Protect your rights, contact us today.

Menu Call

• Home
• Firm Overview
  • Firm Overview
  • Read Our Blog
• Services
• Client Testimonials
  • Client Testimonials
  • Leave a Review
• Contact

Lewisville Contested Divorce Lawyer

Getting through a Contested Divorce

The path before, during, and after a divorce may not be easy, but your opportunity for a new life is within reach. If you are concerned about the future wellbeing of you and your family, discussing your situation with a skilled attorney can help you determine what steps to take. At Steele Law, P.C., Dina Steele is committed to protecting the rights of her clients with legal skills and resources built upon more than 15 years of trial experience. To speak to a family law attorney, please call (214) 333-4357.

Getting through the trying times of a divorce often presents many unexpected emotional and financial challenges. Ideally, family law matters involved in a divorce will be handled in a mutual and fair agreement between the divorcing spouses. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always happen. A divorce is considered "contested" if your spouse does not agree to the terms of divorce. The laws surrounding contested divorce are complicated, which is why legal representation is not just useful, but in many situations, necessary. To help you resolve the issues surrounding your divorce, a good place to start is learning as much as possible about your legal rights and options in regard to Texas family law.

Preparing for Divorce

Whether your specific proceedings will occur through mediation or in front of a judge, getting ready for a divorce not only demands a lot of attention and patience, but also strength and integrity. When dealing with a contested divorce, it’s of the utmost importance to be ready and prepare for the curve balls that might be thrown your way. It’s important to be as cordial and understanding as possible when dealing with your spouse during and after a divorce, but you also have to protect yourself. In a contested divorce, you and your spouse are not in agreement over the terms of the divorce, which means that you will have to prove your argument in order to obtain the settlement you believe is fair. This is why having an experienced Lewisville divorce lawyer on your side is so important.

The division of debts and finances is a serious issue in divorce. Gathering the appropriate evidence and presenting it in an effective way can be a complex process. Aside from asset division, other major issues of divorce include child custody, child support, visitation, and spousal support.

Does Fault Matter in a Divorce?

The short answer is that it can, but does not have to. Whether or not the Court considers fault in the granting of a divorce depends upon what each spouse files as the basis for the divorce.

Chapter 6 of the Texas Family Code governs Suits for Dissolution of Marriage and the grounds upon which a divorce can be granted.

Insupportability

Often spouses do not wish to "air their dirty laundry" with the Court and thus ask the Court to grant the divorce without regard to the fault to either party. In these instances, the spouses seek to have the divorce granted on the ground of "Insupportability" and assert only that the marriage is no longer supportable because of discord or conflict of personalities that destroy the legitimate ends of the marriage.

Fault as Grounds for Divorce

In other instances it may be important to one spouse to have the Court grant the divorce based upon the fault of the other spouse. A spouse may have a particular interest in this for a number of reasons. However, the most common is when the innocent spouse is seeking a larger portion in the division of the marital estate.

The Court may grant the divorce in favor of one spouse on the grounds of fault in the marriage if one or more of the following is proven:

• Cruel treatment where living together is unbearable and no longer possible
• Adultery
• Conviction of a Felony that results in imprisonment for at least one year, that has not been pardoned
• Abandonment for at least one year
• Confinement in a mental hospital for at least three years with a mental disorder that is so severe that change seems unlikely

Additionally, the court may grant a divorce in favor of either spouse if the spouses haven’t lived together for at least three years.

With Our Clients Every Step of the Way

Dina Steele provides each of her family law clients compassionate support and strategic legal guidance. Through personal attention, Ms. Steele finds out what her client’s most important needs and goals are so that the best approach can be established for a successful divorce outcome. To find out more about the difference Steele Law, P.C. can make for you, please contact the firm today.

Additional Family Law Services