Round Rock Modifications Attorney

A custody schedule that worked when your child was five rarely holds up at twelve, and a support order built around an old paycheck can stop making sense the day a job changes. If you live in Round Rock and an existing court order no longer matches your family’s life, you have options, but only certain kinds of change will persuade a judge. The Law Office of Oprea & Weber is a boutique divorce and family law firm in Central Texas that handles custody, child support, spousal maintenance, relocation, enforcement, and post-divorce modifications for families in Williamson County and the surrounding counties.

A Round Rock modifications attorney has to do two things at once: judge whether the facts actually clear the legal threshold, and then build the evidence that proves it. Texas courts do not rewrite orders because a parent is frustrated or because the other side got a better offer in life. The statute sets specific gates, and which gate applies depends on whether you are changing conservatorship, possession, or support, and on how the original order came about.

Williamson County family cases are heard by the district courts and county courts at law sitting in Georgetown, so a Round Rock resident asking to change an order will generally be heading up the road to the county seat. Knowing how those courts expect a modification to be framed, and what evidence belongs in front of them, shapes the whole case.

What Texas Requires Before a Judge Will Change an Order

For conservatorship and possession, the baseline is a material and substantial change in circumstances since the order was signed, plus a finding that the change is in the child’s best interest. Both pieces matter. A real change that does not help the child will not carry the day, and a modification that would help the child still needs a changed circumstance to anchor it. Examples that tend to matter include a parent’s move, a significant change in work schedule, a child’s emerging medical or educational needs, a pattern of missed visitation, or a household that has become unsafe.

Changing which parent has the exclusive right to designate the child’s primary residence carries its own rules. Within a year of the original order, or of the mediated or collaborative settlement the order was built on, the party asking for that change must attach a sworn affidavit to the petition. The affidavit must allege one of three things: the child’s present environment may endanger the child’s physical health or significantly impair emotional development; the parent who currently holds the residence right is seeking or agreeing to the change and it serves the child; or that parent voluntarily gave up primary care and possession to someone else for at least six months and the change is in the child’s best interest. A petition missing the required affidavit can be thrown out before anyone reaches the merits.

There are also two shortcuts the statute recognizes. A child who is at least 12 may tell the judge, in chambers, which parent the child prefers to have the right to set the primary residence; that preference is a recognized ground, though it is not the only thing the judge weighs. And if a parent has been convicted of, or received deferred adjudication for, certain offenses against a child, the one-year affidavit restriction and the usual change-in-circumstances burden fall away.

Why Choose The Law Office of Oprea & Weber for a Round Rock Modification

The Law Office of Oprea & Weber is a boutique divorce and family law firm serving Round Rock and Williamson County, along with Travis, Hays, and Bastrop Counties and Central Texas more broadly. We help parents and former spouses who need an existing order changed, defended, or enforced. Your attorney personally handles your case from the first consultation to the final order, the caseload is kept intentionally manageable, and you are not passed off to layers of staff or junior associates. Clients get direct attorney access and explanations in plain language.

Kevin Weber, Attorney, and Karen Oprea, Attorney, both graduated magna cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School. Kevin trained in complex commercial litigation and negotiation at Latham & Watkins in Manhattan, and he also mediates family law disputes while representing clients in mediation, which is useful when a modification can be resolved by agreement instead of a hearing. Karen has briefed and argued cases before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the Texas Courts of Appeals, and the New York appellate courts. That appellate background matters in modification work, where the case often turns on whether the evidence fits a statutory standard and whether the record is built to survive review.

Clients describe the firm as knowledgeable, thorough, and caring. One client wrote that Kevin “translates legal language into applicable information” and made sure she “always felt supported and heard.” Another, who came to us in a custody matter through a personal referral, described him as professional and friendly, someone who “helped hold us steady through a very emotional situation.” We prepare every case as though it could be tried, and we pursue cooperative resolution whenever the other side is willing.

Orders We Modify, Defend, and Enforce

Child Support Adjustments: Support can be revisited when three years have passed since the order was signed or last modified and the monthly amount differs from the guideline figure by 20 percent or $100, or earlier on a material and substantial change in circumstances, with no waiting period for that second route. A job loss, a significant raise, or a change in the number of children a parent supports are the usual triggers.
Agreed Support That Departed From the Guidelines: When the parents agreed to an amount different from the guideline calculation, the court may modify only if circumstances have materially and substantially changed since the order, so the three-year route is not available in the same way.
Possession Schedule Changes: Moving from a standard schedule to an expanded one, adding Thursday overnights, or restructuring summer time. Parents with older orders generally have to file a modification to adopt the Expanded Standard Possession Order, which is now the default for new orders when the parents live within 50 miles of each other.
Primary Residence and Conservatorship: Changing who designates where the child lives, or altering decision-making rights, requires a changed circumstance and a best-interest finding, plus the affidavit when the request comes within a year of the order.
Parental Relocation: A parent moving out of the geographic area named in the order, or a request to move a child away from Round Rock, often forces a modification fight over the residence restriction and a rebuilt possession schedule.
Spousal Maintenance Disputes: Maintenance is governed by its own chapter of the Family Code, with a monthly cap and duration limits tied to the length of the marriage. We review existing maintenance orders and advise on whether a change or enforcement action is realistic.
Enforcement of Existing Orders: When the other parent withholds visitation, skips support, or ignores a decree’s property provisions, the remedy is an enforcement action rather than a modification, and choosing the right vehicle matters.
Protective Order Interactions: A protective order generally lasts up to two years and can be longer in specific circumstances, and it can change what a possession schedule realistically looks like while it is in effect.

What to Do If Your Order No Longer Fits

Start by pulling the order itself, not the version you remember. Read the possession terms, the geographic restriction, the support amount, and the date it was signed or last modified, because the three-year support window and the one-year affidavit rule both run from that date. If the order came out of mediation or a collaborative settlement, say so when you meet with a lawyer; it affects which standard applies.

Next, start documenting. Courts decide modification cases on evidence of what actually changed, so keep pay stubs and tax returns if support is the issue, and keep a dated record of missed exchanges, schedule conflicts, school or medical records, and communications if the issue is possession. Texts and emails between the parents are often the most persuasive material, so preserve them rather than deleting anything out of frustration. If a child is 12 or older, do not coach the child about what to say; judges notice, and it can backfire.

Do not stop following the current order while you wait. Until a judge signs a new one, the old one controls, and a parent who unilaterally changes the schedule or stops paying support can end up facing an enforcement action. If both parents agree to a change, get it into a signed order rather than relying on an informal arrangement, because informal deals are not enforceable and can fall apart the first time the parents disagree.

The petition to modify is filed in the court that issued the original order whenever that court retains continuing jurisdiction over the child, which means a Round Rock family may find the case belongs in Travis County or another county rather than Williamson. Confirming the right court early saves weeks. Williamson County district courts and county courts at Law sit at the justice center in Georgetown. If your original case was in Travis County, those hearings are held in person at the Travis County Civil and Family Courts Facility in Austin unless the parties agree or the judge notifies otherwise.

Support Modifications: Where the Numbers Come From

Texas calculates guideline child support as a percentage of the paying parent’s monthly net resources: 20 percent for one child, 25 percent for two, 30 percent for three, 35 percent for four, 40 percent for five, and not less than the five-child percentage for six or more. A lower schedule applies when the paying parent’s net resources are very low. The percentages apply only up to a cap on net resources, and that cap is adjusted periodically for inflation, so the figure that applied when your order was signed may differ from today’s.

Net resources are broad. They include all wage and salary income and other compensation for personal services, such as commissions, overtime, tips, and bonuses, so a parent who has been earning more than the original order assumed can be affected even if their base salary has not moved. Incarceration of more than 180 days is also recognized as a material and substantial change for support purposes. Judges may depart from the guidelines when applying them would be unjust or inappropriate, which is where evidence about a child’s extraordinary medical needs or a parent’s other support obligations does its work.

When a Modification Is Not the Right Tool

Some problems that feel like modification problems are not. A parent who simply will not follow the schedule needs enforcement. A child who wants more time with one parent but has not hit age 12 and has no changed circumstance may not meet the statutory threshold. And an unmarried father whose parentage was never properly established needs a parentage action first, since there is no order to modify. Texas sets time limits on challenging parentage: generally four years from the child’s birth when a presumed father is involved, with narrow exceptions, and four years from an acknowledgment or adjudication for a non-signatory. A signatory challenging an acknowledgment of paternity after the 60-day rescission period is limited to fraud, duress, or material mistake of fact.

Non-parents face their own limits. Texas narrowed standing for people such as stepparents seeking custody or possession, and the law now looks to exclusive care, control, and possession of the child. Where a stepparent or other relative is trying to preserve a relationship through an existing order, the standing question has to be answered before anything else.

Questions Round Rock Parents Ask About Modifications

How long do I have to wait before asking to change child support?

There is no minimum wait if you can show a material and substantial change in circumstances. If you do not have a changed circumstance, you can still seek a change once three years have passed since the order was signed or last modified, provided the current amount differs from the guideline amount by 20 percent or $100.

What counts as a material and substantial change?

The statute does not provide a checklist, so judges look at the facts. A significant change in income, a parent’s relocation, a child’s new medical or educational needs, a parent’s incarceration for more than 180 days, or a household safety issue can all qualify. A minor schedule inconvenience usually does not.

Can I change custody just because my child wants to live with me?

Only in limited ways. A child who is at least 12 can tell the judge in chambers which parent the child prefers to have the right to designate the primary residence, and that is a recognized ground. The judge still weighs best interest, and the preference is not binding.

Do I need an affidavit to change who the child lives with?

If the request is filed within one year of the original order, or of the mediated or collaborative settlement it was based on, yes. The affidavit must allege endangerment or impaired emotional development, the current residence-holder’s consent or request, or that parent’s voluntary relinquishment of primary care for at least six months. A petition without it can be dismissed.

My order is from before the new possession schedule took effect. Does it update automatically?

No. The Expanded Standard Possession Order, with Thursday overnights and weekends running through Monday morning, is now the default for new orders when parents live within 50 miles of each other. If you have an older order and want the expanded schedule, one of you has to file a modification.

If the other parent agrees, do we still need to go to court?

Yes. An agreement between the parents does not change an order until a judge signs a new one. We draft agreed modifications so they are enforceable and ready for the court’s approval.

What if my ex moved out of Williamson County? Where do I file?

The court that issued the original order generally keeps authority over modifications as long as the child or a party still lives in Texas in the right circumstances. That may be a Travis County court rather than a Williamson County one, so we confirm where the case belongs before filing.

Can a modification reduce my spousal maintenance?

Maintenance is governed by its own chapter of the Family Code, with caps on both the monthly amount and the duration tied to the length of the marriage. Whether a change is available depends on the terms of your order and the grounds on which it was awarded, so we review the order itself before advising.

Will a protective order affect my custody schedule?

It can. A protective order in effect during a family case may restrict contact and shape what possession looks like. A protective order generally lasts up to two years unless the court finds specific grounds for longer, and one issued against a party in a divorce can last until two years after the final decree is signed.

Is it worth hiring a lawyer for a small support change?

Often yes, because the errors are easy to make: filing in the wrong court, missing the one-year affidavit, miscalculating net resources, or asking for a change the statute does not support. A short consultation can tell you whether the petition is worth filing at all.

Serving Modifications Clients From Round Rock Across Central Texas

We represent families in Round Rock and throughout Williamson County, including Georgetown, Cedar Park, Leander, Hutto, Taylor, Liberty Hill, Jarrell, Florence, Granger, Bartlett, Weir, and Walburg. We also serve clients in neighboring Travis County, from Austin and Pflugerville to Manor, Lakeway, Bee Cave, and West Lake Hills, as well as Hays County communities such as San Marcos, Kyle, Buda, Dripping Springs, and Wimberley, and Bastrop County families in Bastrop, Elgin, Smithville, and Cedar Creek.

Many of our modification clients have orders that came from another county or that need to be enforced where the other parent now lives. Wherever your order originated, we can tell you which court has authority over your case and what it will take to change it.

Talk With a Round Rock Modification Attorney

If you are weighing a change to a custody, possession, or support order, a conversation with a Round Rock modification attorney at The Law Office of Oprea & Weber can tell you quickly whether the facts meet Texas’s standard and which route fits your situation. Call to schedule a consultation. You will speak with the attorney who will actually handle your case.