Safeguarding Life’s Most Important Things
I help clients frame and reach healthy, attainable, future-focused goals. My clients include professionals in the tech and start-up industry, business owners, real estate developers, medical professionals, and their spouses, and high-achieving career women.
Together, we shape and make clear-headed decisions that recognize but are not clouded by emotional pain. Drawing on extensive experience in the courtroom, at the collaborative table, and with family dynamics of all stripes, I focus on high-net-worth divorce cases, complex property division, high-conflict custody matters, business valuations involving closely held businesses, and negotiations of pre-and post-marital agreements. I am a strong advocate of Collaborative Divorce and mediation, especially for clients who want an out-of-court settlement. However, when court is the best option, I litigate to safeguard what is most important for clients. The goal is to figure out what is optimal in the present and best for your future, whether that’s through negotiation, collaborative law, or litigation.
What I help clients do:
- Provide hands-on support to clients by guiding them through the process.
- Understand what’s important in the moment and what comes next by putting reason and emotion in perspective and balance.
- Evaluate options to achieve high-priority objectives.
- Chart a constructive, financially sound approach that minimizes conflict and delivers productive, cost-effective solutions.
- Develop long-term strategies customized to future goals and needs, like planning for retirement and children’s education, even as immediate concerns such as separating property, obtaining an optimal financial package, and making parenting arrangements are settled.
- Guide clients to a place where they feel in control, comfortable, and confident in making decisions and fully understanding their implications.
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Professional Credentials
With a background in finance and negotiation, Lindley is especially skilled in the division of complex assets, high-conflict cases, Collaborative Divorce, negotiated divorce, pre-and post-nuptial agreements, and divorces that involve mental health issues. Lindley has consistently earned recognition in the field of Family Law, being named to The Best Lawyers in America© since 2015 and included in the Texas Super Lawyers list since 2020. Her election as the firm’s managing partner is a testament to the respect she has earned from her colleagues, as well as her business and leadership acumen. Lindley is also one of the select few Austin divorce attorneys to be named a fellow of the prestigious American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. Board Certified in Family Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, Lindley received her J.D. degree and a master’s in business administration from Southern Methodist University. As the firm’s second female managing partner, Lindley builds on a history of strong representation of female leaders.
Interests
Lindley lives in Austin with her husband and two beautiful children. She was raised among a family of entrepreneurs, including her mom, Angie Bain, who was a founding partner of Goranson Bain in 1987; dad, a veterinarian firm CEO; and brother, a player in the tech start-up world.
Services
Services
- Family Partner Violence And Divorce
- Divorce
- Collaborative Divorce
- Divorce Mediation
- Divorce for Business Owners
- Property Division
- High Net Worth Divorce
- Complex Property
- Characterization of Separate and Community Property
- Business Valuation in Divorce
- Dividing the Marital Home
- Divorce for Men
- Divorce for Women
- Mental Health and Addiction in Divorce
- Parenting Schedules
- Visitation Rights
- LGBT Parenting Rights
- Becoming a Foster Parent
- Grandparent Visitation and Custody Rights in Texas
- Adoption
- Paternity
- Child Support
- Child Custody
- Cohabitation Agreements
- Alimony & Spousal Maintenance
- Contested Divorce
- Uncontested Divorce
- LGBT Divorce
- Litigated Divorce
- Flat-Fee Divorce
- Negotiated Divorce
- High-Conflict Divorce
- Appealing a Divorce Decree or Judgment
- Pre-Divorce Guidance
- Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements
- Modification and Enforcement
- Gray Divorce
- Modifying Child Support
Honors & Awards
Honors & Awards
- Selected to the Texas Rising Stars list, Thomson Reuters, 2010 – 2020
- Inclusion in the Texas Super Lawyers list, Thomson Reuters, 2020-2024
- Up-and-Coming 100: Texas Rising Stars List, Thomson Reuters, 2017 – 2020
- Up-and-Coming 50: Women Texas Rising Stars List, Thomson Reuters, 2017 – 2019
- Inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© in the field of Family Law, Best Lawyers, 2015 – 2025
- Inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© in the field of Collaborative Law Family Law, Best Lawyers, 2024 & 2025
- Inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© in the field of Family Law Mediation, Best Lawyers, 2024 & 2025
- Named to the 500 Leading Family Lawyers List, LawDragon, 2024
Articles
Articles
- Finding Love Later in Life: Why Cohabitation Agreements Are a Smart Choice December 17, 2024
- Tax Implications of Divorce: Eight Common Issues to Consider When Negotiating Your Divorce Settlement May 30, 2024
- 6 Ways To Protect Your Credit in Divorce October 27, 2022
- Two Financial Discussions to Have Before Marriage October 18, 2022
- Five Tips for Communicating With Your Spouse About Money October 2, 2020
Publications & Speeches
Publications & Speeches
- Co-Author, “Making a Better Agreement: Negotiating Premarital, Post-Marital and Cohabitation Agreements in the Collaborative Process” – 11th Annual Collaborative Law, 2018 (with Keith Maples).
- Co-Author, “Speaking in Codes”- Marriage Dissolution Course, 2008 (with Thomas P. Goranson, Carson Epes Steinbaurer, Judge K. Denise Garcia)
- Co-Author, “Speaking in Codes” – Advanced Family Law- 2006- State Bar of Texas (with Judge K. Denise Garcia, Ronald L. Goranson, Kathryn Weiser, Carson Epes, Kevin Scrivner and Lindley Bain).
- Co-Author, “Cohabitation Agreements for Same-Sex Couples, 2009- 9th Annual Family Law on the Front Lines Conference (with Angeline L. Bain and James Mueller).
Videos & Podcasts
Videos
Presentations
Presentations
- “Characterization of Property in a Divorce”, State Bar of Texas Paralegal Division, TAPS Seminar, 2019
- “Making a Better Agreement”, State Bar of Texas, Collaborative Law Course, Co-Presenter, 2018
Professional Associations
Professional Associations
- American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers
- Fellow
- American Bar Association, Family Law Section
- Member
- Annette Stewart Inn of Court
- Member
- Austin Bar Association
- Member
- Austin Young Lawyers Association
- Member
- Collaborative Divorce Texas (f/k/a Collaborative Law Institute of Texas)
- Member
- Collaborative Professionals of Dallas
- Member
- Collin County Bar Association
- Member
- Dallas Association of Young Lawyers
- Member
- Dallas Bar Association
- Member
- International Academy of Collaborative Professionals
- Member
- Mac Taylor Inn of Court
- Member
- State Bar of Texas, Family Law and Collaborative Law Section
- Member
- Council Member
- Vice Chair, 2018
- Chair, 2019
- Texas Academy of Family Law Specialists
- Member
- Texas Family Law Foundation
- Member
Education
Education
- Southern Methodist University School of Law, 2007
- J.D., Law
- Southern Methodist University, 2007
- M.B.A., Finance
- Austin College, Sherman, Texas, 2002
- B.A. (Cum Laude), Honors Spanish and International Studies
Bar Admissions
Bar Admissions
- Texas, 2007
Certifications
Certifications
Board Certified in Family Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 2012
