Q: How long must I have lived in Texas prior to filing
for divorce in an Texas court? A: A suit for divorce may not be maintained in this state
unless at the time the suit is filed either the petitioner or the
respondent has been:
(1) a domiciliary of this state for the preceding six-month
period; and
(2) a resident of the county in which the suit is filed for
the
preceding 90-day period.
Q: What are the terms used to identify the parties
in a divorce proceeding?
A: The party filing the action is called the Petitioner,
while the other party to the divorce is referred to as the
Respondent.
Q: What is "venue," and what is the proper venue for
a divorce case?
A: "Venue" refers to which particular court, among those
having jurisdcition, is the proper one for a particular
case. In Texas, proper venue for the divorce action is in the
District Court within a county in which the residency
requirements (discussed above) have been met. The District
Court may assign your case to a subsidiary Family Law District
Court if one is available.
Q: Are there any waiting
periods associated with a divorce action?
A: Yes. After the divorce is filed, there is a minimum
60-day waiting period before the divorce can be granted. Most cases
take more than sixty days, to find out what there is and to
finalize the agreed documents.
Q: What is meant by "grounds for
divorce?"
A: A "ground" for divorce is a "reason" for divorce. A set
of judicially recognized reasons for divorce exist in Texas. You
must use one or more of these reasons to justify your divorce.
Q: What are the recognized grounds for divorce in
Texas?
A: On the petition of either party to a marriage, the court
may grant a divorce without regard to fault if the marriage has
become insupportable because of discord or conflict of
personalities that destroys the legitimate ends of the marital
relationship and prevents any reasonable expectation of
reconciliation. There are also fault grounds for divorce.
These are grounds for which one of the parties is at fault for the
divorce proceeding. The fault grounds are as
follows:
a. CRUELTY
b. ADULTERY
c. CONVICTION OF FELONY (at least 1
year in prison)
d. ABANDONMENT
e. LIVING APART (for at least 3
years)
f. CONFINEMENT IN MENTAL HOSPITAL (for
at least 3 years)
Q: What does the term "spousal support" (or,
"alimony") mean?
A: "Spousal support" (sometimes called "alimony") is money
paid by one spouse to the other due to the payee
spouse's loss of the benefit of the payor spouse's income due to
the divorce.
Q: Is spousal support available while the divorce is pending
in court, or only after the divorce has become final?
A: The court may order that one spouse support the other
during the pendancy of the divorce action and/or after the divorce
has become final. Support awarded pending the final decree of
divorce is not to extend beyond the period of time necessary for
the prosecution of the divorce action.
Q: What is the duration of alimony (spousal support)
payments?
A: To receive alimony after divorce, generally you must have
been married for a period exceeding 10 years, and in certain
situations, you may be qualified to receive up to $2,500 per month
for a maximum of three years.
Q: What factors will the court consider when
determining how much alimony to award to a party?
A: The Court will consider the needs of the requesting
spouse and the ability of the other spouse to pay. The Court will
additionally consider the health and age of the parties, ability to
work, responsibility for children, availability of funds, and the
length of the marriage.
Q: On what basis does the court decide how marital
property is divided?
A: Texas is a so-called "equitable distribution" state. This
means that the division of property and debts between the divorcing
parties should be fair and equitable, but not necessarily equal.
The court has wide discretion in dividing property.
Q: Is the "separate property" of one spouse subject
to being divided up?
A: The question here is whether property "belonging
to" one of the parties should be included in the marital estate for
purposes of an equitable division. Generally, separate property
acquired before the marriage or by gift or inheritance during the
marriage is excluded from the marital estate unless it
has been 'comingled" with community property such that it is no
longer distinguishable there from.
Q: What is managing conservatorship
(custody) and possession and access
(visitation)?
A: In Texas, there is a rebuttable presumption that parents
should serve as the Joint Managing Conservators of their children.
In Texas, "Conservatorship" is "Custody" of the children. Joint
Managing Conservatorship does not mean that each party will have
the children one-half of the time. It also does not mean that child
support will not be awarded to one parent. Joint Managing
Conservatorship does mean that the parents will either share,
allocate, or apportion parental rights and duties. In most cases,
it also means that the child's domicile must be established in the
final Court orders."possession and access" concerns when each
parent has the right to visit with, and spend time with, the
child(ren).
Q: If the parents cannot agree on conservatorship
and access issues, on what basis will the court
decide?
A: These matters, like all of those pertaining to
children, are based upon the court's determination of the child's
best interests.
Q: What is "child
support?"
A: Child support is money paid by the non-custodial parent
to the custodial parent in order to meet the needs of the
child(ren).
Q: To what should the parties look for guidance
regarding amount of child support to be paid? What standard will
the court use if the parties cannot agree?
A: The Texas Family Code contains guidelines for the
computation of child support. The guideline amount is
presumably the minimum amount which should be awarded as support
for the child(ren).
Q: When does the duty to pay child support
end?
A: Absent marriage or other acts which would emancipate the
child, child support orders continue until the child reaches age
18. If the child is in high school at age 18, support continues
until high school graduation. If the child is disabled, it may be
possible to continue child support for an indefinite period. Texas
law makes no provision for support during college, or the payment
of college expenses. However, this can be done by a contract
between the parties if an agreement can be reached on this
issue
