Are you contemplating divorce?
The Texas family code addresses the dissolution of marriage and grounds for divorce. If you are looking to end your marriage, then either you or your spouse will need to file a petition with the court citing one of the legal reasons listed in the Texas family code.
What options do you have?
The legal grounds for divorce in Texas are as follows:
- Insupportability: The court may grant a no-fault divorce if the marriage has become insupportable because of conflict that destroys the marital relationship and prevents any reasonable expectation of reconciliation. This is a general reason for divorce that is equal to the known concept of “irreconcilable differences” in other states.
- Cruelty: The court may grant a divorce in favor of one spouse if the other spouse is guilty of cruel treatment.
- Adultery: The court may grant a divorce in favor of one spouse if the other has committed adultery.
- Conviction of a Felony: The court may grant a divorce in favor of one spouse if the other has been convicted of a felony, imprisoned for at least one year and has not been pardoned.
- Abandonment: The court may grant a divorce in favor of one spouse if the other spouse left with the intention of abandonment and remained away for at least one year.
- Living Apart: If the married couple has lived apart without cohabitation for at least three years.
- Confinement in Mental Hospital: The court may grant a divorce in favor of one spouse if at the time the suit is filed the other spouse has been confined in a state hospital or private mental hospital in Texas or any other state for at least three years and it appears the hospitalized spouse’s mental disorder is unlikely to recover, or relapse is probable.
Generally speaking, the vast majority of couples will seek a “no-fault” divorce by citing “insupportability” as the grounds for their request. That avoids the messy (and expensive) process of having to prove “fault” by one party before the divorce can be granted.
Anytime you are considering divorce you should seek legal support as well as any emotional support you may need from family and friends.
