Do I need Temporary Orders in my Texas Divorce?

When a person files for divorce it means that there will be fewer certainties for the family in a number of areas. For starters, if the married couple have children under the age of 18 their needs will need to be met by parents who are no longer a familial unit.

This is something not to be undersold in terms of importance in a divorce. The parents who were formerly, at least in theory, on the same wavelength when it came to providing a life for the children are now out in the open with their disagreement on fundamental issues in their marriage.

In all likelihood, the children are part of that overall disagreement. The finances of the family will also be turned on their heads during the divorce process as well. Questions that often arise include:

1. Who is responsible for what bill?
2. Where will the parties live?
3. If there’s a house- what happens with the mortgage payments?

Temporary Orders in a Texas divorce take these issues that need to be sorted out fairly early in a divorce and bind the parties to what is contained in those Orders.

Whether or not divorcing parties need temporary orders will be the topic of this blog article.

The Need for Temporary Orders

Temporary Orders are, as the attorneys with the Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC explain to our clients, the marching orders that will define the roles of each party to a divorce during the divorce process.

Standing Orders

In some counties- Montgomery County is one such county in Southeast Texas- where the county itself has what are called Standing Orders as well.

These sorts of orders go into place as soon as the divorce itself is filed and put in place straightforward do’s and don’ts that apply to both parties. These orders typically cover things such as:

1. Not physically harming the other party
2. not affecting any insurance coverage
3. not speaking to the children about the divorce
4. not barring the other party from accessing their vehicle and
5. not withdrawing large sums from any bank accounts are all covered by Standing Orders

For people going through a divorce in these counties, it is theoretically possible to have these Standing Orders suffice, especially if there are no children to the marriage.

However, in most situations the parties cannot come to an agreement without Orders being in place on the specific issues to their marriage that are not able to be covered in your boilerplate Standing Orders.

Self-Selection and Customized Temporary Orders

The issues that this author is contemplating are those that are mentioned at the outset of this article:

1. who will pay specific bills
2. who is going to move out of the marital home
3. where will the children live primarily and
4. what responsibilities will each parent have with the children

Many issues will be sorted out on their own without either the intervention of attorneys or the Court.

Normally one party will move out of the home on their own to relieve some degree of stress and anxiety that most likely led in no small part to the divorce itself.

Who pays the bills for the course of the marriage is typically decided by the parties’ relative incomes.

If Dad goes to work each day and brings home money for the family to spend, odds are good that a Court would order this to continue to occur. This is called “maintaining the status quo” and is what Temporary Orders are intended to do.

Negotiations

Negotiations over the specific issues of a divorce become much more contentious (typically) when it comes to the parties’ children.

Most parents are used to being able to see and spend time with their children whenever they want. This changes when a divorce starts as a function of one parent more times than not due to one party no longer living with the children primarily.

The other reason is that a Court will require the parties to either agree to a schedule of visitation or if an agreement cannot be reached and disputes are still occurring, the parties will need to have a temporary orders hearing on the subject of:

1. possession
2. access
3. visitation and
4. support of the children

Especially when the parties have divergent levels of income the party who does not have primary custody of the children will be required to pay child support in all likelihood.

The amount of support is determined by statute if the parties go to a temporary orders hearing. If they are able to decide the issue outside of court, the amount can vary but will likely end up at or near the proscribed statutory amount.

Mediate First if Possible

A recommendation that the attorneys with the Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC will provide to clients is to attempt to mediate their case before considering a temporary orders hearing. Mediation allows the parties to have the only say as to what is put in place for their divorce as far as temporary orders are concerned.

In regard to the bills the parties are responsible for, specifics on child and/or spousal support and visitation with the kids, mediation on temporary orders tends to resolve most issues that are facing the parties. Even if the mediation is only successful in resolving 90 percent of the issues, the parties can have a temporary orders hearing on the remaining 10 percent if necessary.

Schedule a Consultation with an Attorney

The answer to the question: do I need temporary orders in my divorce, is best answered after a consultation with a family law attorney. While there are husbands and wives that can informally agree to the terms that will govern them for the duration of their divorce, it is not always ideal to go about things in this way.

Oral agreements are not enforceable by a court and if a party to a divorce reneges on a promise the other spouse is most likely out of luck.

Agreeing to temporary orders or going to a court to have a judge make a decision provides an opportunity to get Orders written down and signed upon by the parties and the judge which provides a level of certainty that divorcing parties badly need. To learn more about temporary orders and how they impact a divorce, please contact the Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC for a free of charge consultation with one of our Houston divorce attorneys.

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Other Articles you may be interested in:

1. The Divorce Temporary Orders Guide
2. Getting Ready for a Hearing On Temporary Custody Orders
3. Temporary Orders and Temporary Restraining Orders in Texas
4. When Should You Go to Divorce Court in Texas?
5. Child Custody Basics for Texas Parents Revisited
6. Child Custody Basics in Texas
7. Joint Managing Conservators in a Child Custody Case in Texas?
8. Can I get sole custody of my kid in Texas?
9. Sole Managing Conservator in a Child Custody Case in Texas?
10. Texas Child Custody Modifications

Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC | Spring Divorce Lawyer

The Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC routinely handles matters that affect children and families. If you have questions regarding divorce, it’s important to speak with a Spring, TX Divorce Lawyer right away to protect your rights.

Our divorce lawyer in Spring TX are skilled at listening to your goals during this trying process and developing a strategy to meet those goals. Contact Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC by calling (281) 810-9760 or submit your contact information in our online form. The Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC handles Divorce cases in Spring, Texas, Cypress, Spring, Klein, Humble, Kingwood, Tomball, The Woodlands, the FM 1960 area, or surrounding areas, including Harris County, Montgomery County, Liberty County, Chambers County, Galveston County, Brazoria County, Fort Bend County and Waller County.