I was born and raised in New York and moved to Texas in 1983 to earn a Bachelor of Arts in Humanities from the University of Houston-Clear Lake. After graduating, I joined the Houston Police Department in 1989 and rose to the rank of lieutenant by 2002. While still working full time for the department, I earned a Master of Liberal Arts from Houston Baptist University in 2004, and then my law degree from the University of Houston Law Center, where I also became a trained mediator.
During law school I kept my full-time job with the department and also clerked part time at the firm of Holmes, Diggs, Eames & Puhl, where I gained my first real experience in family law. After I was admitted to the State Bar of Texas in 2010, I joined Fullenweider Wilhite as an associate, helping senior attorneys prepare for trial, conducting legal research and writing articles for legal journals. In 2011, I opened my own practice in Richmond, in Fort Bend County, and family law has remained my main focus ever since.
What Police Work Brings to Family Court
Families dealing with divorce and custody disputes at Longworth Law Firm, P.C. are often going through one of the hardest periods of their lives. Police work puts an officer in contact with people on their worst days, and family law does much the same thing in a different setting. A divorce or custody dispute can involve fear, anger and uncertainty about where children will sleep that night, and clear, direct communication matters as much as legal knowledge.
Our approach rests on a few principles: clear and direct communication, efficient and cost-effective solutions, and representation that is assertive when it needs to be while still compassionate toward clients going through a difficult time. Our firm is built on the belief that the client’s needs come first, and a high percentage of our practice comes from referrals.
Representing Children as an Ad Litem
I am a certified ad litem in Harris and Fort Bend counties, which means courts appoint me to represent the interests of children, often in crisis situations. I am also honored to serve as a substitute judge in the Harris County Juvenile Courts. Both roles give me a view of family disputes from outside either parent’s perspective, and they reinforce a simple point. In custody cases, the court’s question centers on what serves the child.
How Texas Decides Custody
Texas law uses the term conservatorship instead of custody. In most cases, courts presume that appointing both parents as joint managing conservators is in the child’s best interest, although the presumption can be overcome by evidence such as family violence. Joint managing conservatorship does not necessarily mean equal time. One parent is usually given the exclusive right to designate the child’s primary residence, often within a geographic area, while the other parent has possession and access under a schedule.
The Texas Family Code includes a standard possession order that many families use as a starting point, with provisions for alternating weekends, midweek time, holidays and extended summer possession. Parents can agree to a different schedule, and courts often approve agreed schedules that fit a family’s work hours and the children’s activities. Anyone meeting with a child custody attorney in Houston should come prepared to talk about the child’s school, routines and any special needs, since those details shape a realistic parenting plan.
Child support follows statutory guidelines. For one child, the guideline amount is generally 20 percent of the paying parent’s net resources, with higher percentages for more children and a cap on the amount of net resources the guidelines apply to. Courts can depart from the guidelines when the evidence shows that the standard amount would be unjust or inappropriate, and parents can agree to a different figure if the court approves it.
Protective Orders and Family Violence
Family violence changes the analysis in several ways. A history or pattern of family violence can overcome the presumption in favor of joint managing conservatorship and can lead to restrictions on a parent’s possession. Texas courts can issue protective orders that prohibit contact, require a person to stay away from a home or workplace and restrict firearm possession, and a final protective order generally lasts up to two years, with longer terms available in certain circumstances. My years in law enforcement shape how I think about these cases, particularly the police reports, photographs and witness statements that often become the evidence.
Relocation and Modification
Parents’ lives change after a divorce, and custody orders often need to change with them. Texas allows modification when there has been a material and substantial change in circumstances and the change would be in the child’s best interest. A proposed move outside the geographic restriction, a change in a parent’s work schedule or concerns about a child’s safety can all lead to a modification case. When a child is 12 or older, the court may interview the child about his or her wishes, although the child’s preference is not the deciding factor.
Divorce and Property Under Texas Law
Texas is a community property state. Property acquired during the marriage is generally presumed to belong to both spouses, while property owned before the marriage or received by gift or inheritance is separate. The court divides the community estate in a manner it considers just and right, which does not always mean an equal split. Factors such as the spouses’ earning capacities, the benefits the innocent spouse would have received had the marriage continued, and fault in the breakup can affect the division.
Most Texas divorces also involve a 60-day waiting period after the petition is filed before the court can grant the divorce. Families with complex issues, such as a business, retirement accounts or disputed separate property, often benefit from mediation, which Texas courts encourage and frequently require. My training as a mediator shapes how I approach these cases, since a settlement the spouses help design is often more durable than one imposed at trial.
The Full Range of Family Matters
Family cases rarely fit neatly into one category. A divorce may involve a protective order, a dispute over paternity, a stepparent adoption or the need for new estate planning documents once the marriage ends. People looking for family law lawyers in houston tx often find that several of these issues overlap, and addressing them together can prevent new disputes later. Our firm handles divorce, custody, modifications, adoption, paternity, prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, and estate planning.
Serving the Greater Houston Area
Our Houston office is on Louisiana Street downtown, and we primarily serve clients throughout Harris County, along with Fort Bend, Montgomery, Galveston, Brazoria, Waller, Wharton and Austin counties. Outside the office, I enjoy golf and tennis, spending time with my wife, our four children and five grandchildren, and volunteering at church.
Two careers in public service and private practice have taught me that people in crisis need someone who will listen, tell them the truth and then help them move forward. That is the standard I try to meet for every family that walks through our door.
This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Laws, procedures, deadlines and outcomes may vary depending on the jurisdiction and individual circumstances.
