Dallas Family Attorney Blog

23

May 2018

Survival Tips for Your Divorce

At O’Neil Wysocki, our team of experienced lawyers are dedicated to helping our clients in Texas resolve their family law disputes. From negotiating child custody agreements to uncovering hidden assets, our attorneys provide knowledgeable, professional, and effective legal counsel for all matters related to family law. Getting ready to separate from your spouse can be stressful, which is why we ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

27

Apr 2018

What You Need to Know About Divorce in Texas | Chapter 1 Recap

How Do I Know If It’s the Right Time To Get Divorced? Our attorney Michelle May O’Neil has been representing small business owners, professionals, and individuals in numerous matters related to family law for more than 25 years. In that time, she has come to learn a few things about how to know if it’s the right time to get a divorce. Making the decision to divorce from your spouse can be very ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

12

Jan 2018

The #1 Cause of Divorce

If you are facing a divorce , you may be wondering how it is you got here. You may also be wondering how other couples get here. It can be easy to assume that financial issues, infidelity, or other reasons are the leading cause of divorce. But really, the number one cause of divorce is something much simpler than those causes. What Is the Leading Cause of Divorce? While infidelity, addiction, and ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

05

Jan 2017

Proposed law will set back women's rights 40 years

A state legislator from Fort Worth wants to make it harder to get a divorce in Texas. Rep. Matt Krause, R-Fort Worth, has filed a bill for the legislative session starting in January, proposing to require a party to state a fault reason for divorce or to remain separated for at least three years before finalizing the divorce. (See Lawmaker wants unhappy couples to live apart for 3 years before ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

28

Jun 2016

Do the 12 divorce myths apply in Texas? (part 2)

This post is a continuation of the discussion about the 12 Top Divorce Myths. Here’s the link to part one: Do the 12 divorce myths apply in Texas? Myth 7: You can avoid paying child support. Child support is a mandatory order in Texas and must be ordered absent extreme circumstances. If you are ordered to pay child support and fail to comply with the order, you can be held in contempt and jailed ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

21

Jun 2016

Do the 12 divorce myths apply in Texas? (part 1)

Do the 12 divorce myths apply in Texas? The Huffington Post ran an article recently about the 12 Top Divorce Myths . The article was written by Daniel Clement , renowned divorce lawyer in New York, and they all hold true in Texas divorces as well. My favorite myth is #8. Read on to learn why. Myth 1: Visitation can be denied if my ex doesn’t pay child support. Like in the author’s come state, ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

08

Jun 2016

5 things you will wish you knew after your divorce

Making the decision to divorce is one of the hardest, most emotional decisions in a person’s life. Dealing with the heartbreak and disappointment that comes along with divorce can be enough to overwhelm the strongest person. Then, dealing with the legal issues of the breakup can push a person beyond where they thought their limit is. One author posted about the 5 things she wished she had known ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

08

Mar 2016

Does your Texas county have Standing orders in divorce and family law cases?

Most petitions for divorce or seeking relief in a suit affecting the parent child relationship in Texas include a request for a two-week temporary restraining order. This is intended to maintain the status quo and prevent one spouse from taking any action that harms the other until a hearing may be held. The temporary restraining order may prevent spouses from hiding money or spending money in ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

28

Dec 2015

5 Tips for Planning for Divorce in Texas in the New Year

We all have family members or friends who have been through divorce. Although societal stigmas may still exist to some extent, divorce is far less scandalous these days, and often viewed as something that just happens to some couples. If you are divorcing, this is a healthy perspective for you to take and remember as you navigate the process and move forward. Clients often say “Divorce is an ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

12

Nov 2015

Waivers of citation clarified for divorce proceedings

Texas Family Code section 6.4035 was amended to clarify the requirements of a waiver of citation for a divorce proceeding. Effective September 1, 2015, a waiver of citation in a divorce case must be signed before a notary public who is not an attorney in the lawsuit and it may not be signed by digital signature. In other words, the signature must be a traditional pen-and-ink signature. Likewise, ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

05

Nov 2015

Texas family law courts accept digitized signatures for parties and lawyers in certain divorce cases

Effective September 1, 2015, digitized signatures will be accepted on pleadings or orders in proceedings for divorce and protective orders. The new law provides as follows: "-the-law-and-best-practices-for-compliance-3-728-320x240A digitized signature on an original petition under this title or any other pleading or order in a proceeding under this title satisfies the requirements for and imposes ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

20

Oct 2015

http://www.dallastxdivorce.com/2015/10/articles/divorce/standard-divorce-orders-coming-into-21st-century/

A new law effective 9/1/15 expands the scope of prohibited actions that may be contained in a temporary restraining order granted during a Texas divorce proceeding. The laundry list of prohibited actions comes further into the 21 st century, prohibiting parties from communicating and threatening each other via electronic voice transmission, video chat, or electronic messaging such as email, social ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

06

Jan 2015

Real estate in a Texas divorce - What do you need to know?

This is a reprisal of a blog post I wrote two years ago about real estate valuation and division in a Texas divorce. The points here still ring true today. Hat tip to Jeff Landers’ (@bedrock_divorce) Personal Finance Column on Forbes.com for his article about real estate in divorce. He had seven points that he believes divorcing women need to know about real estate and real estate appraisals. I ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

02

Jan 2015

Divorce in the New Year Protecting Your Business

January is the month of renewal – closing the door on the negativity of the prior year and planning for the challenges of the new year. Many commit to weight loss, exercise, or stopping smoking at the start of a new year as an opportunity to make improvements in their lives. On the other hand, some people use the beginning of a new year to make new personal beginnings, such as ending their ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

02

Dec 2014

10 qualities to look for when hiring experts in a Texas divorce case

In divorce cases in Dallas or, really anywhere in Texas, it is sometimes necessary to hire a professional to offer expert witness testimony on a subject. An expert is someone who is qualified through education or experience on a subject unknown to lay persons and whose opinion would be helpful to the factfinder (judge or jury). Examples of expert witnesses often used in divorce or family law cases ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

23

Sep 2014

No such thing as common law divorce in Texas

Once a party establishes the elements of a common law marriage, spouses are married until they are legally divorced under Texas law. The recent case of McMaster v. Small , No. 14-13-00069-CV , 2014 WL 950471 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.], 2014, no. pet. h.) (03/11/2014) (mem. op.), illustrates this concept case, the wife petitioned for divorce, alleging common law marriage. Wife alleged that she ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

15

Sep 2014

Rule 11 agreements are revocable before judgment is rendered

A point of confusion for many in the family law context is the viability of a rule 11 agreement to settle an issue or a whole case. Rule 11 of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure provides that an agreement between lawyers in a case is enforceable as long as the agreement is in writing and filed in the papers of the court or read into the record of the court. However, rule 11 agreements are ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

02

Sep 2014

Social Security as a Division Factor in Divorce

With the aging of the Baby Boomer generation and the increase in "gray divorces" that we are seeing in the Dallas, Texas area, I am more frequently being asked about the effect of social security benefits in divorces. Social security benefits are not a divisible asset upon divorce. But, Jimmy Verner reports in the Section Report newsletter of the State Bar of Texas Family Law Section on two recent ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

26

Aug 2014

Bank accounts and brokerage accounts are not the same in a premarital agreement

The Houston 14th Court recently handed down a decision regarding the characterization of assets in a premarital agreement, distinguishing between a "bank" account and a "brokerage" account in determining the characterization of certain assets. IMOMO McNelly , __SW3d__, No. 14-13-00281-CV , (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.], no pet. h.) (05/15/2014). Prior to Husband and Wife’s marriage, Husband ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

25

Aug 2014

August 2014 Dallas Divorce News Newsletter

Michelle May O’Neil, a Dallas divorce attorney and Shareholder at Godwin Lewis PC, publishes a monthly newsletter. Here is the August 2014 edition .

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

19

Aug 2014

Can a psychological evaluation in a custody case determine who is lying?

Oftentimes, people going through a custody dispute want to have psychological evaluations to show the judge "who is lying" to the court about some issue or another. Conversely, some people going through psychological evaluations in a custody case become concerned that the other person will "lie" to the evaluator through charm or outright deception and sway the results of the evaluation. Dr. John ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

12

Aug 2014

Undisclosed assets after divorce

What happens if, after the divorce is final, a party discovers that the other party failed to disclose certain assets in the divorce proceedings? The recent case of In re Ford out of the Texarkana Court of Appeals is instructive in this situation. In Ford, the parties had been married for 31 years and separated for 3 years. Two months after the divorce was final, the Wife filed a new lawsuit ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

07

Aug 2014

Reimbursement for using inheritance on community obligations

What happens when a spouse contributes or loans separate property to the community estate during marriage, then seeks reimbursement of those contributions/loans at divorce? The recent case of Hinton v. Burns out of the Dallas Court of Appeals sheds light on how this is handled. In Hinton, Husband and Wife both brought separate property assets into the marriage. Husband had a separate property ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

10

Jun 2014

Lump-sum payment of child support can still be modified in the future

Occasionally I have parents who have the ability to pay the child support obligation in advance in a lump-sum payment. I always admonish the client very carefully who wishes to do this because any orders regarding a child, including an agreement to accept future child support payments in lump-sum fashion, remain modifiable in the future until the child turns 18. The Houston 1st court of appeals ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki

08

Apr 2014

After the divorce, what else do I need to take care of?

I found Christie Gammill’s article in this winter’s Texas Family Law Section newsletter interesting in reminding attorneys that the divorce only ends the litigation but doesn’t end the “to-do” list for the client. Here is the list of action items that a divorced party may still need to address once the decree is entered. Ms. Gammill points out that a person doesn’t need to face this list alone. He ...

Posted By O'Neil Wysocki