Divorce Lawyer El Paso, Texas | Laine Law Firm, PLLC

Navigating Divorce in El Paso: What to Expect from a Divorce Lawyer at Laine Law Firm, PLLC

Divorce can be one of the most emotionally and financially challenging times in your life. Whether you're considering a Simple Divorce, an Uncontested Divorce, or need legal advice regarding property or support, choosing the right Divorce Lawyer is crucial. At Laine Law Firm, PLLC in El Paso, Texas, clients are offered professional, compassionate legal services that focus on delivering results while making the process as smooth as possible.

🤝 The Benefits of Uncontested Divorce and Simple Divorce

Many couples opt for an Uncontested Divorce or a Simple Divorce to avoid prolonged court battles. In an Uncontested Divorce, both spouses agree on all key issues—such as child custody, property division, and spousal support. A Simple Divorce is ideal for cases with limited assets, no children, and mutual agreement to separate.

Choosing a Divorce Lawyer who specializes in Simple Divorce and Uncontested Divorce cases can save you time, stress, and money. Laine Law Firm, PLLC focuses on streamlining the process while ensuring your legal rights are protected throughout.

🔒 Protecting Your Future: Prenuptial & Postnuptial Planning

When it comes to asset protection, a Divorce Lawyer at Laine Law Firm, PLLC may recommend a prenuptial agreement before marriage, especially if one spouse brings significantly more assets or income into the union. If a prenuptial agreement wasn't signed, a postnuptial agreement can still be drafted after marriage to clarify property and financial arrangements.

Many people mistakenly believe that once separated, any new income is theirs alone. However, under Texas law, all income earned until the divorce is finalized remains community property. A qualified Divorce Lawyer can draft the appropriate documents to protect your earnings, business income, and retirement investments—whether you’re pursuing a Simple Divorce or facing a contested situation.

⏱️ Post-Divorce Surprises to Avoid

Some clients come to Laine Law Firm, PLLC after attempting a do-it-yourself Divorce and discovering that major issues—like the division of the home—were left out of the decree. In these cases, a Divorce Lawyer must file a motion to reopen the matter, potentially costing more time and money.

By working with an experienced Divorce Lawyer from the beginning, especially for a Simple Divorce or Uncontested Divorce, you avoid costly mistakes and ensure every detail is accounted for.

📍 Why Choose Laine Law Firm, PLLC?

Located at 700 N. Stanton in the heart of El Paso, Laine Law Firm, PLLC is easily accessible from anywhere in the city. Their reputation for compassionate yet aggressive legal representation has earned them top reviews and the trust of clients throughout West Texas.

Whether you’re filing for a Simple Divorce, seeking an Uncontested Divorce, or need the strategic guidance of an experienced Divorce Lawyer, the team at Laine Law Firm, PLLC is ready to help you move forward with confidence.

📞 Contact Information

Laine Law Firm, PLLC
Address: 700 N Stanton St #200, El Paso, TX 79902
 📞 [phone]
 🌐 lainelawfirm.com

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
Okay, so we're still here talking.
Thank you for all that helpfulinformation.
We're going to dive in a littledeeper in these segments, and
we're just going to go ahead andtalk about divorce law here in
El Paso, Texas, things thatpeople should be aware of before
coming to an attorney for aconsultation, what to expect

(00:20):
throughout the process, thingslike that.
So I'm just going to ask you afew questions and just whatever
your area of expertise.
You are a divorce lawyer here inEl Paso, Texas, and somebody's
going to come to you for aconsultation, right?

SPEAKER_01 (00:37):
Right.

SPEAKER_00 (00:38):
Do you charge for those?

SPEAKER_01 (00:39):
Yes, we do.

SPEAKER_00 (00:40):
What's your fee?

SPEAKER_01 (00:41):
We charge$200 for the consultation.

SPEAKER_00 (00:44):
Okay, and that usually lasts about an hour or

SPEAKER_01 (00:46):
so.
Usually about an hour, yeah, butwhat it does is it secures your
spot on the calendar since wehave a lot of hearings and
things scheduled throughout theweek.
That's

SPEAKER_00 (00:56):
what it does.
Yeah, and I know you're a verybusy lady because it's been so
hard to schedule a podcast.
You definitely are very busy,which is a good sign.
And then your reviews on Googleare high as well.
I think you have like a 4.9 or a5.0 rating, which says a lot.

SPEAKER_01 (01:13):
Yeah, we really appreciate that.

SPEAKER_00 (01:14):
Your reputation precedes you, basically.
So that makes sense.
Okay, so it gives them a spot inthe calendar.
They're going to come to you fora consultation.
Oh, I don't know what to do,Miss Lane.
My life's falling apart.
I'm getting a divorce, and she'scoming after me.
Can you help me?
What should I do next?

SPEAKER_01 (01:36):
Yeah, so we start out trying to figure out what's
the reason for the divorcebecause they can in Texas, so
you don't have to have a reasonto get divorced.
Anybody can get divorced for anyreason just because they want
to.
It wasn't always the case.
It's just pretty strange, but...
Since the 70s, you can get adivorce for any reason.
But if somebody's at fault forthe divorce, like someone was

(02:00):
not faithful in the marriage orabusive in the marriage, then
that doesn't really affect thedivorce or the children
sometimes.
It just affects the division ofproperty.
So if someone's at fault forbreakup, then that person may
get less of the estate.
And normally the judge isconsidering that a just and

(02:20):
right division of the propertyis 50-50.
But if one party is at fault,then it may shift to maybe 60-40
or something.

SPEAKER_00 (02:28):
Wow.
So they can be awarded more ifthey were accidentally, not
accidentally cheated, but likewere unfaithful or...

SPEAKER_01 (02:37):
Yeah, so the innocent party, I guess the
innocent spouse gets more of theestate because they're not, had
the marriage continued as theyhad wanted, they would have
benefited from the marriagecontinuing.

SPEAKER_00 (02:49):
Okay, so I know just from popular culture that people
in California, I think they getalimony, something like that.
Is there something like thathere in El Paso, Texas?

SPEAKER_01 (03:02):
Yes, in Texas it's called spousal support.
But so on a temporary basis,most likely one spouse could get
spousal support.
But there's like specificfactors that need to be in place
for this other spouse to getspousal support ongoing after
the divorce.

SPEAKER_00 (03:20):
Oh, so there is such a spousal support post-divorce.
Is it permanent or like how longdoes it last?

SPEAKER_01 (03:25):
It could go up to seven years depending on the
length of the marriage.

SPEAKER_00 (03:29):
What are some factors that would...
Just give me some examples.

SPEAKER_01 (03:33):
A good typical example would be somebody who
was a housewife for the wholemarriage.
Maybe the marriage lasted 10years.
And so they're not in a positionwhere they can support
themselves anymore.
And they have done everythingthey can to try to find a job
and everything to be able tosupport themselves and meet
their minimum reasonable needs.
And they haven't been able to dothat, either because of

(03:54):
disability or just because oftheir experience and stuff.
That person probably wouldqualify for spousal maintenance,
especially if the other partymakes a lot.

SPEAKER_00 (04:04):
Makes a lot of money.
Yeah, so spousal support is athing here in Texas.

SPEAKER_01 (04:07):
Definitely.

SPEAKER_00 (04:08):
And the award, whoever's at fault.
So what if there's like ano-fault divorce?
Usually it goes 50-50?

SPEAKER_01 (04:16):
Yeah.
So that's why it's preferable ifyou have a large estate and you
want to keep things as amicableas possible and also protect
your assets, then it'spreferable to reach an
agreement.
Because otherwise you're lookingat 50-50 possible spousal
support.

SPEAKER_00 (04:34):
Okay, so you see a lot of divorces as a lawyer.
So I've got to ask you, if youhave a young person, man or
woman, because women work a lottoo, so like...
And they're making aconsiderable amount of money
more than their future spouse.

SPEAKER_01 (04:50):
What

SPEAKER_00 (04:50):
would you recommend them to kind of just, you know,
because everybody gets married,they think it's going to last
forever, right?
We obviously know that's not thecase.
A lot of people get divorced.
So you're coming in, I'm yournephew or something, your niece.
I'm like, Auntie Elaine, can youkind of tell me what I should do
before I get married?
I love him, but I hear all sortsof horror stories.

SPEAKER_01 (05:12):
Yeah, I probably would recommend that person to
get a prenup.

SPEAKER_00 (05:14):
A prenuptial agreement.

SPEAKER_01 (05:15):
Yeah, because otherwise everything from the
marriage is for both parties.
It's community property and it'sgoing to get split 50-50.
And a lot of people think thatonce you get separated and you
file for divorce, anything thatyou make after that is yours and
it's your separate.
No, it still remains communityproperty and the other party is
still entitled to half of it.

SPEAKER_00 (05:36):
So you can be moved out and the opposing party you
know, your spouse that you'regoing to get divorced to can
drag this out for years.
And every dollar that you make50% is entitled to the state.

SPEAKER_01 (05:49):
Yeah.
It's also your retirement.
So those times that you'reseparated, you built up your
retirement, your stocks havegone crazy, whatever your crypto
went crazy.
It's all a half of hers.
So, or his.

SPEAKER_00 (06:01):
Wow.
That's crazy.
I didn't know that.
Okay.
So yeah.
Prenuptial agreement.
Um, What about before you getmarried?
Let's say there's no prenuptialagreement.
Let's just say you have a house.
She moves in with you.
She lives there 10, whatever, 20years, let's say.
Is she entitled to the house?
No.

SPEAKER_01 (06:20):
So if you have your own house before marriage,
that's considered separateproperty.
So that would be your separateproperty estate that belongs to
you.
Well, let's say that during themarriage, you still owed a
mortgage on that separateproperty home.
and she was also contributing tothe mortgage or even not
contributing, but just beingmarried and your community

(06:40):
assets, your income over theyears was paying off that
mortgage.
She could ask for a portion ofthat to be basically
reconstituted to the community.
So all of that money, let's sayyou're paying a thousand a month
on your mortgage.
And so that money is leaving thecommunity property bucket and go
into your separate property tobenefit the mortgage getting

(07:01):
lowered.
She could ask for areimbursement of that.

SPEAKER_00 (07:04):
I see.

SPEAKER_01 (07:05):
To the community.

SPEAKER_00 (07:06):
Now, let me ask you another question.
So after divorce, I'm surethere's maybe people that might
have sour grapes.
Can they come after you afterthe divorce, post-divorce, I
guess, and try to re-litigateeverything?

SPEAKER_01 (07:25):
Well, they could if it wasn't included in the
decree.
So I have some clients that cameto me after they, I guess they
try to do the divorce on theirown.
And like, for example, the homewas not divided in the decree.
Then I had a client.
She came to me like that.
And then we went and the housewas ordered, sold, and then they
had to divide the proceeds.

SPEAKER_00 (07:46):
Oh,

SPEAKER_01 (07:46):
wow.
So, yeah, they could come backlater if it wasn't included in
the decree.

SPEAKER_00 (07:50):
Wow, that's pretty interesting.
Yeah, that kind of sums it up.
I do want to talk to you about alittle bit more about child
custody issues.
pertaining to divorce andadoption issues, but we'll do
that for another segment.
So this is Lane Law Firm,located at 700 Stanton, the
heart of El Paso, downtown, westside, far west, easy access.

(08:13):
You're literally, I'm talking toyou, and I'm looking at this
freeway outside your window.
You're literally right off I-10,which is so convenient for
anybody looking for a family lawattorney.
But yeah, thank you so much.
What's your phone number andwebsite, just for everybody
that's watching?

SPEAKER_01 (08:31):
The phone number is 915-200-4316, and the website is
lanelawfirm.com.

SPEAKER_00 (08:38):
Cool.
I'll go ahead and include thatin the link as well, so you guys
can click on it.
Well, thank you again.
I appreciate it.

SPEAKER_01 (08:43):
Thank you.