Grapevine Divorce Attorney

If you are considering divorce, or have been served with an Original Petition for Divorce, time can be extremely important and influential upon the outcome. Determining when to file for divorce and under what terms may influence the proceedings. If you have already been served if you do not answer in time you could risk a default that is counter to your best interests.

Divorces in Texas may be agreed upon, by default, or contested, and regardless of which of these three they develop into, certain requirements must be met to file, and certain requirements to proceed forward. For help throughout the process, a Grapevine divorce attorney from Mims Ballew Hollingsworth | Family Law is available to review your situation and help support your intended outcome however possible, whether through a negotiated out-of-court agreement or in court.

What To Do if You Have Been Served with Divorce Papers

In Texas, the person who files a divorce is the “petitioner”, while the other party to the divorce is the respondent. If you have been served with divorce papers, it is important to take the following steps to protect your rights and ability to contribute to key decisions surrounding your divorce. From there you must calculate the deadline for your answer, 20 days after you received service, with day 1 being the day following service.

You Have 20 Days to Answer

Your answer must address all aspects of the Original Petition for Divorce to address your position and provide your own best interests. If your spouse hired an attorney it may be difficult to process and understand the legal complexities of the agreement without an attorney of your own to assist in reviewing the contents.

Divorce Agreements Keep the Court Out of the Negotiation Process

When divorces are contested, the court gains the power to influence the outcome of your and your spouse’s futures and has access to very private information. Working with an experienced attorney to come to a divorce agreement that can then simply be submitted to court can be the most effective and efficient way to protect the best interests of all parties involved.

Review the Divorce Papers Immediately

The first thing to do if you have been served divorce papers is to immediately review them. The Original Petition for Divorce that you receive will contain any temporary orders or temporary restraining orders that were issued by the judge. One of the potential advantages of being the petitioner is that you get to shape some of these orders, which may impact both spouses in the dissolving marriage. If you believe that divorce is pending, it can be beneficial to reach out to a Grapevine divorce lawyer as soon as possible to determine if being the petitioner might be to your advantage.

Temporary Orders

Given that your divorce may take some time to file, the judge can be asked to make temporary orders through the filling of a Motion for Temporary Orders, which will cue the setting of a hearing, and may include such factors as:

• Temporary conservatorship or custody in relation to minor children
• Temporary possession or visitation in relation to minor children
• Temporary child support
• Providing health insurance
• The exchange of the necessary financial information to determine child support
• Temporary payment of debts
• Temporary use of property
• Temporary spousal support
• Interim attorneys fees
• The exchange of the necessary information to begin the process of equitably dividing property and debt

For lengthy divorce proceedings, these temporary orders can be in place and impactful upon your life for many months or over a year or more, underlining the importance of effectively negotiating them.

Temporary Restraining Orders (TROs)

If you believe that some harm may come to your position, whether physical, financial or otherwise, prior to the hearing for any proposed temporary orders, you may request a temporary restraining order (TRO). A TRO is an emergency court order that requires that the relevant party not engage in some specified action until a hearing can be held. A TRO generally lasts for 14 days or until your temporary orders hearing is conducted.

A TRO is created by filing a Motion for  Temporary Restraining Order, a Temporary Injunction, and Temporary Order. Alongside the TRO application, you’ll also need to provide an affidavit or statement that is made under penalty of perjury that explains the reasons why a TRO is needed immediately, prior to the temporary orders hearing.

A TRO may be necessary if you believe that your spouse may take an unfair share of shared accounts or assets, which can serve to create an accounting of assets and also limit the ability of spouses to liquidate them until the divorce proceedings finish.

Explore Options for Support with a Grapevine Divorce Attorney

Connecting with a Grapevine divorce lawyer from MBG as soon as possible once you believe that divorce is pending will support your best interests in any resulting pre-trial negotiations or court proceedings. Reach us by phone at 817-476-7964, or visit our site to request a consultation.