Wednesday, July 29, 2009

"I'm a family law attorney."

I can't tell you how many times I have been at a social function, and someone would ask me, "What do you do?" Of course I would tell them, "I am a family law attorney" and then I would get that blank stare or, I would get, "Oh, does that mean you do wills?" So I decided to try to educate the non lawyers out there on exactly what a "Family Law Attorney" does. The area of family law comprises multiple areas such as divorce, child custody, visitation, child support, modifications of child custody orders, adoptions, grand parent rights, paternity, protective orders, prenuptial agreements, and spousal support, just to name a few. When you try to explain this to someone it usually sparks the response, "Oh, your a divorce attorney" to which I usually respond, yes. And while it is true, that every family law attorney is in essence a divorce attorney, it is important to remember that the area of family law incorporates much more than just divorce. Currently the Texas Family Code is comprised of five titles and 266 chapters. Provisions dealing with divorce make up only the first 9 chapters. That leaves 257 chapters dealing with other family law matters. So when someone says, "So, your a divorce attorney" it really leaves a lot out of what the family law attorney does.

Hopefully, this new blog will help shed some light on the area of family law. In future posts I will try to discuss various issues, not only involving divorce, but all areas of family law. Maybe I can give you, the reader, some quality information on issues involving you or someone you know. Check back regularly and maybe, just maybe you can surprise someone with your knowledge of family law at your next social event when someone says, "I'm a family law attorney."