Texas Divorce Legal Questions

Maybe if your new house is community property.In a typical divorce case, your attorney will ask for temporary orders during the pendency of the case.  Temporary orders typically include awarding one party exclusive use and possession of a house and, most often, a motor vehicle.  In the absence of a protective order due to domestic violence, you likely will not have much luck excluding your husband from a residence that is community property unless and until temporary orders are entered awarding your exclusive use and possesion of the home.... Read More

Generally speaking, your divorce decree creates binding obligations between you and your former spouse.  It typically does not (and cannot) in any way limit a third-party creditor's rights against either you or your former spouse because the creditor was not a party to your divorce proceeding.When the parties have a joint debt obligation, including a tax debt, at the time of divorce, the court typically includes provisions as to how those debts are paid.  A typical provision begins with the language similar to the following:"IT IS ORDERED AND DECREED that Petitioner A.C. shall pay, as a part of the division of the estate of the parties, and shall indemnify and hold Respondent B.C. and his property harmless from any failure to discharge, these items:"This is typically followed by a laundry list of debts which may include 50% of any past tax debt of the parties incurred during their marriage.To enforce this provision against your ex-wife, you would first pay the IRS the entire tax debt, then sue your ex-wife for indemnity seeking a judgment against her for the 50% she was ordered to pay and to indemnify you from any failure to discharge.  You would then get a judgment against her, which likely will include interest and attorney fees, which you could then collect using any of the legal methods available for collection of an ordinary civil judgment subject to the usual property exemptions... Read More

You should do what your husband's lawyer recommended.  Because your husband was still married to his co-worker when you participated in your second "remarriage" ceremony, that "remarriage" was illegal, invalid, and ineffective.  So clean it up by annuling that invalid "remarriage," and then remarry him again if you still want to be married.  ... Read More

She is not necesarily breaking any law but, under the right facts and circumstances, might become a party to a lawsuit for fraudulent transfer or for participating in and encouraging your husband's breach of fiduciary duty.In most instances, however, the court will simply compensate you in the division of your marital estate for the value of the gift.As an aside, if your husband has given a car that is community property to his girlfriend, he has most likely spent other money on her as well.  An audit or forensic accounting ought to be done of all of your accounts to determine if he has given more than just a car to her, and a claim for reconstitution of the community estate ought to be plead in your divorce proceeding.... Read More

A typical divorce attorney charges anywhere between $300-600 per hour depending upon the lawyer's level of experience, location, and current workload.Many divorce attorneys offer an initial consultation for a flat fee.  A few may offer free consultations, but my advice is to steer clear of those.  I personally offer a 90-minute initial consultation for a low flat fee of $500.  This is fairly representative of what to expect in the North Texas area.The amount of your initial retainer depends on the complexity of your marital estate, whether there are minor children, the county where you live, and how aggressively you anticipate your husband will be in any divorce proceeding.  For a relatively simple divorce without children involving a straightforward marital estate, I routinely request an initial retainer of $5,000.  If the parties are in relative agreement and disagreements do not arise regarding issues the spouses haven't thought of before filing and the spouses put in the legwork instead of requiring a paralegal or attorney to hunt down information from third party sources, we can occasionally complete a divorce for that sum of money depending on the court the case is assigned to.  This is not typical, however.Ordinarily, funds from the community estate will be used to pay for each party's attorney.  If one spouse does not have access to those funds, the court can order interim attorney fees to be paid from any account that is part of the parties' marital estate.  ... Read More

If you purchased the car during your marriage, it is most likely community property regardless of being registered solely in your name.  Reporting it stolen probably will not be an effective way to get it returned.You should ask your divorce attorney to request temporary orders in your divorce proceeding awarding you the exclusive use and possession of the car during the pendency of the case.  If he refuses to return it then, your attorney can file a motion for contempt against your husband.  That is likely to be a far more effective way to get it returned.  Once you have been awarded the exclusive use and possession of the car by the divorce court, law enforcement may be willing to help you because his refusal to return it could be prosecuted as theft.  In my experience, police won't necessarily bring charges, but will stand there with you while you take the keys and drive away to keep the peace between you and your husband.... Read More

A special warranty deed would not remove you from the mortgage.  When you got divorced, your divorce attorney should have had your ex-wife sign a deed of trust to secure assumption.  The deed of trust would allow you to foreclose on the home if and when your ex-wife failed/fails to timely make a mortgage payment.When a divorce decree requires one party to sell or refinance a home within a certain period of time, you can petition to enforce the decree by having the court appoint a receiver to sell the property.  Often, in these situations, the receiver is a real estate agent.  ... Read More

Both you and your wife have equal rights to allow visitors in the house. While you may certainly express your disagreement, you will not be able to keep her from having her family in the home. However, you said you have an open divorce case so the judge could order that one of you have exclusive use of the home. If you get exclusive use of the home during the pendency of the divorce, this issue would not be a problem because your wife would not be living in the home.... Read More

Because they have been gone for over 6 months, you would probably have to go to Missouri to file a petition with the court to at least get a visitation schedule with your son. It is unclear whether you want a divorce or not, but you certainly could get an order giving you a schedule to see your son. You might want to consider moving wherever your son is to make it easier for him to see you both frequently.... Read More

The divorce decree should state whether there is income withholding, and there should be a separate income withholding order. If there is not one, you should get one. You also should be able to file an enforcement for child support. If the children are on Medicaid, eventually, the attorney general of Texas will file an enforcement. However, sometimes the AG does not file because they are overloaded with cases. You should probably file the enforcement yourself. You can get more information here: texaslawhelp.org.... Read More

You certainly could seek a divorce from your husband and seek reimbursement for whatever money he may have spent on the other woman. It is likely that he has spent community funds to support her. You will not be able to bring an action against the woman though. Be sure to collect information about all your financial assets and bills so that you know the state of your community property. You didn't say whether you have children with your husband, but if you do, he will be ordered to provide child support and medical support for the children of the marriage.... Read More

Because you have a signficant amount of separate property, it would be a good idea to get an attorney to protect your rights. In Texas, all property is presumed to be community property during a divorce, unless that property was obtained by gift, devise or descent and unless it was obtained before the marriage. You would need to produce paperwork showing when you bought your house and cars. You would also need to show when your 401K started and how much it increased in valude during the marriage. Your spouse would be entitled to half of the growth during the marriage, but sometimes, there is no growth or it's so mimimal that the other spouse decides not to go through the trouble and expense of getting their share. Again, the best way to protect your rights is to get an attorney to represent you.... Read More

If a new attorney substitutes in on a case, that new attorney takes the case in whatever status it is in at the time.   That said, the new attorney is free to file amended pleadings to potentially change the issues in the case.  Motions to substitute counsel are routinely granted by the court.... Read More

There is nothing stopping you from seeking a divorce other than the ability to hire an attorney and/or pay the filing fees. You ought to seek help from an family/divorce attorney. If you successfully petitioned him, then his deportation likely ended your responsibility for him based upon form I-864.  He can be served at his last known address whether in the U.S. or outside the U.S.  If that does not work, then likely by publication, but you must speak with an attorney licensed in Texas to seek legal advice for that matter.  Good luck. The above is general information, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney client relationship.... Read More

In Texas, all property is considered community property if it was acquired during the marriage unless it was acquired by gift, devise (granted through a Will) or descent (inherited without a Will). Thus, if the property is purchased while the couple is still married, it will be considered commuinty property even if the couple is separated. However, either party can request that any property be awarded 100% to the party in a divorce proceeding. Also, couples who have been separated for a long time often come to an agreement on how property will be divided. If there is no agreement, the court has a duty to make a just and right division of all community property. When couples are separated for a long time, it is possible to make an argument as to why getting 100% of certain property is just and right. However, it is up to the court to make the ultimate decision on property division if the parties cannot come to an agreement.... Read More

You can ask your ex spouse to actually sign the title over to you by following the instructions on the back of the title, and signing the title to you. Alternatively, you can ask your spouse to sign a power of attorney to transfer tthe motor vehicle to you. Another alternative, is that your a lawyer will have to file a suit to clarify the divorce decree. In the order from that lawsuit, the VIN can be entered and you can provide a copy of that order to the county clerks office to transfer the vehicle. ... Read More

Likely you will need to amend your petition for divorce to add a request that the Court confirm paternity of the child since the child is not technically a child of the marriage.  You can provide a certified copy of the acknowledgement of paternity as an exhibit to your petition.  Unless someone challenges the AOP the Court should confirm paternity.   It seems unusual that the Court would deny a TRO due to this situation, but some Courts are very particular about the pleadings and require you to be very precise in your pleadings.... Read More

You should get a California attorney to help you find out if you were divorced.  If you remarried while still married, you are committing bigamy.  Most of the time no one prosecutes.  But your current "husband" could raise it in your divorce, because your claim to community property is dependent on your being married.  You cannot be married to two people at the same time so your second marriage would not be valid. It would become valid upon your divorce to the first husband (if you are not already divorced from him). This is for general educational purposes only.... Read More

Generally, an attorney will represent one party to the divorce but not both.  That said, some attorneys are willing to draft the decree based on the instructions of the parties.   Based on your inquiry, it appears you will need a divorce decree and documents regarding the real property (i.e., special warranty deed, deed of trust to secure assumption, etc.).   I think you have 2 choices:   1)  One of you hires an attorney who then drafts the final decree of divorce and the real estate related documents.  2)  You both hire an attorney to draft the documents based on your agreement(s).   The down side to option 2 is that the drafting attorney is essentially only a secretary drafting the documents and cannot give either of you legal advice.... Read More

Your inheritance is your separate property. Anything you buy with your inheritance is also your separate property. You have zero obligation to give your husband the truck or any money from your inheritance. If you were to get a divorce, the court would not award your husband the truck or the money from your inheritance. You should keep your inheritance money separate from any joint account because that will help prove that it is your separate, inherited property.... Read More