Houston Divorce And Family Law Blog

If you are one of the many people in Texas who is facing a divorce, you will have many difficult decisions with which to deal. Even if the face of the emotional impact of your divorce, you will need to assess many of these decisions from a practical, financial perspective. The more you can take emotions out of the decisions, the better it might be for you in the long term.

If you own a home with your spouse, it is not uncommon for that person to want to keep the house after your divorce is over. This is especially common if you have young children together as your partner might be very focused on trying to maintain stability wherever possible for the sake of the kids. Before you rush in and allow this to happen, you should understand how to protect yourself against future credit problems or collections efforts.

As the parent with primary custody, you should receive court-ordered child support from the non-custodial parent. You and other Texas residents who get child support may also get unsolicited advice and information from well-meaning family and friends - some of it incorrect. Understandably, this may leave you feeling confused and worried as to how you can spend child support and whether your spending will be monitored or controlled.

First off, it may give you some peace of mind to learn that your ex-spouse may not dictate how you spend child support or demand receipts. The family law court will also not tell you how to spend the money or ask for proof of your spending habits. What can you spend your child support money on, you may wonder? As you know, this money is meant for the benefit of your children, but you have a great deal of freedom as to the expenses you deem necessary for their physical and emotional well-being. For example, as FindLaw explains, you may spend child support on necessities, such as rent, clothing, food and utilities. You may also find it helpful for medication, doctor appointment co-pays, school supplies and emergencies.

As Texan parents trying to navigate what parenting will look like after a divorce, you have a lot of big decisions to make. Fortunately, Law Thompson, P.C., can help by discussing some of the benefits and possible downsides of different types of custody arrangements, starting with joint custody.

As of late, studies are showing that joint custody is the way to go for parents and children of divorce. It allows your child to maintain bonds with both parents, and lets both parents retain their parental authority. It also allows both parents to have a say over important life decisions for their child. This can include schooling decisions, choices regarding the religion they're raised with, and which medical options should be taken.

When a relationship ends, hard feelings may arise, and some people have an especially difficult time moving forward. For example, those who have kids and cannot agree on how custody should be divided or those who have an ex who is very bitter about any number of issues may have an especially difficult time during the divorce process. In some instances, someone’s ex may even begin to threaten them.

These threats may be financial in nature, such as making claims that they will shatter their former partner’s finances due to alimony, child support or property division. Or, the threats may involve children, such as claims that they will not be able to see their child again. In some cases, threats may even become violent, and someone may threaten their ex’s life. People may threaten to tarnish their former spouse’s reputation among friends and family members or over the internet, and there are other hardships that people have to struggle with in this regard.