November 2009

A Texas couple is challenging a 30-year-old federal law designed to promote the adoption of Native American children by Native American parents. Foster parents Karen and Cecil Couie say they want to adopt the boy, who is part Choctaw, but Child Protective Services hope to place him with a Native American family in Oklahoma.
Continue Reading Couple Seeks Custody of Indian Child Despite Federal Law

I received a question from a client today asking how the court would determine the value of the piece of property in the community estate. Often times, the parties will litigate over the value of a piece of property, so it is important to know how, in the absence of an agreement, the court will determine a property’s value.
Continue Reading Fair market value vs. Intrinsic value: Which one to use?

I frequently get questions from potential clients about what are the effects of adultery in the outcome of a divorce. Recently I was asked: “Will it be held against me if I get another woman pregnant before my divorce is final?” This post will be one of several where I’ll answer questions I receive from the trenches.
Continue Reading Will it be held against me if I get another woman pregnant before my divorce is final?

Last Friday, November 12, 2009, its opinion styled In re Cooper, No. 05-09-00995-CV, the Dallas Court of Appeals conditionally granted wife’s petition for mandamus relief, holding the trial judge abused her discretion by imposing a residency residency restriction pending final trial in a divorce case that required wife, temporary primary conservator of the parties two children, to relocate from North Carolina, where she had secured employment and owned a house, to Dallas and contiguous counties, where she had neither.
Continue Reading Dallas Court of Appeals grants mandamus: trial court imposed greater burden for relocation than law allows

The Texas Lawyer’s Creed turned 20 years old on November 5, 2009 marking a milestone in the Texas Bar community for the promotion of professionalism and civility in the legal profession. Being an attorney in the great state of Texas (any any other state for that matter) is a privilege. With this privilege comes a great amount of responsibility. Unfortunately there are some bad attorneys out there who have tarnished the image of the legal profession. The lawyer’s creed set forth a model of behavior which, if followed, helps to improve the public image of the legal profession and bolsters good will among members of the bar.
Continue Reading Happy birthday to the Texas Lawyer’s Creed!

A question was asked of me today — what’s the difference between a Parent Coordinator and a Parent Facilitator? The Texas Legislature changed the law in September 2009 to clarify the duties of a Parent Coordinator and added a new category called Parent Facilitator.

A parent coordinator (PC) is a person who…
Continue Reading Parent Coordinator v. Parent Facilitator — What’s the diff?

A Wisconsin lawyer has been fined $100 for getting a citation wrong in a brief submitted to the Wisconsin Court of Appeals. The appeals court expressed its frustration in a footnote to an unpublished opinion, Espitia v. Fouche, Legal Blog Watch reports. The court imposed the penalty and explained the reason for it in a footnote to a 2008 unpublished opinion, Espitia v. Fouche. Here is the entire footnote:…
Continue Reading Lawyer Fined For Wrong Case Citation