Even if you and your spouse agree that ending your marriage would be best for both of you, there is still a legal process that must be followed to dissolve your marriage officially. You will need to seek permission from a court to end your relationship in legal terms, and you will need to meet a few fairly inflexible conditions to be eligible to make that request in the first place.
Listed below are the basic requirements you will need to fulfill if you wish to divorce in the Lone Star State. If you have more specific questions about divorce requirements in The Colony or anywhere else in Texas, an experienced divorce lawyer from our firm could answer them in detail during a private initial consultation. Call our firm today to schedule a meeting with a compassionate legal professional.
Like every other state, Texas allows married couples who do not wish to assign blame for a divorce to any one spouse to pursue a “no-fault divorce.” However, a couple who wants to dissolve their marriage in this way will still have to name specific grounds for their divorce in their legal filings, which they can do by declaring that the reason for their marriage breaking down is “insupportability.” As per Texas Family Code §6.001, courts can grant divorces if a marriage becomes insupportable due to “discord or conflict of personalities” that degrades the relationship between spouses to the point that reconciliation is impossible.
There are also several fault-based grounds for divorce defined under TX Fam. Code §§6.002 through 6.007, including:
Guidance from a skilled attorney serving The Colony could prove essential in pursuing fault-based divorce effectively and understanding the necessary requirements.
According to TX Fam. Code §6.301, anyone wishing to file suit for divorce in Texas must have maintained a primary residence in the state for at least six continuous months prior to filing, and must have lived in the county where they are filing for at least 90 continuous days prior. TX Fam. Code §6.302 allows non-residents of Texas to file in the state if their spouse meets the residency requirements listed above, and TX Fam. Code §6.303 states that absence due to active-duty military service does not count against someone in meeting these residency requirements for divorce in The Colony.
Generally, petitioners for divorce must wait a minimum of 60 days after their initial filing date before a court will actually grant their divorce. However, this waiting period may be waived if the non-filing spouse has either been convicted or received deferred adjudication for a family violence crime against the filing spouse. As a local divorce attorney could further explain, the same exception applies to claimants with active protective orders or magistrate’s orders for emergency protection against the non-filing spouse.
Understanding divorce requirements in The Colony is an excellent first step towards making your divorce proceed as quickly and smoothly as possible. The assistance of a skilled attorney can prove extremely valuable during this process, not just in complying with all prerequisite conditions for filing but also in making sure the legal proceedings that follow go smoothly for you.
The answers and assistance you might need are just a phone call away. Get in touch with us today to get started.
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