Establishing a child’s paternity is important because without it:

• A Texas court will not order a father to pay child support
• A father cannot enforce his right to visitation or possession of the child

Other benefits of establishing paternity include:

• The child may be able to receive assistance from government programs, such as Social Security, veteran’s benefits or health care.
• The father can provide health insurance and other benefits, for the child
• The child will have access to his/her family medical history

Under Texas law, when a child is born to unmarried parents, it is deemed to have been born without a legal father. To establish legal paternity, and secure the child’s legal rights in these circumstances, the child’s parents must complete an Acknowledgment of Paternity (AOP). In the Lone Star state, there is a difference between a “legal father” and a “biological father.” Blood tests or other medical examinations are used to establish the biological connection between parents and their offspring.

Acknowledging paternity

When a baby is born to unmarried parents in Texas, a man can establish himself as the child’s legal father by having both parents sign an Acknowledgement of Paternity (AOP). When that document is filed with the Bureau of Vital Statistics, the biological father then also becomes the child’s legal father. Once that is completed, the father’s name is placed on the birth certificate, a court can order him to pay child support and grant him the right to visitation or custody of the infant.

Potential complications for establishing paternity

Sometimes, establishing paternity in Texas requires more than merely the signing of an AOP.  If the mother is married to someone else when the baby is born or the infant is born within 300 days of the date of her divorce from a man who is not the biological father, the child is considered ‘of the marriage.’ However, to negate this label, the husband must sign a Denial of Paternity (DOP). If he does, the biological father can become the baby’s legal father by signing an AOP. However, if the husband will not sign a DOP, either biological parent may initiate a case with the Texas Attorney General or they may hire a lawyer to help them establish paternity through the court system.

Located in Dallas, Texas, and serving men and women throughout the DFW Metroplex, the Law Office of Marilynn W. Landon offers clients experienced advice, personal service and guidance through the legal system.

Dallas Attorney Marilynn Landon will skillfully guide you through the family law and divorce process. Call (214) 522-4226 today!

Divorce can be expensive, time consuming and aggravating. In fact, many people just want to do whatever it takes to be done with the divorce and get on to the next phase of their lives. However, there are ways for you and your family law attorney to save time, money and aggravation, through the use of settlement.

Child Custody Attorney in Dallas County

Of course, there may be major points of contention that require litigation; but that doesn’t mean every single point in the divorce must go through an expensive, time-consuming litigation process. There may be many points that you and your soon to be ex-spouse can agree on prior to litigation.

For example, if you have a child custody dispute and cannot agree on a visitation schedule, that does not mean that you cannot resolve the division of property issues and spousal support issues prior to litigation.

Likewise, if you cannot agree on division of property issues, that does not mean you cannot agree on child support, as well as child custody and visitation issues. Remember, the more points you can agree on prior to litigation, the less expensive and faster you will be able to obtain your divorce and move forward with your life.

An experienced family law attorney can assist you with settling the points that can be settled and litigating the points that cannot be settled. By providing you with accurate information and experienced advice, your divorce lawyer can guide you toward resolving some of the issues presented in a divorce and saving you money. Your goal, and your attorney’s goal should be to obtain your divorce in the most efficient, cost-effective manner possible, without sacrificing your interests or rights.

Located in Dallas, Texas, and serving men and women throughout the DFW Metroplex, the Law Office of Marilynn W. Landon offers clients experienced advice, personal service and guidance through the legal system.

Dallas Attorney Marilynn Landon will skillfully guide you through the family law and divorce process. Call (214) 522-4226 today!

Separate property, in general, refers to property that was brought into a marriage, received as a gift or inherited by only one spouse, or money paid as part of a personal injury settlement or award. In some cases, however, what may have been separate property may become part of community property once it is commingled with marital property. For example, if your spouse received $50,000 in inheritance from a great aunt and used the money to re-model the living room, the money has now been used to increase the value of your home. As a result, in this case, the inheritance in question would be considered part of community property.

Dividing Community Property in Divorce

So, how is community property divided in divorce in Texas? The court will review the financial and living situation of you and your spouse to determine an “equitable” division of your marital property. An equitable division does NOT mean that property will be divided 50-50 – straight down the middle in equal halves; rather, “equitable division” means dividing property in a way that is fair and just once specific facts are taken into consideration concerning each spouse. In this regard, the court will consider the following:

• The work history of each spouse
• The employability of each spouse
• The ability of each spouse to support him or herself
• Who was at fault in the divorce
• The education level of each spouse
• The health of each spouse
• The lifestyle each spouse is accustomed to
• The needs of any children from the marriage

Qualified Domestic Relations Orders: Division of Pension Funds

If a spouse has invested in a 401(k), retirement plan, or profiting sharing plan at anytime during a marriage, the assets accumulated are subject to division upon divorce. After the court awards a portion of an ERISA compliant retirement plan or pension, a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO) must be filed with the plan’s administrator in order to receive the portion the other spouse is eligible to receive. If a 401(k) must be divided, the funds are typically disbursed within 30 to 90 days after the QDRO is finalized. If a pension plan must be divided, a calculation of the how much the other spouse should receive must be sent to the employer or plan administrator.

Contact Dallas, Texas Divorce Attorney Marilynn W. Landon.

There are a number of issues to consider if you’re considering divorce or have received divorce papers from your spouse. In the division of community property, you may be able to enter into mediation or the collaborative law process to negotiate with your spouse over who gets what and how much. This puts you in charge and avoids having the court impose terms that may not be ideal for either your or your soon-to-be ex-spouse.

Contact an Experienced Texas Property Division Lawyer

For additional information about property division in Texas, or to schedule a free initial consultation with a lawyer who will guide you through the legal process and provide you with the advice and information you need, call Dallas attorney Marilynn Landon at (214) 522-4226. If you prefer, you may fill out our intake form, and someone from our office will contact you to schedule an appointment.

Located in Dallas, Texas, the Law Office of Marilynn W. Landon handles divorce and other family law matters for clients throughout the communities in and around the metroplex – Dallas County, Collin County, Denton County, Tarrant County, Rockwall County & Kaufman County.

Please remember that until an order modifying child-support is granted, you can be held in contempt for failure to pay court-ordered child-support.

If you have a question about child support enforcement or paternity, please seek legal counsel from an experienced Texas family law attorney.

Contact an Experienced Texas Child Support and Family Law Attorney

For additional information about child-support in Texas, or to schedule a free initial consultation with a lawyer who will guide you through the legal process and provide you with the advice and information you need, call Dallas attorney Marilynn Landon at (214) 522-4226. If you prefer, you may fill out our intake form, and someone from our office will contact you to schedule an appointment.

4231 Cedar Springs Rd.

Dallas, TX 75219

What You Have to Gain through Divorce

• If there is a lot of anger, verbal abuse or physical abuse in your marriage, a divorce can reduce the risk of that happening, and increase your safety.
• Many people in unhappy marriages stay together because they believe it’s in the best interests of their children. Studies show, however, that children can adapt to divorce and often can benefit by not being exposed to the bickering and fighting prevalent in a bad marriage. One study concluded that 80% of children of divorce emerge as emotionally healthy adults. Children learn from their environment. If they are always around conflict, they often learn that conflict is an essential element of any relationship.
• Financially, you may benefit from divorce. If your ex-spouse was irresponsible with money or unwilling to contribute to the financial well-being of the family, a divorce can remove that burden and allow you to regain your financial footing.

The Potential Downside of Divorce

• If there are children involved, divorce can lead to emotional challenges. If you don’t clearly explain to the children that they are not to blame, they may try to take responsibility for the divorce. Additionally, a divorce can often place children in the middle of parents who don’t agree. The children may feel like they have to take sides, or that they have to become a different person when they are with each parent.
• Divorce can be financially devastating, whether you are the custodial or the non-custodial parent. You may have built a lifestyle based on two incomes, with a home, car and extracurricular activities at that level. With only one income, you may not be able to maintain the lifestyle you had. As a custodial parent, you may not be able to get enough in child support to keep your home or other items. As the non-custodial parent, the requirement to pay child support can make it difficult to acquire your own living space and build a separate life.
• Divorce can be emotionally devastating. Sometimes referred to as the “living death,” it can make you feel like a failure, feel undesirable or unloved, and put you in a position where you are constantly reminded of former, perhaps happier, times. When you or your ex-spouse remarry and your children start to develop relationships with stepparents, the emotional challenges can be wrenching for everyone involved.
• When children are involved, divorce can be very hard work. Even when you have a court order identifying custody, visitation and support, every situation is different. Your child’s needs and wants will change as they grow. You will often have to either negotiate exceptions to prior agreements or be perceived as inflexible, more interested in your needs than the child’s needs.

When it comes to divorce, you have several options. You can attempt to negotiate a settlement, request mediation, opt for a collaborative law process or go to trial.

In many divorce cases a temporary order hearing or court trial is unavoidable. Ms. Landon has extensive trial experience and will take an aggressive and intelligent approach to litigating for your rights in court.

Located in Dallas, Texas, the Law Office of Marilynn W. Landon provides experienced representation to men and women throughout the Dallas / Fort Worth area who are seeking a divorce or have been served with divorce papers.

Dallas Attorney Marilynn Landon will skillfully guide you through the family and divorce process. Call (214) 522-4226 today!

We provide you with experienced representation and keep you informed throughout the entire divorce process. We enjoy an excellent reputation in the legal community and have many happy clients (see our Testimonials).

For a free initial consultation with an experienced Dallas divorce lawyer, please call Ms. Landon at (214) 522-4226. For additional information about our Texas family law firm and some of the benefits of retaining our legal services, please visit our Why You Should Hire Us page.

As an experienced divorce lawyer, Ms. Landon has often been asked whether it is better to try to negotiate a settlement, seek collaborative law mediation or go to trial.

Ms. Landon replies that the answer to that question depends on a number of factors, including the following:

• The amount of money you want to spend
• Your desired time frame for finalizing the-divorce
• Your particular situation and disposition
• The complexity of your issues
• The law regarding the issues in dispute
• Your particular facts
• The disposition of your spouse (and his or her attorney)

In many cases, the best approach is a combination, i.e., negotiate a settlement for issues that are not really in dispute and then go to either mediation or trial for the issues that are in dispute.

Fortunately, divorce lawyer Marilynn Landon has extensive experience in mediation, collaborative law and litigation. In addition, she is a skillful negotiator as well as litigator and will zealously protect your interests.

Contact an Experienced Texas Family Law and Divorce Attorney

For additional information about family law and-divorce in Texas, or to schedule a free initial consultation with a lawyer who will guide you through the legal process and provide you with the advice and information you need, call Dallas attorney Marilynn Landon at (214) 522-4226. If you prefer, you may fill out our intake form, and someone from our office will contact you to schedule an appointment.

Located in Dallas, Texas, the Law Office of Marilynn W. Landon handles divorce-and other family law matters for clients throughout the communities in and around the metroplex – Dallas County, Collin County, Denton County, Tarrant County, Rockwall County & Kaufman County, TX.

Our team successfully settled a case with a stepparent, obtaining joint managing conservatorship where the stepparent was awarded the primary joint managing conservatorship of the minor child this month.  What a feat!

I am working on three grandparent matters right now.  In two of the cases I represent the grandparent(s) and in one, I represent the parent.  Following psychological evaluations and successful social studies, we are looking forward to successful completions of all three of these matters.

Additionally, we successfully concluded two father cases where our clients won the modification suits for primary possession of the minor children.  In two other custody matters this month, our clients (the fathers) received fifty/ fifty possession with no designation of a primary jmc and no child support.

We concluded another matter in which the order was modified to appoint our client the sole managing conservator of the minor children.  The other parent, represented by counsel, basically had no unsupervised access.

In property matters, we successfully obtained temporary spousal support for our client where there are no children. Also, we received attorney fees which were awarded to our client in a discovery matter.

Last February, I was a presenter in the Texas Academy of Family Law Specialists CLE pertaining to Grandparent Rights and drafted the materials related to this topic for the CLE participants.

If you have a family law issue and need experienced representation, please call the Law Office of Marilynn W. Landon at (214) 522-4226.

Therefore, we take the time to explain the process and prepare you for every step along the way. We treat you like part of our family, and we zealously protect your interests and keep you well-informed.

To schedule a free initial consultation in confidence, or to discuss your family law matter with an experienced attorney, please call Dallas Family Law & Divorce Lawyer Marilynn Landon at (214) 522-4226, or fill out our online intake form, and we will contact you.

Located in Dallas, Texas, the Law Office of Marilynn W. Landon handles divorce and other family law matters for clients throughout the communities in and around the metroplex – Dallas County, Collin County, Denton County, Tarrant County, Rockwall County & Kaufman County.