Texas Divorce Requirements
Divorces in Texas must first meet the residency requirements before
eligibility is assessed. Residency requirements in Texas state that at
least one individual in the marriage must reside within the state
borders of Texas for a minimum of six months.
Divorce petitions are filed to the county clerks office of the county
of residence. If both individuals reside within the state but within
different counties, either may petition for divorce in either county.
If an individual resides outside of Texas' state lines, he or she may
lawfully file for divorce in his or her spouse's Texas county.
Upon filing an individual must reside in the county of filing for a
minimum of ninety days prior to filing. Individuals serving in the
United States armed forces and stationed in Texas are considered state
residents after six months and must also submit to the ninety-day
county requirement.
All divorce cases are to be handled by the district clerk's office in
the county of residency. Files will be held here until the court
hearing date.
Legal Divorce
In order for a divorce to be legal it must be based on legal divorcing
grounds. Divorce grounds are the reason for why the individual or
individuals request a divorce. An individual filing for divorce will
need to state his or her reason for the divorce and then prove these
grounds before the court.
Individuals may also petition for divorce together and file on decided
grounds. Each state has its own set of divorce grounds that may not be
legal in any other state. Texas divides its divorce grounds into seven
categories.
Divorcing Grounds
Individuals may petition for divorce on the grounds of No Fault. These
grounds state that no one is responsible for the divorce and the
marriage has failed due to conflict and irreconcilable differences.
Marriage counseling often precedes divorce filing based on No Fault
grounds.
All other Texas divorce grounds state that one individual is solely
responsible for the divorce. Adultery grounds state that one individual
committed adultery while still married to another. Abandonment grounds
state that one individual intentionally abandoned another for a minimum
of one year. Cruelty grounds state that one individual is guilty of
inflicting cruel treatment on his or her spouse that leaves coexistence
impossible.
Felony conviction grounds state that an individual was convicted of a
felony and sentenced to imprisonment for a minimum of one year in a
state or federal facility without pardoning. However no divorce is
allowed if one spouse was convicted on the testimony of the other
spouse.
Grounds based on confinement into a mental hospital are possible if an
individual is confined under the reasons in Section 571.003 of the
Health and Safety Code. In order for a divorce based on these grounds
to be legal the individual must be confined for a minimum of three
years without the hope of a full recovery or improvement.
The final Texas divorcing grounds is that of living apart for a minimum
of three years. Under this section individuals may not cohabit in the
same living space for the minimum of three years.