Lockhart Divorce Attorney
The Law Office of Oprea & Weber represents Lockhart residents and other Caldwell County families through divorce, custody, child support, spousal maintenance, and property division, working from Austin and across Central Texas, including Travis, Williamson, Hays, and Bastrop Counties. If you are searching for a Lockhart divorce attorney, the first thing worth knowing is that your case will not be decided by a Lockhart courthouse-only rulebook. It will be decided under Texas law, and that law has several fixed points you can plan around from day one.
Texas lets you file when one spouse has lived in the state for six months and in the county of filing for 90 days. Only one spouse has to meet those tests, and the other spouse does not have to agree to the divorce. Once the petition is filed, a 60-day clock starts, and no judge can sign a decree before it runs out, even when you and your spouse agree on everything. The clock starts at filing, not at service.
Those two rules shape almost every early decision: where to file, when to file, and how to use the first two months productively rather than just waiting. Lockhart sits close enough to Hays and Travis Counties that many families here have ties, jobs, or property in more than one county, and that is worth sorting out before anything is filed.
Why Choose Oprea & Weber for a Lockhart Divorce
The Law Office of Oprea & Weber is a boutique divorce and family law firm led by attorneys Kevin Weber and Karen Oprea. We serve clients from Lockhart and Caldwell County outward through Hays, Travis, Williamson, and Bastrop Counties, handling divorce, cooperative and collaborative divorce, mediation, custody, support, property division, prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, paternity and SAPCR suits, and post-divorce modifications and enforcement.
Both Kevin Weber and Karen Oprea graduated magna cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School. Kevin trained in complex commercial litigation and negotiation at Latham & Watkins in Manhattan, which matters when a divorce involves a business, retirement accounts, or contested valuations. Kevin also mediates family law disputes, so when he sits in a mediation on your behalf he knows how settlements are actually built from the neutral’s side of the table. 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, and that appellate discipline shows up in how a decree is drafted and how a record is made.
We keep our caseload intentionally manageable. Your attorney handles your case personally from the first consultation to the final decree, and you are not handed off to layers of staff or junior associates. Clients describe us as knowledgeable, thorough, and caring, and one wrote that Kevin “translates legal language into applicable information.” We prepare every case as if it may be tried, and we pursue a cooperative resolution whenever the other side makes that possible.
What a Lockhart Divorce Actually Involves
- Property Division: Texas is a community property state, and the court divides the marital estate in a “just and right” manner, which is not automatically 50/50. Houses, retirement accounts, vehicles, and small businesses all have to be identified, valued, and classified as community or separate before they can be divided.
- Conservatorship and Possession: Texas calls custody conservatorship and visitation possession and access. For new orders where parents live within 50 miles of each other, the Expanded Standard Possession Order, with Thursday overnights and weekends running through Monday morning, is now the default. Lockhart parents who live a short drive apart often fall inside that range.
- Child Support: Guidelines apply a percentage to the paying parent’s monthly net resources: 20% for one child, 25% for two, 30% for three, 35% for four, and 40% for five. Six or more children are set at not less than the five-child percentage. A statutory cap on net resources exists and is adjusted periodically, and courts can depart from the guidelines in limited circumstances.
- Spousal Maintenance: Court-ordered support after divorce is narrow in Texas. The requesting spouse must lack enough property, including separate property, to meet minimum reasonable needs, and must also qualify on a specific ground, such as a marriage of 10 years or longer, a family violence conviction, or an incapacitating disability.
- Informal Marriage: A couple who agreed to be married, lived together in Texas, and held themselves out as spouses may be married without a ceremony or license, and ending that marriage requires a divorce. There is no minimum cohabitation period, but a proceeding to prove the marriage faces a presumption against it if it is not brought within two years of separation.
- Temporary Orders: While the case is pending, either spouse can ask the court to settle who lives where, who pays which bills, and how the children’s schedule works. These orders often set the tone for the whole case.
- Protective Orders and Safety: Where family violence is involved, the 60-day wait can be waived if the other spouse has a qualifying conviction or deferred adjudication, or the filing spouse holds an active protective order or emergency magistrate’s order based on family violence during the marriage.
How a Divorce Unfolds, From Filing to Decree
Most divorces move through the same stages, and knowing them takes some of the dread out of the first month. The case starts with an Original Petition for Divorce filed in district court. Your spouse is then formally served or signs a waiver. A served spouse generally has about 20 days to answer, and if no answer comes, the case can move toward a default.
The first real fork comes with temporary orders. In a calm case, the spouses agree on a short set of ground rules and move on. In a tense case, a hearing may be needed. Either way, the work done here, including gathering bank statements, pay records, and a clear picture of the household budget, becomes the foundation for everything that follows.
Then the 60 days run. Agreed divorces can be finalized soon after that window closes, because the paperwork can be prepared in advance. Contested divorces take longer, often many months, because discovery has to be exchanged, valuations may be needed, and the court’s calendar sets the pace. Most cases settle before trial, usually through negotiation or mediation, and a signed settlement is drafted into a Final Decree of Divorce that the judge approves.
The decree is where small drafting errors become expensive. Retirement account transfers, deed changes, and parenting schedules all have to work in real life, not just on paper. Afterward, enforcement and modifications remain available if circumstances change or an order is not followed.
What to Do Now if You Are Considering Divorce in Lockhart
Start by confirming residency. You or your spouse must have lived in Texas for six months and in the filing county for 90 days. If you recently moved, the county question may decide where the case can be filed, so settle it before a petition goes in. District courts hear divorces, and for a Lockhart household that usually means the Caldwell County district courts, though a family with a recent move may have a different filing county to consider. Where a case is heard in Travis, Williamson, Hays, or Bastrop County, the matter goes through that county’s district court system instead.
Next, gather paper. Pull recent tax returns, pay stubs, bank and credit card statements, retirement statements, mortgage and loan documents, and any prenuptial or postnuptial agreement. If you own a business, collect its financials too. Make a list of what you owned before the marriage and anything you received by gift or inheritance, since that property may be separate rather than community.
Be careful about what you do before filing. Do not move money out of joint accounts or hide assets; a court can account for that in dividing the estate. Do not post about the case online, and do not discuss it with your children. If safety is a concern, tell your attorney early, because protective orders and the waiver of the 60-day wait run on a different track from ordinary divorce.
If your spouse has already filed and you have been served, do not ignore the papers. The answer deadline is short, and a missed deadline can lead to a default. Bring the papers to a consultation as soon as you can.
Cooperative, Collaborative, and Mediated Paths
Not every divorce needs a courtroom fight. We offer collaborative divorce, cooperative divorce, and mediation for couples who can work through issues privately. In a cooperative divorce, Kevin Weber represents one spouse while working with both to resolve the case, and the other spouse chooses to proceed without separate counsel. That saves money and fits couples committed to a transparent process. When there is significant conflict, or when either spouse is uncomfortable without their own lawyer, each spouse should have an attorney.
Even when we pursue agreement, we prepare as though the case may be tried. That preparation is what gives a client leverage at the table.
Lockhart Divorce Questions, Answered
How long does a divorce take in Texas?
The 60-day waiting period from filing is the minimum. An agreed divorce can often be finalized shortly after it ends. Contested cases involving children, a business, or significant assets commonly take many months, depending on how fast the disputes resolve and the court’s schedule.
Can my spouse stop the divorce by refusing to sign?
No. Texas does not require both spouses to agree. If one spouse meets the residency requirements and files, the case can proceed, and if the other spouse never answers, the court may grant a default divorce.
Does agreeing on everything let us skip the 60 days?
No. Agreement does not waive the waiting period. The narrow exceptions involve family violence, such as a qualifying conviction or an active protective order.
Is custody in Texas always split 50/50?
No. The law favors frequent and continuing contact with both parents but does not guarantee an equal split. Parents can agree to an equal schedule, and courts approve it when it serves the child’s best interests.
How is child support calculated?
Guidelines apply a percentage to the paying parent’s net monthly resources, up to a cap that is adjusted periodically: 20% for one child, 25% for two, 30% for three, 35% for four, and 40% for five. Courts can depart from the guidelines if they would be unjust or inappropriate.
When does child support end?
Generally when the child turns 18 or graduates from high school, whichever is later, as long as the child stays enrolled and meets attendance requirements. Support for a disabled adult child who cannot self-support may continue indefinitely.
We lived together for years but never had a ceremony. Do we need a divorce?
Possibly. Texas recognizes informal marriage when a couple agreed to be married, lived together in Texas as spouses, and represented to others that they were married, or when they signed and filed a declaration. There is no minimum cohabitation period. If the marriage is real, it must be ended through divorce.
Can I get spousal maintenance if we were married nine years?
Possibly, but not on the 10-year ground. A marriage under 10 years can still qualify if the other spouse has a family violence conviction or deferred adjudication within two years of filing or while the case is pending, or if you have an incapacitating disability. In every case you must lack enough property to meet your minimum reasonable needs.
If we agreed to a child support amount below the guidelines, can it be changed later?
Only if circumstances have materially and substantially changed since the order was made. Where an order follows the guidelines, it can also be modified after three years if the monthly amount differs from the guideline amount by 20 percent or $100, or earlier on a material and substantial change.
My ex took the kids to live with a relative for months. Does that change anything?
It can. If the parent with the exclusive right to designate the primary residence voluntarily gave up primary care and possession for at least six months, that is a recognized ground for modification. A suit filed within one year of the original order must include a supporting affidavit.
Is my existing possession order automatically upgraded to the Expanded Standard Possession Order?
No. Existing orders stay as written. A parent who wants the expanded schedule must file a modification.
I have a protective order against my spouse. How long does it last?
Generally for the period stated in the order, not more than two years, though longer orders are possible with certain findings, such as serious bodily injury or prior protective orders. An order against a spouse who is a party to a pending divorce lasts until the second anniversary of the signed final decree.
Serving Divorce Clients Across Lockhart and Central Texas
Our work for Lockhart and Caldwell County families extends through the surrounding communities of the region. We represent clients in and around Lockhart, and families from nearby Luling, Martindale, Maxwell, and Dale, which all sit in the same part of Caldwell County. Clients also come to us from neighboring Hays County, including San Marcos, Kyle, Buda, Dripping Springs, and Wimberley, and from Bastrop County, including Bastrop, Elgin, Smithville, and Cedar Creek.
In Travis County, we serve Austin and its surrounding communities, and in Williamson County we serve Round Rock, Georgetown, Cedar Park, Leander, Pflugerville, and Taylor. Whether the case begins in a small town or a large suburb, our approach is the same: a lawyer who knows your file, plain-language advice, and a strategy built for your family.
Talk With a Lockhart Divorce Attorney at Oprea & Weber
If you are weighing a divorce, have been served, or want to understand your options before anyone files, a conversation with a Lockhart divorce attorney can clear up a lot quickly. Call The Law Office of Oprea & Weber to schedule a consultation. We will talk through your residency, your children, your finances, and the path that fits your goals, whether that is a cooperative resolution or a case prepared for trial.