Preface |
xi |
How to Use this Book |
xvii |
Section I: Before Divorce - First Things First |
|
Chapter 1 Should I Get a Divorce? |
3 |
Chapter 2 Coping after Separation |
27 |
Chapter 3 Basic Divorce Concepts |
49 |
Chapter 4 Getting by without a Lawyer: Bungee Jumping at the Courthouse |
61 |
Chapter 5 Hiring a Lawyer: What Smart Shoppers Need to Know |
69 |
Chapter 6 Locating a Lawyer |
97 |
Section II: Protecting Yourself |
|
Chapter 7 Protecting Yourself from Your Spouse: Physically, Emotionally, and Financially |
103 |
Chapter 8 Protecting Yourself from Violence |
113 |
Section III: The Divorce Case - Basic Procedures |
|
Chapter 9 Beginning Your Divorce: Filing a Lawsuit |
121 |
Chapter 10 Asking the Court for Help at the Beginning of the Case: Temporary Orders for Custody, Support, and Protection |
131 |
Chapter 11 Discovery: Obtaining the Information You Need to Settle or Try Your Case |
139 |
Chapter 12 The Trial of Your Contested Divorce Case |
155 |
Section IV: Settlement and Alternate Dispute Resolution |
|
Chapter 13 Bargaining with Your Spouse |
183 |
Chapter 14 Getting the Flavor of Mediation |
203 |
Chapter 15 Collaborative Law |
227 |
Chapter 16 Arbitration: Easy Solution or Risky Gamble |
235 |
Section V: Children in Divorce |
|
Chapter 17 How to Tell Your Children about the Divorce |
243 |
Chapter 18 Reconciling Divorce and Parenting : Your Mission, Should You Choose to Accept It, Is to Be the Adult |
255 |
Chapter 19 Texas Child Custody Law: The Rules of the Road |
271 |
Chapter 20 Enforcement: Your Decisions at Divorce Determine Which Rules Will Be Enforced For and Against You |
303 |
Chapter 21 How Courts Decide Who Gets Custody |
307 |
Chapter 22 Parental Alienation Syndrome |
323 |
Chapter 23 Common Sense, Common Decency, and Visitation |
329 |
Chapter 24 Grandparent Rights to Access or Custody |
337 |
Chapter 25 Preventing Child Snatching |
341 |
Chapter 26 Child Support |
345 |
Section VI: Divorce Property Division |
|
Chapter 27 Marital Property: Basic Concepts |
363 |
Chapter 28 Premarital and Post-Marital Agreements |
377 |
Chapter 29 How Courts Divide Community Property |
381 |
Chapter 30 Accounting Problems: Separating Different Kinds of Property |
389 |
Chapter 31 The Effect of Divorce on Debt |
399 |
Chapter 32 Retirement Benefits |
403 |
Chapter 33 Valuing Community Property |
421 |
Chapter 34 Taxes |
427 |
Afterword Thoughts on New Beginnings |
433 |
Index |
439 |
