal support, may be awarded to help them become employed and self-supporting.
