Pflugerville Family Law Attorney

Most families who come to us are trying to reach the same place: an arrangement for their children, their home, and their finances that holds up after the paperwork is signed. The Law Office of Oprea & Weber is a boutique divorce and family law firm that helps Pflugerville residents get there, handling divorce, child custody, child support, spousal maintenance, property division, paternity, and the agreements and modifications that follow. A Pflugerville family law attorney at our firm works with clients from Pflugerville and the rest of Travis County, as well as Williamson, Hays, and Bastrop Counties.

Pflugerville sits at a legal crossroads. Part of the city lies in Travis County and part in Williamson County, and that boundary matters. Where a divorce or custody case is filed depends on where the spouses have lived, and the county of filing determines which courts hear the case and how its calendar moves. Travis County cases are heard in the district courts of the Civil and Family Courts Facility in downtown Austin, while Williamson County cases are heard in Georgetown. Sorting out the correct county before anything is filed is one of the first practical decisions in a Pflugerville case.

A family law matter here is rarely only about the legal question in front of you. It touches the school your child attends, the mortgage on a house in a neighborhood you chose together, a business or retirement account, and the way two households will function afterward. We approach each case with that full picture in mind.

Why Choose The Law Office of Oprea & Weber for Pflugerville Family Law Matters

The Law Office of Oprea & Weber is a boutique divorce and family law firm serving Pflugerville, the rest of Travis County, and Williamson, Hays, and Bastrop Counties. Our attorneys, Kevin Weber and Karen Oprea, both graduated magna cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School. Your attorney personally handles your case from the first consultation to the final decree, and we keep our caseload intentionally manageable so that you are not passed off to layers of staff or junior associates. You get direct attorney access and explanations in plain language.

Kevin Weber, Attorney, trained in complex commercial litigation and negotiation at Latham & Watkins in Manhattan. That background matters in family cases with real financial substance, such as a business interest, deferred compensation, or a disputed property characterization. Kevin also mediates family law disputes and represents clients in mediation, so he sees settlement from both sides of the table and knows what makes an agreement durable. Karen Oprea, Attorney, 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. Appellate discipline shapes how we build a record and draft orders, which helps when a decree has to survive enforcement or a later modification fight.

We prepare every case as though it may be tried, and we pursue cooperative resolution whenever it is realistic. Clients have described 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. That is how we want every Pflugerville client to feel about the process.

Issues We Handle for Pflugerville Families

Divorce and Property Division: Texas divides community property in a manner the court finds just and right, which is not always an even split. Homes in Pflugerville subdivisions, retirement accounts, and closely held businesses all require careful characterization as community or separate property.
Collaborative, Cooperative, and Mediated Divorce: These out-of-court paths let spouses resolve disagreements privately. In a cooperative divorce, Kevin Weber represents one spouse while working with both to reach agreement, and the other spouse proceeds without separate counsel.
Child Custody and Possession Schedules: Texas speaks of conservatorship and possession and access. For new orders where the 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, which suits parents who both stay in the Pflugerville and Austin area.
Child Support: Guideline support is a percentage of the paying parent’s net monthly resources, applied up to a cap that is adjusted periodically. The percentage rises with the number of children, and courts may depart from it when it would be unjust.
Spousal Maintenance: Court-ordered post-divorce support is limited and available only on defined grounds, including a long marriage, family violence, or an incapacitating disability. It is not an automatic entitlement.
Paternity and SAPCR Suits: Unmarried parents establish legal parentage and resolve custody, visitation, and support through a Suit Affecting the Parent-Child Relationship, and strict timing rules can apply to challenging parentage.
Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements: Written agreements settle how property, debt, and income will be treated, which can prevent expensive disputes later.
Modifications, Relocation, and Enforcement: Orders that no longer fit your family can be changed, and orders the other parent ignores can be enforced.

What to Do Now and Where Your Case Will Be Heard

Start with residency and venue. To file for divorce in Texas, at least one spouse must have been a Texas resident for the preceding six months and a resident of the filing county for the preceding 90 days. Only one spouse needs to meet both requirements. For Pflugerville residents, the county question is real, because your address determines whether your case belongs in Travis County or Williamson County. Travis County family matters are heard in the district courts at the Civil and Family Courts Facility in Austin, and contested hearings and trials there are generally held in person. Williamson County district courts sit in Georgetown. A consultation will confirm the correct county before a petition is filed.

Next, gather the documents that will drive the case. These include recent pay records, tax returns, bank and retirement statements, mortgage and loan statements, and records of any business interest. If children are involved, collect school and medical information and note the current schedule each parent actually follows. Courts care about what has really been happening in the household, and a clear record helps.

Be careful about what you do before filing. Avoid moving large sums of money, running up debt, or making unilateral changes to the children’s routine. Travis County publishes a Standing Order for Family Law Cases, and orders like it can restrict conduct once a case is pending. Document any concerns about safety rather than confronting them alone. If family violence is part of your situation, tell your attorney immediately. A protective order can be issued for up to two years in many cases, and an active protective order is one of the narrow exceptions to the waiting period described below.

Understand the timeline. The court cannot grant a divorce until the 60th day after the petition is filed, counted from the filing date rather than the date of service. Spouses cannot waive that period by agreeing, and the exceptions involve family violence. Once the Respondent is served, the response deadline arrives quickly, and either spouse can ask for temporary orders to stabilize housing, support, and parenting while the case is pending. Most cases then move into negotiation or mediation, and many settle without a trial. Contested cases involving children, a business, or significant assets typically run many months, while an agreed divorce can often be finalized soon after the 60 days pass.

Changing an Existing Order: Custody and Support After the Decree

Many Pflugerville parents contact us not about a new divorce but because an existing order has stopped working. A job change, a move across the metro area, a child’s growing needs, or a parent who ignores the schedule can all trigger a call. The standards for change are specific.

To modify conservatorship or possession, a parent generally must show a material and substantial change in circumstances and that the modification serves the child’s best interest. Particular grounds can support a change in primary residence, such as a child age 12 or older telling the judge in chambers which parent the child prefers, or the primary-residence parent having voluntarily given up primary care of the child for at least six months. If a suit to change primary residence is filed within one year of the order, the filing must include a supporting affidavit alleging endangerment, consent by the current primary parent, or the six-month relinquishment.

Child support follows its own rules. An order may be modified when three years have passed since it was set or last changed and the monthly amount differs from the guideline figure by 20 percent or $100, or when circumstances have materially and substantially changed, with no minimum waiting period for that route. Where parents originally agreed to a figure that departed from the guidelines, the court may modify only on a material and substantial change since the order was made. Parents who already have a possession order and want the Expanded Standard Possession Order must file to modify, because older orders do not convert automatically.

Pflugerville Family Law Questions Answered

Is custody in Texas always split 50/50?

No. Texas law favors frequent and continuing contact with both parents but does not guarantee an equal split. Many families use a Standard Possession Order, and parents may agree to an equal schedule that the court will approve if it serves the child’s best interests.

How is child support calculated in Texas?

Guidelines apply a percentage to the paying parent’s net monthly resources: 20 percent for one child, 25 percent for two, 30 percent for three, 35 percent for four, and 40 percent for five, with at least that amount for six or more. The percentage applies up to a cap that is adjusted periodically. Courts may depart from the guidelines when they would be unjust or inappropriate.

How long does a divorce take?

The 60-day waiting period is the minimum. An agreed divorce can often be finalized shortly after that period ends, while contested cases involving children, businesses, or significant assets commonly take many months.

Do I file in Travis County or Williamson County if I live in Pflugerville?

You file in the county where you meet the 90-day residency requirement, which depends on where you actually live. Because the city spans more than one county, confirming your county before filing avoids delay and the cost of refiling.

Can I get spousal maintenance after my divorce?

Possibly, but only on defined grounds. Common ones are a marriage of 10 years or longer where the requesting spouse cannot earn enough to meet minimum reasonable needs, a recent family violence conviction or deferred adjudication against the paying spouse, or an incapacitating disability. The requesting spouse must also lack sufficient property to meet minimum reasonable needs, and the monthly amount is capped at the lesser of a set dollar amount or 20 percent of the paying spouse’s average monthly gross income.

How long can spousal maintenance last?

For a marriage of at least 10 but under 20 years, up to 5 years; at least 20 but under 30 years, up to 7 years; and 30 years or more, up to 10 years. A family violence ground can support up to 5 years even in a shorter marriage, and disability-based maintenance can continue as long as the disability does, subject to periodic review.

We lived together for years but never married. Are we divorced if we split up?

Not automatically, and the reverse question matters too. Texas recognizes informal marriage if the couple agreed to be married, lived together in Texas as spouses, and represented to others that they were married, or if they signed and filed a declaration. There is no minimum cohabitation period. If a proceeding to prove an informal marriage is not started within two years of separating, the law presumes there was no agreement to marry.

My child’s father was never on the birth certificate. Is it too late to establish paternity?

It depends on the facts. When a child has a presumed father, a parentage proceeding generally must begin within four years of the child’s birth, with exceptions such as parents who did not live together or have intercourse around conception, or misrepresentation that kept a father from asserting paternity. An acknowledgment of paternity can be rescinded within 60 days of signing and later challenged only for fraud, duress, or material mistake of fact.

Does a new stepparent or other non-parent have any right to seek custody?

Standing for non-parents such as stepparents was narrowed for cases filed under the current law. The statute now focuses on exclusive care, control, and possession of the child, so a non-parent who shared caregiving with a parent may face a harder path than before.

Is it worth hiring a lawyer if we agree on everything?

Often yes. Agreement does not shorten the 60-day waiting period, and a decree that is vague about retirement divisions, property titles, or possession terms can cause disputes years later. Careful drafting is where a lawyer adds value even in an uncontested case.

How long does a protective order last?

Typically up to two years, and it can be renewed by filing a new application within 30 days before it expires. A longer order is possible when the court finds serious bodily injury or a history of earlier protective orders, and an order against a spouse in a pending divorce can run until the second anniversary of the final decree.

Serving Family Law Clients Across Pflugerville and Central Texas

We represent families in Pflugerville and throughout Travis County, including Austin, Manor, Lakeway, Bee Cave, Del Valle, Elgin, and Jonestown, as well as neighborhoods such as Windermere, Falcon Pointe, Blackhawk, and Cele. Our reach continues into Williamson County, where we serve Round Rock, Hutto, Georgetown, Cedar Park, Leander, Taylor, and Liberty Hill. In Hays County, we help families in San Marcos, Kyle, Buda, Dripping Springs, and Wimberley. In Bastrop County, we serve Bastrop, Elgin, Smithville, and the communities around them.

Because divorce, custody, and support cases are filed in the county where the family lives, a Pflugerville case may be heard in Travis County or Williamson County courts, and our attorneys prepare for either. Wherever you live in Central Texas, you work directly with the attorney handling your case.

Speak With a Pflugerville Family Law Lawyer

If you are weighing divorce, sorting out custody, or trying to change an order that no longer fits, talk with a Pflugerville family law lawyer at The Law Office of Oprea & Weber before you make decisions that are hard to undo. We will listen to your goals, explain your options in plain language, and build a plan around your family’s circumstances.

Call us to schedule a consultation. You will speak with an attorney who will personally handle your case from the first meeting through the final decree.