Debunking Texas’ Family Law Myths

You can only get a divorce in Texas if you were married in Texas. FALSE. Texas courts have jurisdiction over a divorce action if either spouse resided in Texas for a continuous six-month period prior to the filing of the divorce petition. In custody actions, the law favors mothers. FALSE. Texas law expressly provides that a family court shall not consider a parent's gender in making decisions regarding custody. Judges must determine what is in the best interest of the child, taking all facts and circumstances of the child and the parties into consideration. Judges presume that both parents should be named joint managing conservators with relatively equal rights and duties. The parent who has historically been the primary caregiver of the child is usually granted the exclusive right to designate the primary residence of the child. Texas recognizes legal separation, which allows spouses to remain married but live separately. FALSE. Texas courts do not recognize legal separation. The laws relating to the acquisition and disposal of community property continue to apply to married people, even if physically separated, until the date of divorce. If you acquire an asset in your own name during the marriage it will not be considered community property. FALSE. All property acquired by either party during the marriage is community property. If a party acquires an asset in his or her own name, that party has sole management rights over the asset, but the asset remains community property. An asset that was owned by a party before marriage or acquired by a party during marriage by gift or inheritance is that party's separate property. If you commingle separate property funds with community property funds, the separate property funds are converted to community property. FALSE. The nature of separate property does not change unless it is intentionally gifted by the spouse owning the property to the other spouse. Texas law also presumes that all property owned by the parties is community property until the spouse claiming the funds as his or her separate property proves the funds are separate in nature by clear and convincing evidence. If separate property funds are commingled with community property funds, it is the separate property owner's burden to trace the funds to show the original source and the current value of the separate property funds. Parties are required to have a hearing if a petition is filed. TRUE and FALSE. If the parties reach an...