Legal Question in Family Law in Texas

My husband abandonded our home in Jan. 2012, and moved to Texas. In June he filed for divorce in Coryell county, but I have not been served. On the court papers filed it reads, " that both parties agree to divorce in texas..." or similiar language. We were married in Oklahoma and lived there after our marriage, seperation occurred while we lived in Kansas. At no time have we ever resided in Texas as husband and wife, and I have not been resident of Texas for nearly 30 years. I currently resside in Oklahoma.

My questions are:

1. Is filing legal since it falsely states that "both parties agree..." when I did not, ?

2. If filing is legal, can I file in Oklahoma since I have not resided in Texas as husband and wife?

3. Is there a time limit for filing of divorce and serrvice of divorce?


Asked on 7/30/12, 9:32 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

Megan Cook Cook & Cook Law Firm, PLLC

1. You may be referring to the jurisdiction section of your husband's petition for divorce which will sometimes state the parties agree to being divorced in Texas. The inaccuracy in the Petition should be corrected. But, this will not substantively change the fact that the divorce was legally filed. The inaccuracy can and should be corrected.

2. In order to file a divorce in Texas, the only rule is that the person must have resided in Texas for the last 6 months and in a particular county for the last 90 days. This is likely why your husband waited until june to file the divorce.

3. I am not exactly clear on what time limit you are asking about. A person can file a divorce any time, but the divorce cannot be granted until after the waiting period is over (in texas the waiting period is 60 days). The family code makes it clear that a divorce cannot be finalized until the other party has been served with notice of the divorce and has had time to answer the divorce (a person has 20 days to answer after being served). A party cannot legally do anything with their divorce proceeding until the other side has been served. Service can be handled in numerous ways, however. You can waive service by signing a waiver, a process server can hand you a document, service can be mailed by certified mail through the clerk, or if all else fails, it can be published in a local paper. Because you know about the divorce, you should hire a lawyer to either make a special appearance for you or hire a lawyer to answer your divorce. Best regards to you, and best of luck!

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Answered on 7/31/12, 9:33 am


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