About Heather Hudson
Heather Hudson is a family law attorney in Goranson Bain Ausley’s San Antonio office. She represents professionals, parents, military service members and spouses, and LGBTQ+ clients and families across the full range of family law matters. A former U.S. Air Force officer with more than eight years of exclusive family law experience, Heather approaches every case with careful preparation, clear communication, and a commitment to helping clients reach practical, lasting resolutions aligned with what matters most to them.
Heather is known for her ability to manage detail-heavy issues, educate clients clearly, and advocate with both strength and empathy. She has particular experience handling military divorce, LGBT adoption and parenting rights, Collaborative Divorce, and complex property division cases. Her background in business administration strengthens her ability to navigate the complex financial and property questions these cases involve.
Heather works to resolve matters constructively through negotiation, Collaborative Divorce, or mediation whenever possible — while being fully prepared to litigate when necessary. Her goal in every case is to mitigate unnecessary conflict, protect children, and give clients tools they can use long after the case ends.
What Sets Her Apart
- Military family law fluency. A former U.S. Air Force officer with an insider’s understanding of military benefits, retirement, and culture — and a published voice on military divorce and collaborative law in Texas.
- LGBTQ+ family law focus. Member of the State Bar of Texas LGBT Law Section since 2018 and a regular speaker on LGBTQ+ issues in collaborative law.
- Collaborative Divorce leadership. Served on the Board for San Antonio Collaborative Divorce and Collaborative Divorce Texas for 2 years, with regular speaking CLE’s on binding settlement agreements and how to prepare for mediation.
- Business and financial insight. Heather’s M.B.A. in Project Management from UTSA strengthens her ability to navigate complex financial issues, including property division, business interests, and retirement benefits.
- Shaping Texas family law leadership. 1 of 8 attorneys throughout Texas selected for the State Bar of Texas Family Law Section’s 1st Leadership Class (2024–2026). Serving as a board member on the State Bar of Texas Family Law Section Report Board (2026-2027).
Practice Focus
Heather focuses her practice on family law matters where military, business, and LGBTQ+ family law experience meaningfully change the outcome:
- Military divorce. Representing active-duty service members and military spouses, including QDROs and DROs, Survivor Benefit Plan elections, and the multi-state jurisdictional issues common to military families.
- LGBTQ+ family law. LGBT divorce, LGBT adoption, LGBT parenting rights, and LGBT child custody — with tailored orders that protect parental rights.
- Collaborative Divorce. A resolution-focused process for couples committed to constructive outcomes. GBA has one of the country’s largest groups of Collaborative Divorce attorneys.
- Child custody and support. Including parenting schedules, conservatorship, visitation rights, and modification and enforcement when circumstances change.
- Adoption and family formation. Adoption, surrogacy-related orders, second-parent adoptions, and name and gender-marker changes.
- Property division. Including complex property, characterization of separate and community property, retirement benefit division, and dividing the marital home.
- Divorce. Negotiated, mediated, collaborative, and litigated divorce, with attention to the financial and parenting issues that drive most contested matters.
Recognition and Credentials
Heather has been recognized by peers and the regional legal community for her work in family law — named a Rising Star in Texas Monthly (2026), recognized as a Rising Star Lawyer by Scene in San Antonio (2018, 2020, and 2021), and honored in 2021 as one of Scene in San Antonio’s Outstanding Women in Law, Best Lawyers, and Best Female Lawyers.
Beyond her recognition, Heather holds active leadership roles in San Antonio’s Collaborative Divorce and LGBTQ+ family law communities and was selected for the State Bar of Texas Family Law Section Leadership Class (2024–2026). She is also a member of the State Bar of Texas LGBT Law Section and the San Antonio Bar Association.
Heather contributes regularly to legal education in Texas. She co-authored The Objection Playbook: A Trial Lawyer’s Field Guide to Evidentiary Objections for the Annual Marriage Dissolution Institute (Galveston, 2026), co-authored the Mastering the Leading Edge: Effective Cross Examination for the Annual Advanced Family Law Conference (San Antonio, 2026), and has spoken at the Family Law Essentials Seminar in Laredo and McAllen on discovery and mediation preparation, and at Collaborative Divorce San Antonio on LGBTQ+ issues in collaborative law and binding settlement agreements.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Types of Family Law Cases Does Heather Hudson Handle?
Heather represents clients across the full range of Texas family law — divorce, child custody and support, property division, adoption, paternity, and family formation matters. Her practice has a particular focus on military divorce, LGBTQ+ family law, and Collaborative Divorce, and she represents clients in negotiated, mediated, collaborative, and litigated cases.
Is Heather Trained in Collaborative Divorce, and When Does She Recommend It?
Yes. Heather was formally trained in Collaborative Law in 2018 and stays updated on Collaborative Divorce law by attending seminars that primarily focus on the collaborative process. She served on the Board of San Antonio Collaborative Divorce in 2024-2025, remains an active member and speaker on collaborative law topics, and a member of the statewide organization, Collaborative Divorce Texas. She recommends the collaborative process for couples who are committed to resolving their family law matter without going to court, particularly when preserving a healthy co-parenting relationship or maintaining important family relationships is a priority. If Collaborative Divorce is not the right fit, Heather also helps clients pursue resolution through mediation or, when necessary, litigation, assessing the most appropriate approach at the outset of every case.
Does Heather Handle Military Divorce Involving Service Members Stationed Outside Texas?
Yes. Heather represents active-duty service members and military spouses in military divorce, including matters that cross state lines. Her work covers QDROs and DROs for retirement division, Survivor Benefit Plan elections, jurisdictional questions tied to PCS moves and deployments, and parenting schedules that account for service obligations.
Can Heather Help With Second-Parent Adoptions or LGBTQ+ Family Formation?
Yes. Heather focuses on second-parent adoption, LGBT parenting rights, surrogacy-related matters for the intended parents (becoming involved in the process as early as drafting the gestational agreement through finalizing the legal paperwork required to be listed as the parents on the birth certificate), and name and gender-marker changes — the family formation matters where LGBTQ+ couples often need specific drafting to secure parental rights. She works to make sure those orders hold up when parental rights need to be enforceable within the State of Texas and across state lines.
What Does It Cost to Work With Heather?
GBA works on a retainer model with hourly billing. Retainer amounts vary based on case complexity. For more on how family law fees work in Texas, see GBA’s guide to the cost of divorce in Texas.
Client Reviews
Beyond the Practice
Heather’s own experience as a parent, going through separation and divorce while in law school, shaped her commitment to this work. She understands how overwhelming family transitions can feel, and she believes clients deserve more than just a legal process — they need clarity, education, and options that protect their future, delivered by an attorney who stays responsive and practical even when cases get complicated. Her goal is to leave clients in a position to move forward with confidence.
Services
Services
- Divorce
- Military Divorce
- LGBT Divorce
- Divorce for Men
- Divorce for Women
- Collaborative Divorce
- Top LGBT Child Custody Lawyers in Texas
- LGBT Adoption
- LGBT Parenting Rights
- Child Custody
- Child Support
- Parenting Schedules
- Visitation Rights
- Modification and Enforcement
- Modifying Child Support
- Grandparent Visitation and Custody Rights in Texas
- Gray Divorce
- Mental Health and Addiction in Divorce
- Paternity
- Adoption
- Alimony & Spousal Maintenance
- Divorce for Business Owners
- Divorce Mediation
- Negotiated Divorce
- Amicable Divorce
- Characterization of Separate and Community Property
- Business Valuation in Divorce
- Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements
- Cohabitation Agreements
- Uncontested Divorce
- High Net Worth Divorce
- Property Division
- Complex Property
- Dividing the Marital Home
- Pre-Divorce Guidance
- Becoming a Foster Parent
- Family Partner Violence And Divorce
- Contested Divorce
- Litigated Divorce
- High-Conflict Divorce
Honors & Awards
Honors & Awards
- Named a Rising Star in Texas Monthly, 2026
- Named among Scene in San Antonio’s Best Lawyers, 2021
- Honored as one of Scene in San Antonio’s Outstanding Women in Law, 2021
- Recognized in Scene in San Antonio’s Best Female Lawyers, 2021
- Selected as a Rising Star Lawyer by Scene in San Antonio, 2018, 2020, & 2021
Articles
Articles
Publications & Speeches
Publications & Speeches
- Co-Author, The Objection Playbook: A Trial Lawyer’s Field Guide to Evidentiary Objections, Annual Marriage Dissolution Institute, Galveston, April 30-May 1, 2026
- CLSA, What is it? and Why do I need one?, Collaborative Divorce San Antonio, October 2025
- Discovery Requests on a Budget, Family Law Essentials Seminar, Laredo, May 2025
- How to Prepare for Mediation, Family Law Essentials Seminar, McAllen, May 2025
- LGBTQ+ Issues in Collaborative Law 2, Collaborative Divorce San Antonio, June 2024
- LGBTQ+ Issues in Collaborative Law, Collaborative Divorce San Antonio, July 2021
Professional Associations
Professional Associations
- State Bar of Texas, Family Law Section, 2018–Present
- Member
- Leadership Class (2024 – Present)
- San Antonio Collaborative Divorce, 2024–Present
- Board of Directors
- Collaborative Divorce Texas, 2023–Present
- Member
- San Antonio Collaborative Divorce, 2019–Present
- Member
- State Bar of Texas, LGBT Law Section, 2018–Present
- Member
- San Antonio Bar Association, 2018–Present
- Member
Education
Education
- St. Mary’s University School of Law, San Antonio, Texas, 2016
- Juris Doctor
- University of Texas at San Antonio, Texas, 2011
- Master of Business Administration, Project Management
- University of Mary Hardin – Baylor, Belton, Texas, 1997
- Bachelor of Science, Chemistry
Bar Admissions
Bar Admissions
- State Bar of Texas, 2017
