Blog Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 28-Nov-2018 How To Plan Visitation Over the Holidays The holiday season is a time to gather loved ones close and make lasting memories. For parents, this is a particularly valued time. However, if you and your co-parent are divorced or separated, planning for quality time over the holidays can be a bit ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 19-Nov-2018 4 Tips for a Gray Divorce Deciding to get a divorce is never easy, but it can be particularly challenging to go through with a divorce later in life. Most people over the age of 50 have all of their ducks in a row, so to speak. In other words, they have a career, they have ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny to 14-Nov-2018 4 Questions to Ask Your Divorce Attorney Before you hire a divorce attorney, make sure they can provide you with the service you need. As with anyone you hire, its important to ascertain whether or not you work well together before you fully commit. A divorce attorney can make or break your ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 5-Nov-2018 Do I Qualify for Spousal Maintenance? The cost of divorce can be devastating, especially if you are asked to pay alimony or if you receive fewer assets after your properties are divided. In order to protect your interests and your possessions, make sure you know everything you need to ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 31-Oct-2018 Tips for Co-Parenting During the Holidays The holidays can be a stressful time of year for just about anyone, but it can be particularly overwhelming for divorced parents who are trying to co-parent their way through this supposedly merry season. Effectively co-parenting is hard enough on ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 24-Oct-2018 What is the Waiting Period for Divorce in Houston? If you and your spouse are about to embark on the divorce process, you are likely wondering how long it will take before you can get the ball rolling. Every state has its own rules regarding waiting periods and divorce, including Texas. Given that no ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 17-Oct-2018 Why You Should Meet with an Attorney When Planning a Marriage When two people embark on a marriage, they generally think of love, romance, and starting a new chapter together as partners in life. While these are certainly great qualities to begin a marriage with, one should not forget the legal side of things. ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 3-Oct-2018 Will Divorce Affect My 401(k) or Retirement Benefits? In a divorce, everything that is considered marital property will ultimately end up on the chopping block, subject to division. This also includes your 401(k) plan, pensions, and other retirement accounts. However, only the amount you contributed to ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 26-Sep-2018 Do I Have to Go to Court for a Divorce? If you and your spouse can no longer make the marriage work and you are now headed for divorce, you might be pondering over the logistics of this process, including whether it is necessary to go to court in order to accomplish the deed. The short ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 19-Sep-2018 Preventing Childhood Obesity: Tips for Co-Parents September is National Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, giving us all a chance to spotlight an issue that many children are at risk of developing. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 1 out of every 5 children in ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 12-Sep-2018 Can I Modify a Will in Texas? Life never remains the same and, therefore, it is important to be able to make changes to a will and ensure that it is kept up to date with the changes in your life. If your will is not updated, it will cease to reflect your current wishes. Why might ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 5-Sep-2018 Can I Get Child Support for My Adult Child If you have a minor child, you know that child support will cover his or her needs until the age of adulthood. However, what happens when your child is an adult and has disabilities? Oftentimes, children with special needs and disabilities continue ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 31-Aug-2018 When Children Can Have Their Own Attorney Divorce and child custody proceedings can be emotionally overwhelming. If a child’s parents cannot come to an agreement over legal decisions involving their children, a viable option might be appointing a child attorney. Although parents have ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 28-Aug-2018 What You Can Do If Your Ex Withholds Visitation While a child visitation agreement establishes the amount of time that a child spends with each parent, there are many cases when custodial parents—without any cause whatsoever—prevent noncustodial parents from seeing their kids for ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 24-Aug-2018 Remarriage in Texas: How It Affects Alimony & Child Support In a Texas divorce, one spouse is ordered by a judge to provide financial support to the other spouse and their children. But if the recipient spouse decides to get remarriage to cohabitates with a new significant other, how does this affect alimony ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 21-Aug-2018 How to Help Your Kids Cope with Divorce Going through a divorce is difficult, especially for your kids. For them, a divorce can feel like a devastating tragedy. They experience the loss of a parent, the loss of the family unit, or the loss of the life they once knew. Fortunately, you and ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 24-Jul-2018 Reasons to Update Your Estate Plan Designing an estate plan can be a time-consuming and emotionally complicated legal process. Once the paperwork is signed and notarized, people tend to make the mistake of assuming they’re 100% protected for the rest of their lives. While an old ... Continue Reading Posted By the Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 18-Jul-2018 How to Divorce Your Missing Spouse Couples always have the option of divorcing when their marriages don’t work out. Divorce can be a complicated and emotional legal process, but for many couples the benefits still outweigh the struggles. In some circumstances, divorce becomes a ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 13-Jul-2018 The Benefits of Having Durable Power of Attorney Documents An important function of a completed estate plan is to protect your medical choices and financial assets in the event of a medical emergency or your incapacitation. This is accomplished by having valid durable power of attorney documents for ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 2-Jul-2018 How Long Does Texas Law Require Me to Pay Spousal Maintenance? Questions about spousal maintenance are very common during divorce proceedings. In Texas, spouses may be eligible to receive spousal maintenance if they are unable to financially provide for themselves following a divorce. Texas law is very strict ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 26-Jun-2018 How To Divorce an Abusive Spouse Dealing with domestic abuse can be upsetting and dangerous. Whether the abuse is emotional, physical, or verbal, it can cause serious harm to everyone in the household. Domestic violence often takes places between spouses, but the abuse can also ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 19-Jun-2018 Who Can Be a Legal Guardian? Not all parenting relationships are straightforward, in fact, some are quite complex from both an emotional and legal standpoint. Some children are not cared for by their parents, instead, they have a legal guardian who looks out for their best ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 14-Jun-2018 How Long Will My Divorce Take? Once you have decided to end your marriage, you should know the basics about the divorce process, including how long it will take to obtain a divorce in Texas. Anyone who lives in Texas can file for a divorce with the local courts, even if the ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 4-Jun-2018 4 Tips To Make Co-Parenting Easier This Summer Sharing parenting responsibilities don’t always make the job easier. In fact, parenting alongside your ex is often a bit challenging, if not downright difficult. With summer just around the corner, it’s important to start the season off ... Continue Reading Posted By Law Office of Kathryn Marteeny 31-May-2018 What Happens to Debt in a Divorce? One of the most confusing aspects of a Texas divorce case is determining the division of debt. When a couple files for divorce, any debts they have incurred are legally divided by a judge and recorded on the Final Decree of Divorce. The distribution ... Continue Reading