Temporary Orders

In a contested divorce case (where spouses do not have an agreement on the children, the house and/or finances), a hearing is held in the first few weeks of the case to determine temporary orders. Temporary orders are in force while the divorce case is pending.

In a divorce case, temporary orders address who lives in the house and who must move out, who pays which bills, and whether there is temporary spousal support. Spouses must exchange proof of their income in the form of tax returns and pay stubs prior to the temporary orders hearing.

If the divorce case involves children, the temporary orders will also decide which parent has temporary custody, what the visitation schedule will be, and how much child support will be paid. Temporary order hearings are hugely important in contested child custody cases because the parent who “wins” in the initial hearing becomes the status quo and primary caregiver of the children, and that has implications for the settlement or trial of the cases months later. Unlike final trials, hearings on temporary orders can happen on short notice and with no disclosure of who the witnesses will be or what evidence will be presented. Parents who are seriously arguing over who the children should primarily live with (and who makes the important decisions for the kids and receives child support), must focus a lot of time immediately at the beginning of the case to make sure that they win primary custody. Preparation for temporary orders hearings on children involves meeting with the attorney or paralegal to discuss the facts and history in great detail, providing evidence such as recordings, photographs, school or medical records, and discussing what friends, neighbors, or counselors might need to be called as witnesses.

Some courts, including almost all in Harris County, require mediation before temporary order hearings involving children, and some require mediation on other temporary issues. Click here to read about settlement and mediation. Mediation before temporary orders hearings is not required in Brazoria County and is often not a requirement in Galveston County.

Many of the issues at the temporary orders hearing are financial in nature, so both spouses are required to submit Financial Information Statements that summarize their income and expenses and ready cash available to them. Click here to see a sample Financial Information Statement used at these hearings.

Temporary order hearings in divorce can also involve requests to:

• Make one spouse pay the attorney’s fees for the other spouse;
• Immediately return property taken from the house or account for funds drained from bank accounts;
• Temporary injunctions that forbid the spouses from engaging in certain behavior (like allowing boyfriends or girlfriends around the children or selling property).

Courts usually impose time limits on temporary orders hearings, such as 30 minutes per side. This requires the lawyers to get to the point and allows only a few witnesses, often just the spouses. Evidence that can be presented at such hearings includes:

• Evidence of income (paystubs, tax returns, bank statements showing deposits);
• The budget (Financial Information Statement);
• Photographs of the children;
• Messages exchanged between the parties;
• Photographs of a messy house, alcohol bottles, or drug paraphernalia;
• Police reports and recordings of bad behavior;
• Work schedules and maps showing where the parents work and live and where the children go to school.

The attorney and paralegal work closely with the client before the hearing to discuss and learn the facts, gather evidence, and organize for court. It is very important that the client tell his or her lawyer everything bad that might be used against them in court so that the attorney is not surprised.