Experienced Texas Family Law Attorneys - Protecting What Matters Most
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A contested divorce or custody dispute can change everything quickly. One conversation turns into questions about your home, your retirement account, your business, and how much time you will have with your children.
When the stakes are personal and financial, you need clear guidance from a legal team that understands contested family law in Texas courts.
At Horak Law, we represent people in Montgomery County and northern Harris County through divorce, custody, support, property division, and other family law matters that carry real consequences. If your family law matter is moving toward conflict, Horak Law can help you understand your position and prepare for what comes next.
Why Choose Horak Law for Texas Family Law Matters
When your children, your home, and your financial future are on the line, paperwork alone is not enough. You need a legal team that knows how to prepare evidence, respond to pressure, and walk into court with a clear plan.
At Horak Law, litigation experience is central to how we handle family law matters.
Decades of Texas Courtroom Experience
Attorney Matthew Horak has more than two decades of courtroom experience in the greater Houston area. Before representing people in contested family law and criminal defense matters, he served as an Assistant District Attorney at the Harris County District Attorney’s Office. His work in Texas courts gives him practical insight into evidence, testimony, cross-examination, and how judges evaluate contested issues.
Matthew has been named to the Texas Super Lawyers list for 2025 and 2026, a peer-influenced recognition limited to a small percentage of attorneys in each state.
Client Testimonials
“I worked with Matt and Ana on a divorce case that was supposed to be quick and straightforward, but the other party made it incredibly challenging. Despite numerous obstacles, they successfully resolved the case, leaving everything free and clear. I’m deeply grateful for their hard work and highly recommend them to anyone in need of a reliable and dedicated attorney in Houston.” — O.R.
“Responsive, patient in listening and discussing your needs to come up with a path forward. Did not nickel and dime, and made it seem like a partnership rather than a business transaction. From the first phone call with Office Staff all the way to Legal Counsel, the entire team is amazing. I would highly recommend.” — E.H.
“Mr. Horak is extremely knowledgeable and professional. After speaking with him I feel so much more comfortable with my current situation. We did a consultation with him and he did not rush us. He actually went over the allotted time and thoroughly answered every question I had. I highly recommend anyone going through a legal matter to pay him a visit.” — J.D.
The Woodlands, Texas Family Law Attorneys
What Family Law Cases We Handle in Texas
Every family law matter affects real parts of your life: your finances, your home, your parenting schedule, and your ability to move forward. Horak Law represents people in Texas family law matters involving:
- Divorce, including contested divorce and high-net-worth divorce
- Child custody and conservatorship
- Child support and support modifications
- Asset and property division
- Alimony and spousal maintenance
- Paternity
- Premarital agreements
- Protective orders
- Conservatorship and custody modifications
What to Do Before Filing or Responding to a Family Law Case
The early days of a family law matter can affect how the rest of the case develops. Before you file, respond, move money, leave the home, or agree to a parenting schedule, it helps to slow down and get organized.
Start with the steps that protect your information and help your attorney understand what is happening:
- Gather financial records, including tax returns, bank statements, mortgage documents, retirement account statements, business records, pay stubs, and debt records.
- Save parenting-related records, including school records, medical records, childcare information, calendars, and communication with the other parent.
- Keep copies of texts, emails, voicemails, social media messages, and other communication that may relate to custody, support, property, or conflict between the parties.
- Pay attention to court deadlines if you have already been served. Waiting too long to respond can limit your options and allow the case to move forward without your input.
- Avoid informal agreements about parenting time, support, bills, or property until you understand how those decisions may affect your case.
- Do not move money, change accounts, sell property, or leave the home without legal guidance if those decisions could become disputed later.
You do not need to have every document ready before speaking with an attorney. The goal is to avoid rushed decisions and give your legal team enough information to identify what needs immediate attention.
How the Texas Divorce Process Works
Many people come to us knowing they need to file for divorce but unsure what happens after that. Texas divorce follows a legal framework, but the timeline and level of conflict can change significantly when property, parenting time, support, or business interests are disputed.
Filing and Residency Requirements
To file for divorce in Texas, one spouse must have lived in Texas for at least six months and in the county where the case is filed for at least 90 days before filing. This requirement comes from Texas Family Code Section 6.301.
Montgomery County residents file through the Montgomery County District Clerk at 301 N. Main Street in Conroe. Harris County family law matters are handled through the Harris County District Clerk’s family law division at 201 Caroline Street in Houston.
A divorce case begins with an Original Petition for Divorce. The other spouse must usually receive formal notice through service of process, unless they sign a waiver of service.
The 60-Day Waiting Period
Texas generally requires a 60-day waiting period before a divorce can be finalized. Under Texas Family Code Section 6.702, the court may not grant a divorce before the 60th day after the case is filed, except in limited family-violence-related circumstances.
The waiting period does not mean the case sits still. In a contested divorce, those early weeks may involve temporary orders, financial disclosures, discovery requests, mediation planning, parenting issues, and preparation for hearings. Cases involving businesses, complex assets, or disputed custody often require additional work before settlement or trial.
Temporary Orders in Texas Divorce and Custody Cases
A contested family law case may take months or longer to finish, but many families cannot wait that long for rules about parenting time, bills, support, or use of the home. Temporary orders can set those rules while the case is pending.
In a divorce or custody case, temporary orders may address where the children live, each parent’s possession schedule, child support, medical support, who stays in the home, who pays certain bills, and whether either party must follow specific restrictions.
Temporary orders are not the final outcome, but they can shape the case. The parenting schedule, financial arrangement, or restrictions put in place early may affect negotiations and the way both sides prepare for final resolution.
How Texas Divides Property in a Divorce
Texas is a community property state, but that does not mean every divorce ends with an automatic 50/50 division. Courts divide community property in a way they consider just and right after reviewing the circumstances of the case.
Community Property and Separate Property
Texas law presumes that property either spouse possesses during divorce is community property. A spouse who claims an asset is separate property must prove that claim by clear and convincing evidence.
Separate property may include property owned before marriage, gifts, inheritances, and certain personal injury recoveries. In high-asset divorce cases, this issue often becomes complicated. Bank accounts may contain both separate and community funds. A business may have started before marriage but increased in value during the marriage. Retirement accounts may include contributions from both before and during the marriage.
When separate property is disputed, documentation matters. Account records, business documents, deeds, tax records, and tracing analysis can all affect how the court views the asset.
The Just and Right Division Standard
Texas Family Code Section 7.001 directs courts to divide the marital estate in a manner the court considers just and right, with regard for each spouse’s rights and any children of the marriage.
A court may consider several factors when deciding whether an unequal division is appropriate, including each spouse’s earning capacity, health, education, separate property, fault in the breakup of the marriage, and parenting responsibilities.
For people going through a high-net-worth divorce involving business valuations, real estate, investments, or retirement accounts, preparation matters. A proposed division may look simple on paper but create long-term tax, liquidity, or ownership problems if the details are not examined closely.
How Does Child Custody and Support Work in Texas?
Texas uses the term “conservatorship” rather than “custody.” The words may sound different, but the issues are familiar to most parents: who makes decisions for the child, where the child primarily lives, and how parenting time is shared.
Conservatorship Types and the Best Interest Standard
Texas courts generally begin with a rebuttable presumption that appointing both parents as joint managing conservators is in the child’s best interest. Joint managing conservatorship does not always mean equal parenting time. It means both parents may share rights and duties, depending on the court’s order.
Sole managing conservatorship may become an issue when the court hears evidence involving family violence, abuse, neglect, substance abuse, abandonment, or other concerns that affect the child’s safety or stability.
Every conservatorship decision turns on the child’s best interest. Courts may look at the child’s needs, each parent’s ability to provide stability, each parent’s involvement, the history of caregiving, safety concerns, and each parent’s willingness to support the child’s relationship with the other parent.
A child who is 12 or older may be interviewed by the court in chambers about their wishes regarding conservatorship or primary residence when properly requested. The child’s preference matters, but it does not control the court’s decision.
For parents facing a contested custody case, preparation can shape the hearing. Organized timelines, school records, medical records, communication history, witness preparation, and clear evidence about the child’s needs can help the court understand what is happening beyond each parent’s version of events.
Child Support Calculation and Modifications
Texas calculates child support using statutory guidelines based on the paying parent’s net monthly resources and the number of children before the court. The guideline amount is the starting point, not the only possible outcome.
Courts may consider additional factors when the guideline amount would not fit the child’s needs or the family’s circumstances. Those factors may include:
- Childcare expenses
- Medical needs
- Travel costs for possession
- Each parent’s resources
- Other child-related expenses
A child support order can be modified when Texas law allows it. In many cases, that requires a material and substantial change in circumstances. Texas law also allows modification in some cases when at least three years have passed since the order was rendered or last modified, and the guideline amount would differ from the current order by at least 20% or $100.
Changes in income, changes in possession, a child’s medical needs, or other major shifts may justify a closer review of an existing order.
When Spousal Maintenance Applies in Texas
Texas does not award spousal maintenance automatically. A spouse seeking maintenance must first meet the eligibility requirements in Texas Family Code Chapter 8.
Maintenance may be available when the spouse seeking support lacks enough property to meet minimum reasonable needs and one of the statutory grounds applies. Those grounds may include a family violence conviction or deferred adjudication involving the other spouse or child within the required time period, an incapacitating disability, a marriage of at least 10 years combined with inability to earn enough income to meet minimum reasonable needs, or responsibility for a child of the marriage who requires substantial care because of a disability.
When a court awards maintenance, Texas law caps the amount at the lesser of $5,000 per month or 20% of the paying spouse’s average monthly gross income. Duration depends on the facts, including the length of the marriage and the reason maintenance was awarded.
People often expect Texas spousal maintenance to be broader than it is. If support is part of your divorce, it helps to understand the eligibility rules, caps, and realistic negotiation range before mediation or trial.
Mediation and Trial in Contested Family Law Cases
Many contested family law cases go through mediation before trial. Mediation gives both sides a structured opportunity to resolve property, custody, support, and other disputed issues without asking the judge to decide every point.
A mediated agreement can give both sides a clearer voice in the final terms. It may also reduce uncertainty, limit additional court appearances, and create terms that fit the family’s situation more closely than a court ruling.
Mediation still requires preparation. You need to understand your financial records, your parenting goals, your strongest evidence, and the terms you can and cannot accept.
If mediation does not resolve the case, the matter may move toward trial. At that stage, the court hears evidence and decides the disputed issues. Trial preparation may involve witness testimony, financial exhibits, valuation evidence, parenting records, and legal arguments tied to Texas family law.
Horak Law prepares contested family law cases with both possibilities in mind. A case may settle, but preparation for court can affect the strength of your position at every stage.
How Long Does a Texas Divorce Take?
Texas law creates a minimum waiting period, but the actual timeline depends on the issues in dispute. A divorce involving contested property division, disputed conservatorship, business valuation, or protective orders will usually take longer than a case where the major issues resolve early.
Contested Divorce Timelines
Contested divorce cases often take several months to more than a year, depending on the facts. Cases involving business interests, multiple properties, retirement tracing, disputed custody, or repeated discovery problems can take longer.
The timeline depends on what must be resolved, how much information must be exchanged, whether experts are needed, whether mediation works, and how quickly the court can hear disputed issues.
What Can Extend a Texas Divorce
Several issues commonly lengthen a divorce, including:
- Incomplete financial records
- Discovery disputes
- Business or real estate valuations
- Disagreements over conservatorship or possession
- Mediation that does not resolve the case
- Temporary orders hearings
- Court calendar congestion
- Protective order issues or related family violence allegations
Some delay comes from the court’s schedule. Some comes from the parties. People who gather financial documents early, respond to requests promptly, and prepare for mediation with a clear understanding of their goals often move through the process with fewer avoidable setbacks.
How to Choose a Family Law Attorney in The Woodlands or Houston
The attorney you retain for a contested divorce or custody dispute can affect how prepared you feel, how clearly you understand your options, and how your case is presented.
Before hiring a family law attorney, ask questions such as:
- How much of your practice involves contested divorce or custody matters?
- Have you handled cases in Montgomery County or Harris County family courts?
- Who will work on my case with you?
- How do you prepare for temporary orders hearings, mediation, and trial?
- What information do you need from me at the beginning?
- How will your team communicate with me as the case moves forward?
In contested family law matters, you need a lawyer who can explain the legal process plainly, prepare you for difficult decisions, and build the evidence needed to support your position.
Horak Law represents people in contested family law matters across Montgomery County, northern Harris County, and the greater Houston area.
Talk to Horak Law Before Your Case Moves Further
A contested divorce or custody dispute can move quickly. What happens early can affect your parenting time, property, finances, and position in court.
Horak Law represents people in serious family law matters across Montgomery County, northern Harris County, and the greater Houston area. We can help you understand what Texas law allows, where the pressure points are, and what steps make sense before the case moves further.
Request a confidential case review at The Woodlands office. We will listen to what is happening, explain your options clearly, and help you prepare for what comes next.
Call us at 713-225-8000 or reach us through our contact form.
Frequently Asked Questions
Written By Matt Horak
Matt Horak is a Board Certified and experienced attorney with over 20 years of courtroom experience in South Texas, including more than 100 contested trials. A former Harris County prosecutor and 2025 Super Lawyer®, he represents clients in high-stakes family law disputes with a strategy grounded in compassion and preparation.
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