Texas Family Law Blog

As we enter 2012, it is a time for fresh starts. Perhaps this is one of the reasons couples frequently choose the month of January to divorce. In fact, January has the reputation of being the most popular month for divorce filings, nicknamed "Divorce Month".

Why do couples often split in January? There are a number of theories. One potential reason is that couples don't want to separate during the holidays, when it could cause disruption during the many family events and impact children's enjoyment of the festivities. Couples therefore might stick it out during November and December, and finally file in January.

The hectic holidays may also push already stressed marriages to the breaking point. Spouses may reflect about the past year, and come to the conclusion they don't want to continue down the same path.

As the war in Iraq comes to a close and families are reunited with loved ones serving abroad, there has been much cheering and excitement. However, as servicemembers adjust to civilian life, and families get used to living under one roof again, the transition can sometimes place a strain on couples' relationships. This may be one of the reasons for the recent spike in the military divorce rate.

Chaplain Carleton Birch, a spokesperson from the Army Office of the Chief of Chaplains, explained, "As the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan draw down, we're going to put more families together who haven't been used to being together."

For owners of the new iPhone 4s who suspect that their significant other is cheating on them, apparently there is an app for that.

An app available on the iOS 5 platform of the new iPhone 4 allows friends and family to track each other. Called "Find My Friends", the app uses the iPhone's Global Positioning System (GPS) to locate and plot the location of other peoples' iPhones on a map displayed on the iPhone's screen (this app is also available for compatible iPads).

For the app to work, friends or family agree to allow each other to use the app to find their locations, often within a few feet of their actual location. The app could have any number of uses, including, as ABC News points out, making sure children make it home from school safely.

Many people first heard about the use of "private judges" during the Brad Pitt and Jennifer Anniston divorce several years ago. California is one of a number of states that allow private judges to more quickly resolve a divorce while keeping personal details out of the limelight.

Celebrities may choose this process because, unlike a public trial, journalists and other inquisitive parties have no right to attend proceedings or listen to arguments about property division and child custody. For many divorcing couples, the most important advantage is avoiding lengthy court dockets to speed up judicial resolution of a divorce.

Although life has changed a great deal over the years, married people are still frequently calling it quits around the famed seven year mark. The phenomenon is often referred to as the "seven year itch". It takes its name from the title of a Marilyn Monroe movie where a man, happily married for seven years, leaves his wife for Monroe.

Even though the movie was made over fifty years ago, the unfortunate separation of couples around the seven year mark continues to be commonplace. Recent census data reveals that couples in marriages that ended in divorce were together a median of seven years before separation, and eight years until divorce.

Texas law now gives men the opportunity to contest paternity and end financial obligations. Until this spring, it was nearly impossible to reverse alleged mistaken paternity even if a DNA test later showed no relationship to the child.

To have a child support case considered, a father must file a petition, attend a hearing to determine if proof exists to support the case and take a court-ordered DNA test. If the test shows that the man is not the father, upcoming child support requirements will be terminated.

Legal Right to Challenge Child Support Obligations

Signed into law on May 12, 2011, the paternity bill (SB 785) allows men, who believe they were wrongfully declared fathers, the opportunity to try to reverse parental rights and legally terminate future child support responsibilities. However, future is the keyword.

Courts are looking to the future not the past when making paternity decisions. If a father succeeds in proving no relationship to a child, he will not be reimbursed for child support payments already made. Additionally, he must fulfill his obligations to make any back child support payments due, including interest.

Hard times may bring spouses closer together, or increase tensions between them. The latter seems to be the case when a husband faces unemployment.

A recent study found that unemployed men were both more likely to initiate divorce proceedings themselves, as well as more likely to have wives who chose to leave them.

Women, on the other hand, were less likely to begin divorce proceedings if they were unemployed. Additionally, whether or not a woman worked outside of the home did not have any impact on her husband wanting to leave the relationship.

The researchers assumed that working women had more resources allowing them to leave unhappy marriages, and they expected this to be true for men as well. Surprisingly, the study showed just the opposite.

Much media attention has been paid lately to the poor behavior of famous "family men" across the country, including former California governor and movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger. When word got out that he has a secret child with his family's housekeeper, Mildred Baena, people were desperate to learn more about her, the child and whether his wife, Maria Shriver, would be filing for divorce.

Yet few wondered about potential child support from Schwarzenegger, though the amount Baena could receive may be equally sensational news that greatly affects her and the child's standard of living.

California child-support laws state that children are to share in the lifestyle of their parents, and that child-support awards should be made considering the relative incomes of the parents, among other factors. When one parent has significantly more assets than the other parent, the other parent often enjoys a better lifestyle as a result of child-support payments, even though they are intended as payments for the care and upbringing of the child.