Respectful, Constructive Problem-Solving to Meet the Future with Confidence
Regardless of background or economic status, I treat my clients and their families with respect and dignity as I work with them to negotiate pre-and post-marital agreements and divorce settlements. I provide clients with a road map that starts with understanding my client’s needs, goals, and values and ends with finding, evaluating, and implementing constructive solutions.
My clients include busy professionals, parents, retirees, business owners, politicians, celebrities, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and their partners who want to problem-solve efficiently and minimize the impact of divorce on family relationships and their financial estate through the proactive, solution-oriented approach that Collaborative Divorce offers. I strongly support the collaborative family law process for those who can do it because it offers clients the ability to control the outcome; determine their financial future, even in situations requiring complex property division; and create a solid co-parenting relationship. The collaborative process offers efficiencies that a more traditional legal process does not.
Here’s how:
- Ease the process of divorce or the negotiation of pre- and post-marital agreements by listening to and supporting clients where they are emotionally, being extremely responsive and efficient, and offering flexibility to accommodate their already busy lives.
- Move cases forward by identifying and untangling complex issues, obstacles, and impasses and promoting a proactive, solution-oriented approach.
- Explore all possible options and outcomes so clients can make fully informed decisions about their futures.
- Negotiate the most desired options after thorough research, thoughtful analysis, and careful examination of the details.
- Avoid adversarial techniques or tactics to preserve relationships and resolve the family issue with a spirit of cooperation.
- Navigate the challenges that may arise if someone has a high-conflict personality or mental health or substance abuse issues.
Professional Credentials
Kristen A. Algert is a family lawyer in the Austin office of Goranson Bain Ausley who is among the most accomplished and recognized collaborative family law professionals in Texas. She brings clients a wealth of experience in developing creative, individualized solutions during highly challenging and complex divorces. She is a master-credentialed collaborative professional, has received the Gay G. Cox Award for Excellence in Collaborative Law, served as a board member and president of the statewide organization Collaborative Divorce Texas, and conducts collaborative training for lawyers, mental health professionals, and financial professionals.
Kris is a member of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, a group of preeminent family law practitioners in the United States who have been recognized for their high level of knowledge, skill, and integrity. She is also Board-Certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and is a member of numerous other professional organizations.
Kris is especially skilled at negotiating and drafting premarital and post-marital/partition agreements; characterizing assets; dividing complex estates; valuing businesses and other property; handling child custody, visitation, alimony and child support cases; and managing high-conflict situations, especially those that arise because of the existence of mental health issues or substance abuse.
Kris has been named the Best Lawyers© Collaborative Law Lawyer of the Year Austin in 2013, 2016, 2018, and 2020; Best Lawyers© Family Law Lawyer of the Year in 2011, and 2015 and Best Lawyers© Family Law Mediation Lawyer of the Year in 2019.
Interests
When Kris is not practicing law, she loves being active and especially doing anything outdoors, including running, biking, hiking, playing tennis, and hunting for shells on Destin, Florida, beaches. Highly goal-oriented, Kris has run several marathons over the past 30 years and is always looking for ways to challenge herself physically and mentally.
Kris enjoys discovering and learning, whether that is from reading a book, attending a lecture, or taking a class. Currently, she is studying insight theory and conflict resolution to better understand how people, organizations, and governments approach and resolve conflicts.
Featured Video
Services
- Family Partner Violence And Divorce
- Divorce
- Collaborative Divorce
- LGBT Divorce
- High-Conflict Divorce
- Property Division
- Complex Property
- Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements
- Divorce Mediation
- Divorce for Women
- Divorce for Men
- Parenting Schedules
- Visitation Rights
- LGBT Parenting Rights
- High Net Worth Divorce
- Dividing the Marital Home
- Characterization of Separate and Community Property
- Business Valuation in Divorce
- Divorce for Business Owners
- Flat-Fee Divorce
- Cohabitation Agreement
- Child Custody
- Child Support
- Grandparent Visitation and Custody Rights in Texas
- Becoming a Foster Parent
- Alimony & Spousal Support Maintenance
- Contested Divorce
- Uncontested Divorce
- Litigated Divorce
- Mental Health and Addiction in Divorce
- Negotiated Divorce
- Appealing a Divorce Decree or Judgment
- Pre-Divorce Guidance
- Modification and Enforcement
- Paternity
- Adoption
Honors & Awards
- Austin’s Top Attorneys, Austin Monthly Magazine, 2020
- Recipient of the Gay G. Cox Award, Collaborative Divorce Texas, 2019
- Named the Best Lawyers© Family Law Mediation “Lawyer of the Year” in Austin, Best Lawyers, 2019
- Named the Best Lawyers© Collaborative Law: Family Law “Lawyer of the Year” in Austin, Best Lawyers, 2013, 2016, 2018, 2020
- Named the Best Lawyers© Family Law “Lawyer of the Year” in Austin, Best Lawyers, 2011 and 2015
- Selected to the Texas Super Lawyers list, Thomson Reuters, 2005 – 2023
- Selected to the “Top 100: Texas Super Lawyers” list, Thomson Reuters, 2020-2023
- Selected to the “Top 50: Central/ West Texas Super Lawyers”, Thomson Reuters, 2019-2023
- Selected to the “Top 50: Women Texas Super Lawyers”, Thomson Reuters, 2020-2023
- Recipient of the J. Chrys Dougherty Award for dedication and commitment to access to justice for all, 2015
- Inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© in the field of Family Law, Best Lawyers, 2007 – 2024
- Inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© in the field of Family Law Mediation, Best Lawyers, 2008 – 2024
- Inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© in the field of Collaborative Law: Family Law, Best Lawyers, 2008 – 2024
- Named to the 500 Leading Family Lawyers List, LawDragon, 2024
- “AV” Preeminent® rating, Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory
Articles
Articles
- Top 10 Reasons for a Collaborative Divorce in Texas December 8, 2023
- What You Need to Know About Same-Sex Divorce and Common Law Marriage and Divorce in Texas June 7, 2022
- Power Imbalances in Divorce: How to Level the Playing Field January 5, 2022
- Divorcing a Narcissist (or Any Other Really Difficult Person) December 28, 2021
- Facing Your Post-Divorce Future with Confidence November 17, 2021
- Divorce After 50: How To Minimize Surprises & Unintended Consequences October 15, 2021
- Top Five Reasons to Consider a Collaborative Divorce During Coronavirus (Covid-19) April 9, 2020
- COVID-19, Recession, and Divorce: Five Tips for Making Smart Decisions March 23, 2020
- Keeping the House but Dividing the Equity January 15, 2020
- Divorcing the Angry, Raging Spouse September 9, 2019
- Can You Have a Collaborative Divorce If Your Spouse Has a Difficult Personality? April 15, 2019
- Tips for Staying on the High Road During a Divorce February 18, 2019
- Should You Say “I Do” to a Premarital Agreement January 1, 2019
Published Works
- Author/Co-Speaker: IACP Networking & Educational Forum Navigating Financial Narratives (2020)
- Author/Co-Speaker: IACP Networking & Educational Forum: Establishing the Relationship & Expectations from Initial Client Contact (2019)
- Author/Co-Speaker: State Bar of Texas/Collaborative Law Course: “Succeeding Collaboratively with the Impossible Case”, Collaborative Law: Avoid Breaking Bad When Breaking Up, State Bar of Texas, 2019
- Author/Speaker: State Bar of Texas/Collaborative Law Course, I am the Best Thing to Happen to (Your) Client, 2017
- Author/Co-Speaker: Collaborative Law Institute Minneapolis/St. Paul, Fostering Trusting Relationships in Your Practice Group, 2016
- Author/Co-Speaker: State Bar of Texas/CLI-Tx Spring Conference, All In–How Committed Are You to the Process?, 2016
- Author/Co-Speaker: IACP Pre-Forum/Networking & Educational Forum, Fostering Trusting Relationships in Your Practice Group, 2015
- Author/Co-Speaker: State Bar of Texas/CLI-Tx Spring Conference, When Leveling the Playing Field Isn’t Enough: Addressing Power Imbalances Between Spouses Without Disrupting the Collaborative Team Structure, 2015
- Author/Speaker: IACP Networking & Educational Forum, We’re All Porcupines: Fostering Trusting Relationships in Your Practice, 2014
- Author: State Bar of Texas Collaborative Law: Start to Finish, Chapter 9 “Starting and Running a Successful Collaborative Practice”, 2014/2015
- Co-Author/Co-Speaker: Collaborating the Later Life Divorce Baltimore, Maryland, 2012
- Author: American Bar Association Litigation Section’s Journal Litigation, Divorce and Custody Claims in “GyneTech Scandals Send Stock into Free Fall” Vol. 38 No. 2, 2012
- Author/Speaker: The Collaborative Institute-Unique Approaches in Collaborative Divorce, Collaborating the Later Life Divorce, 2012
- The Collaborative Team: Who Plays What Role, Collaborative Divorce Texas, 2010
- Author/Speaker: State Bar of Texas: Advanced Family Law Course, Creating a Collaborative Community, 2010
- Author/Speaker: State Bar of Texas/CLI-Tx Spring Conference, Case Autopsy, 2010
- Author/Speaker: State Bar of Texas/CLI-Tx Spring Conference, Negotiating from the Middle Collaborative Law Negotiations: Redefining Control, 2009
- Author/Speaker: UT Parenting Plan Conference, Identifying Parental Interests in Parent-Child Relationships, 2007
- Author/Speaker: State Bar of Texas: Advanced Family Law Course, Protecting Your Client’s Interests Through the Process, 2006
- Author: State Bar of Texas: TAFLS Trial Institute, Litigation Alternative – Collaborative Law, 2006
- Author/Speaker: State Bar of Texas: Advanced Family Law Drafting Course, Drafting for Your Collaborative Practice, 2005
- Author: State Bar of Texas: Trial Notebook, Pre-Trial & Scheduling Orders, 2004
- Author: State Bar of Texas: Advanced Family Law, Characterization Presumptions & Tracing Methods, 2003
- Author: State Bar of Texas: Advanced Family Law, Valuation and Appraisals, 1997
- Author/Speaker: Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas Seminars, Beyond Basic Property Issues, 2004
- Author/Speaker: Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas Seminars, Divorce Procedures, 2003-2008
- Author/Speaker: Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas Seminars, Domestic Violence, 2002
- Author/Speaker: Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas Seminars, Property Issues and Closing the File, 1999-2002
Presentations
- Course Director: SBOT/Collaborative Divorce Texas Collaborative Law Course (2021)
- Assistant Course Director: SBOT/Collaborative Divorce Texas Collaborative Law Course (2020)
- Panelist, “Collaborative Law Basics and the Paralegal’s Influential and Important Role”, State Bar of Texas Paralegal Division, TAPS Seminar, 2019
- Basic Collaborative Interdisciplinary Training, Collaborative Divorce Texas, Instructor, 2019
- “Negotiation is a Privilege; Litigation is a Right: Negotiating a Better Outcome with the Collaborative Law Process,” State Bar Annual Meeting, 2018
- Panelist: CLI-Tx Advanced Interdisciplinary Training, Negotiation Workbook, 2014
- Moderator: Collaborative Program, Advanced Family Law Course, 2011
- Speaker: State Bar of Texas/CLI-Tx Spring Conference, Unusual Process Challenges, 2011
- Speaker: State Bar of Texas/CLI-Tx Spring Conference, Nuts & Bolts: Paradigm Shift, 2011
- Speaker: IACP 11th Anniversary Forum The Late Life Divorce, 2010
- Speaker: State Bar of Texas/CLI-Tx Spring Conference, Case Autopsy, 2008
- Speaker: State Bar of Texas/CLI-Tx Spring Conference, Nuts & Bolts: Protocols, 2008
- Course Director: Collaborative Law Institute of Texas Spring Retreat, 2007
- Assistant Course Director: Collaborative Law Institute of Texas Spring Retreat, 2006
- Panelist: Collaborative Law Institute of Texas: 3rd Annual Spring retreat: Getting Comfortable with Discomfort, 2006
- Panelist Collaborative Law Institute of Texas: 2nd Annual Spring Retreat: Evolution of Collaborative Practice, 2005
Professional Associations
- American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers
- Member
- Austin Bar Association, Family Law Section
- Member
- Baylor Law Alumni Association
- Member
- Collaborative Divorce Texas (f/k/a Collaborative Law Institute of Texas)
- Board of Trustees, 2007-2013
- President Elect 2008-2010
- President 2010-2012
- Member
- Advanced Training, 2019
- College of the State Bar
- Member
- International Academy of Collaborative Professionals
- Member
- State Bar of Texas, Family Law Section
- Member
- Life Fellow
- Texas Academy of Family Law Specialists
- Member
- Texas Board of Legal Specialization
- Legal Assistant Commission, 2001-2004
- Texas College of Collaborative Law
- Member
- Texas Family Law Foundation
- Member
- Travis County Family Law Advocates
- Member
- Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas
- Program Services Committee Chair, 2005-present
- Board of Directors, 2001- 2014
- Treasurer 2005-2006
- Secretary 2003-2004
Education
- Baylor University School of Law, 1988
- J.D., Law
- Baylor University,1984
- B.A., English
Bar Admissions
- Texas, 1988
Certifications
Board Certified in Family Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 1997
Master Credentialed Collaborative Professional, Collaborative Divorce Texas, 2017
