Deciding to end a marriage is never easy – aside from the emotional heartbreak, you need to prepare yourself for all the legal complications that come with it. Fortunately, a divorce lawyer from Round Rock can shed some light on the most frequently asked questions with regards to filing for divorce in Texas.
Is there a residency requirement for filing a divorce in Texas?
Just like in any other state, Texas follows its own set of guidelines when it comes to filing for a divorce. This includes a specified period of residency for the court to hear your case. Failure to fulfill the residency requirement can lead to rejection of the case or downright dismissal by the court.
For a divorce proceeding to push through, either spouse should be a Texas resident for at least six-months prior to the formal filing of the divorce. Furthermore, the spouse should be a resident in the county where the divorce proceedings will take place for at least 90 days.
What are the acceptable grounds for divorce in Texas?
Texas is famously known as a mixed state – that is, a spouse can present either fault or no-fault as basis for a divorce. A court can accept a no-fault grounds for divorce if the discord within the marriage is so severe that it has already destroyed any possibility of reconciliation.
When filing a case, it really is not required to show fault but having any of these reasons as basis for divorce can ultimately affect the court’s decision: experiencing cruel treatment at the hands of the spouse, the spouse is committing adultery, the spouse has left you for at least one year without showing any intention of going back, when you are both physically living apart for at least three years, the spouse being confined in a mental hospital for three years without exhibiting any evidence of getting medically better, and the spouse being convicted of a felony for at least one year and has not been pardoned.
How do you start a divorce proceeding?
After retaining the expert services of a lawyer, the divorce proceedings start when a spouse files an Original Petition of Divorce. After it is filed the court will give the other party 20 days to submit a written response.
It is also recommend that you submit a request for the court to release a Temporary Restraining Order to prevent either party from selling, moving, or depleting those assets deemed as community property. Filing a restraining order requires the court to schedule a hearing within 14 days from the day it was submitted.
Sources:
Texas Divorce Laws, DivorceSource.com
Divorce, WomensLaw.org