The timeline of your divorce is driven by how quickly you and your spouse can reach an agreement on the terms of your divorce. In Texas, the legal minimum is 60 days, but your process choice will shape everything that happens. The Collaborative Divorce process keeps you moving toward a resolution on your schedules, while litigation places your timeline in the court’s hands, which can extend the divorce timeline to a year or more.
How Divorce Timing Really Works
One of the first questions you are likely to ask is, “How long will this divorce take?” The honest answer is simple: it depends on how quickly you and your spouse agree.
In Texas, your divorce must be filed for at least 60 days. That is the legal baseline. After that, everything depends on your ability to resolve decisions about property, finances, and parenting.
Collaborative Divorce: Efficient and Resolution Focused
In a Collaborative Divorce, you and your spouse are in control of both the process and the timeline. Instead of waiting for a judge, you schedule meetings based on your availability and goals.
You spend your time working through solutions instead of sitting idle while your case waits on a crowded court docket. Some couples complete the entire process in just a couple of meetings when they already agree on most issues or are ready to move forward.
Even when your case takes longer, the time is productive. You will spend it gathering information, making decisions, and building an agreement that works for your future. You also have the flexibility to adjust the pace. If life speeds up, you can move faster. If something personal requires attention, you can slow things down.
Litigation: A Longer and Court Driven Timeline
Litigation follows a very different path. Once your case enters the court system, your timeline is tied to the court’s schedule.
Trial dates may not be available for a year or more. Some cases stretch closer to two years depending on the court. Along the way, hearings, motions, and delays will add time and cost.
While you wait, your life may feel like it is on hold. Temporary arrangements around finances and parenting may stay in place for months. Tension will build as decisions remain unresolved.
This is the reality of contested divorce cases, where procedure and scheduling dictate how long everything takes.
What this Means for You
If you choose litigation, you will spend much of your time waiting, reacting, and managing conflict as it grows.
If you choose Collaborative Divorce, you will spend your time actively working toward resolution with the ability to adjust the pace based on your needs.
You cannot control every aspect of divorce. You can control how the process unfolds and how long it takes by choosing the right path.
Contact Zegen Law Firm, PLLC
Collaborative Divorce offers many potential benefits including a faster process, greater flexibility, virtual negotiations, and confidentiality. Consider discussing the next potential steps with Robin Zegen at Zegen Law Firm, PLLC at (972) 653-0448.
The Zegen Law Firm, PLLC is located at 12222 Merit Drive Suite 1206, Dallas, TX 75251.
FAQs
1. What is the fastest a divorce will be finalized in Texas?
The minimum is 60 days. If you and your spouse reach an agreement quickly, your divorce will finalize shortly after that period.
2. Why does litigation take so long?
Your case depends on the court’s schedule. Limited trial dates, hearings, and delays will extend the timeline to a year or more.
3. Will Collaborative Divorce really save time?
Yes. You are not waiting for the court. You and your spouse schedule meetings, make decisions, and move forward at a pace that fits your situation.
With thirty years of experience Robin Rubrecht Zegen will help you identify and prioritize your goals and she will explain the options available for achieving them. She guides her clients through the transition while helping them maintain their relationships and dignity.
She is a member of the State Bar of Texas Family Law Section; Dallas Bar Association Family Law Section; Collin County Bar Association Family Law Section; Frisco Bar Association, and Plano Bar Association. She is a Master of the Bench in the Curt B. Henderson American Inns of Court.