What a high-net-worth divorce costs in Plano comes down to the hourly rates of the lawyers and other professionals times the hours the case takes. The hours depend on complexity: a business to value, separate property to trace, stock awards to divide or a custody dispute. Some costs are fixed: Collin County’s 2026 divorce filing fee is $350 plus service fees (District Clerk), and county mediation costs $3,000 for a net estate over $750,000 (CCAP order).
For lawyer time, the State Bar of Texas reports that the median hourly rate for full-time private practitioners in the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington area was $388 in 2025 (State Bar of Texas 2025 Income and Hourly Rate Report). That median covers all kinds of lawyers, so treat it as a floor for a family lawyer who handles large estates. At $388 an hour, 100 hours of lawyer time is $38,800, before any valuator or forensic accountant sends a bill. The hours are the number that moves most, and the rest of this page is about what drives them.
The fixed and published figures
| Cost item | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Collin County divorce filing fee (new case), effective January 1, 2026 | $350, plus fees for service of citation | Collin County District Clerk |
| Court-referred family mediation through CCAP, net estate over $750,000 | $3,000 ($1,500 per party, unless the court assigns the whole fee to one side) | CCAP Family Mediation Order (09/2025) |
| Median hourly rate, full-time private practitioners, Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington, 2025 | $388 | State Bar of Texas |
We don’t publish a flat fee for these cases, because the hours depend on the estate and on what is in dispute. After a first meeting, we can give you a written estimate for each phase of the case.
What drives the hours
How many issues are contested
Each contested issue, whether the value of a business, a separate-property claim, maintenance or custody, brings its own discovery, witnesses and preparation. Two spouses who disagree only about one asset’s value face a very different budget from two who disagree about everything. Custody disputes add evaluations and hearings of their own; see What to Look for in a Contested Custody Lawyer in Collin County.
Valuing a business or professional practice
If either spouse owns a company, a medical or dental practice, or a stake in a closely held partnership, someone has to put a number on it. That usually means a business valuator, and often a forensic accountant to test the income the business reports. Each spouse can hire their own, which doubles that line of the budget, or both can agree on one neutral valuator. Divorcing with a Business in Texas walks through the process.
Separate property and tracing
Showing that a brokerage account or a down payment came from premarital savings or an inheritance can mean rebuilding years of statements, and commingled accounts or refinanced homes add forensic accounting hours. High-Net-Worth Divorce in Plano and Collin County explains the burden of proof. A prenuptial agreement that defines separate property can take much of this fight off the table.
Equity compensation
Spouses who work at the corporate campuses around Legacy West often hold restricted stock units, stock options, deferred compensation and bonus plans. Each award has to be divided between the part earned during the marriage and the part that was not, using the grant and vesting records, and mistakes are costly to fix once the decree is signed.
Paperwork and discovery
High-asset divorces are document heavy. A court can require a sworn inventory and appraisement of everything each spouse owns or claims, and every statement, tax return and appraisal behind it has to be collected, produced and reviewed. Organized records mean fewer billed hours spent chasing them, and following the county’s standing order avoids paying for a fight over a violation. Our page on discovery in a divorce case explains what usually gets requested.
Who controls the money
When one spouse controls the income and accounts, a Texas court can order payment of reasonable attorney’s fees and expenses while the case is pending (Tex. Fam. Code § 6.502) and can award reasonable fees and expenses in the final decree (Tex. Fam. Code § 6.708). Neither is automatic; the judge decides what is reasonable, so plan as if you will pay your own.
Spousal maintenance
A fight over maintenance is worth pricing before you start it, because Texas limits it on three sides. Eligibility comes first: the spouse asking must lack enough property after the division, including separate property, to meet minimum reasonable needs, and must also fit a statutory category, such as a marriage of 10 years or more plus an inability to earn enough (Tex. Fam. Code § 8.051). Duration is capped at five, seven or ten years depending on the length of the marriage (Tex. Fam. Code § 8.054), and the amount at the lesser of $5,000 a month or 20 percent of the paying spouse’s average monthly gross income (Tex. Fam. Code § 8.055). In a large estate, the property division often settles eligibility on its own.
Local factors in Plano and Collin County
Which county hears your case
Plano spans two counties; the city’s website points property owners to both the Collin Central Appraisal District and the Denton Central Appraisal District. Collin County cases are heard by the district courts in McKinney (Collin County District Courts), so every in-person hearing means a drive north and billed travel time. Couples who live on the Denton County side of west Plano generally file in Denton County.
Mediation is part of the schedule
Collin County courts routinely refer family cases to mediation, often through the county’s program, CCAP. Its family mediation order sets the fee by the net value of the estate, requires counsel to contact CCAP within 10 days, and says plainly that referral “is not a substitute for trial” (CCAP mediation order). In high-asset cases, spouses often agree instead on a private family law mediator who is comfortable working through valuation reports. Our article on the benefits and limitations of divorce mediation explains when it helps.
The calendar
A Texas court generally cannot grant a divorce before the 60th day after the suit was filed, with exceptions for certain family-violence cases (Tex. Fam. Code § 6.702), and large estates seldom finish that quickly. Every extra month brings more hearings, updated statements and sometimes a refreshed valuation.
How to get an accurate estimate
A useful estimate depends on what is in the estate and what is in dispute. Before you meet with a lawyer:
- Gather the financial picture. Recent tax returns, brokerage and retirement statements, business financial statements, equity grant and vesting records, trust documents, and any prenuptial or postnuptial agreement.
- List the disagreements. The value of the business, a separate-property claim, maintenance, custody. This list drives the budget more than the size of the estate does.
- Ask for a phase-by-phase estimate. Temporary orders, discovery, valuation, mediation and trial preparation each cost different amounts. Ask what happens to the budget if the case does not settle at mediation.
- Ask how billing works. The hourly rate of each lawyer and paralegal on the file, the retainer and how it is replenished, and how valuator and forensic accountant invoices are handled.
- Ask about lower-cost paths. Early mediation or collaborative divorce can fit spouses who agree on more than they disagree.
- Ask about interim fees if your spouse controls the money.
Mark L. Scroggins, the Managing Partner of our family-law-only firm, is Board Certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization (Mark L. Scroggins). To go over your estate and get that phase-by-phase estimate, call 214-469-3100 or use our contact form; first meetings are at our Plano office, 5851 Legacy Circle, Suite 600.
FAQ
Is $388 an hour what a Plano family lawyer charges?
Not necessarily. It is the 2025 median for all full-time private practitioners in the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington area (State Bar of Texas), not a family law figure. Ask each lawyer you interview for the hourly rate of everyone who will bill on your file.
How long does a high-net-worth divorce take in Plano?
Longer than the 60-day minimum, in most cases. Valuation, tracing and discovery set the pace, and the length of the case is one of the main drivers of cost.
Do we each need our own business valuator?
Not always. Spouses can agree on one neutral valuator, which costs less, or each hire their own when they do not trust a single number. Competing valuations are common when the business is the main asset in dispute, and they add cost on both sides.
Does a prenup lower the cost of a high-net-worth divorce?
It can. A valid agreement that defines separate property and how assets will be divided removes issues that would otherwise need tracing, valuation or a ruling from the judge. See Prenuptial Agreements in Texas.
This page is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.