Texas Divorce and Prenuptial Agreement BLOG

When a court tries a divorce case concerning property, the court will try to categorize property either as separate property or community property. A spouse’s separate property consists of: 1. The property owned or claimed by the spouse before marriage; 2. The property acquired by the spouse during marriage, by gift, devise, or descent, and, 3. The recovery for personal injuries sustained by the spouse during marriage, except any recovery for loss of earning capacity during the marriage. The significance of separate property is that a court cannot divest a spouse of their separate property. Therefore, once a court determines that a particular piece of property is separate property, then it must set that property aside to the separate property owner. The burden is upon a spouse to prove that property is his or her separate property by clear and convincing evidence. Community property consists of all property, other than separate property acquired by either spouse during marriage. Property possessed by either spouse during the dissolution of the marriage is presumed to be community property, unless the spouse can prove that it is their separate property by clear and convincing evidence. Community property consists of almost anything of value, such…
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If you and your spouse enter into a written property division, the Courts will almost always approve the agreement. The settlement agreement must include all assets (house, cars, stocks, bonds, retirement, etc.), and liabilities (mortgages, loans, credit cards, taxes, etc.). If the parties cannot agree on a division of property, then the Court will divide the parties’ community property “in a manner the Court deems just and right, having due regard for the rights of each party and any children of the marriage.” Please note that contrary to popular impression, the Court is not required to divide community property 50%/50%. Some of the factors the Court may consider in dividing community property are disparity of income, education and training, health, age, fault in breakup of marriage, nature of property, custody of children, and the parties’ capabilities. There is no way to tell how the Court will divide the community property — it is a gamble. This is why you can trust that John K. Grubb and Associates will help you tip the scales in your direction and make sure you get a fair division of your rightful property

While most divorces can be granted on the grounds of “discord or conflict of personalities”, in a few cases, it may be appropriate to allege other grounds such as cruelty, adultery, abandonment, living apart, etc. Occasionally, a spouse will say, “I am not going to give you a divorce.” John K. Grubb and Associates will make sure you are going to get a divorce if you want it, regardless of what your spouse wants.