Step-by-Step Divorce Process in Texas
Filing the divorce petition – One spouse will file the divorce petition with the district court and the other spouse will be notified of the filing.
The petition is to be filed in a county district court. In determining which county is appropriate, the “domicile” of both spouses must be established. A place where a person is considered domiciled is where a person has intended to make their permanent place of residence. For example, a couple may have multiple residences (i.e. beach house, lake house), but only the residence where a person intends to have as their fixed residence, is where the person is considered to be domiciled. Someone can have many different “residencies,” and is different than a domiciliary. Keeping in mind that a person’s residency and a person’s domiciliary can be different, the spouse seeking a divorce should consider the following in deciding which county is appropriate for the original petition to be filed:
- If you and your spouse have been domiciled in Texas for the past 6 months, you can file the petition in either county where you or your spouse has resided for the last 90 days.
- If only you have been domiciled in Texas for the past 6 months, you file the petition in the county you have resided in over the past 90 days.
- If only your spouse has been domiciled in Texas for the past 6 months, you file the petition in the county where your spouse resides.
Service of the petition – The next step in the divorce process is serving the petition to your spouse. The spouse that files the petition is referred to as the petitioner and the spouse who receives the petition is referred to as the respondent.
The Divorce Petition
The original petition for a divorce is a document that commences the divorce process. A divorce where there are no children involved is different from a divorce where there are children that were born or adopted from the marriage and are still under the age of 18 or disabled.
Texas state law requires that a Suit Affecting the Parent–Child Relationship be filed in conjunction with the original divorce petition if there are biological or adopted children from the marriage.
The content requirements for a petition for divorce with NO children are set forth in the Texas Family Code and include the following:
The style and caption – The petition should contain the style of the case and the cause number that is assigned by the district clerk. Ordinarily the style of a case is phrased as “In the Matter of the Marriage of ______ & _______.
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Cause No. ______________________ |
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| IN THE MATTER OF |
§ |
IN THE DISTRICT COURT |
| THE MARRIAGE OF |
§ |
|
|
§ |
XXXTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT |
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| PETITIONER NAME |
§ |
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| AND |
§ |
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| RESPONDENT NAME |
§ |
____________ COUNTY, TEXAS |
Party Information – The petition should include the following information:
- The petitioner and respondent’s first, middle, and last name
- The petitioner’s last 3 numbers of the petitioner’s driver’s license AND social security number, if the petitioner has been issued a driver’s license and social security number.
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Cause No. ______________________ |
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| IN THE MATTER OF |
§ |
IN THE DISTRICT COURT |
| THE MARRIAGE OF |
§ |
|
|
§ |
XXXTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT |
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| PETITIONER |
§ |
|
| AND |
§ |
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| RESPONDENT |
§ |
____________ COUNTY, TEXAS |
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ORIGINAL PETITION FOR DIVORCE My name is FIRST MIDDLE LAST. I am the petitioner and am filing this petition for divorce. The last three digits of my driver’s license are _ _ _. My driver’s license was issued in STATE X. OR I do not have a driver’s license number. The last three digits of my social security number are _ _ _. OR I do not have a social security number. My spouse and the respondent in this case is FIRST MIDDLE LAST. |
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Discovery Control Plan – Every petition is required to state what discovery level the case is to be conducted under. The different plans are levels 1, 2, or 3 and are determined by the following:
Level 1 – There are no children born of the marriage that are below the age of 18 and there are no children expected of the marriage, and the value of the marital estate is less than $50,000
Level 2 – All other couples
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Cause No. ______________________ |
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| IN THE MATTER OF |
§ |
IN THE DISTRICT COURT |
| THE MARRIAGE OF |
§ |
|
|
§ |
XXXTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT |
|
| PETITIONER |
§ |
|
| AND |
§ |
|
| RESPONDENT |
§ |
____________ COUNTY, TEXAS |
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ORIGINAL PETITION FOR DIVORCE My name is FIRST MIDDLE LAST. I am the petitioner and am filing this petition for divorce. The last three digits of my driver’s license are _ _ _. My driver’s license was issued in STATE X. OR I do not have a driver’s license number. The last three digits of my social security number are _ _ _. OR I do not have a social security number. My spouse and the respondent in this case is FIRST MIDDLE LAST.
The discovery level in the case is level 2. |
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Jurisdiction – Every original divorce petition must state why the court has power to hear the case and eventually grant the divorce. Jurisdiction is based on where you and your spouse reside. It is required for the petitioner or the respondent to have lived in the state of Texas for at least 6 months preceding the divorce and to reside in the county of where you are filing the petition for at least 90 days. If your spouse does not reside in Texas, an Out-of-State Party Affidavit must be completed and attached to the original petition when filed.
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Cause No. ______________________ |
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| IN THE MATTER OF |
§ |
IN THE DISTRICT COURT |
| THE MARRIAGE OF |
§ |
|
|
§ |
XXXTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT |
|
| PETITIONER |
§ |
|
| AND |
§ |
|
| RESPONDENT |
§ |
____________ COUNTY, TEXAS |
|
ORIGINAL PETITION FOR DIVORCE My name is FIRST MIDDLE LAST. I am the petitioner and am filing this petition for divorce. The last three digits of my driver’s license are _ _ _. My driver’s license was issued in STATE X. OR I do not have a driver’s license number. The last three digits of my social security number are _ _ _. OR I do not have a social security number. My spouse and the respondent in this case is FIRST MIDDLE LAST.
The discovery level in the case is level 2.
I have resided in the county of _______ for the past 90 days and have lived in Texas for the past 6 months. OR My spouse has resided in the county of _____ for the past 90 days and has lived in Texas for the past 6 months. |
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Marriage Information – The petition must set out the date of when you and your spouse got married and the date that you and your spouse ceased living together or separated. The petition must also state the grounds for divorce. The most common ground for divorce is insupportability, meaning that you and your spouse cannot get along and do NOT have any plans of getting back together.
There are two types of grounds for getting a divorce: no-fault and fault based.
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Cause No. ______________________ |
||
| IN THE MATTER OF |
§ |
IN THE DISTRICT COURT |
| THE MARRIAGE OF |
§ |
|
|
§ |
XXXTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT |
|
| PETITIONER |
§ |
|
| AND |
§ |
|
| RESPONDENT |
§ |
____________ COUNTY, TEXAS |
|
ORIGINAL PETITION FOR DIVORCE My name is FIRST MIDDLE LAST. I am the petitioner and am filing this petition for divorce. The last three digits of my driver’s license are _ _ _. My driver’s license was issued in STATE X. OR I do not have a driver’s license number. The last three digits of my social security number are _ _ _. OR I do not have a social security number. My spouse and the respondent in this case is FIRST MIDDLE LAST.
The discovery level in the case is level 2.
I have resided in the county of _______ for the past 90 days and have lived in Texas for the past 6 months. OR My spouse has resided in the county of _____ for the past 90 days and has lived in Texas for the past 6 months.
My spouse and I got married on or around MONTH DAY, YEAR. We ceased living together on or around MONTH DAY, YEAR. The marriage has become insupportable due to discord and conflict of personalities that destroys the legitimate ends of the martial relationship and prevents any reasonable expectation of reconciliation. |
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Children – The petition is required to state whether there are any children (biological or adopted) under the age of 18 that are “born from the marriage.” When pleading this within the petition, the following considerations should be made:
- Do you and your spouse have any biological or adopted children together that are:
- Under the age of 18?
- In high school?
- Disabled?
- Is the wife of the marriage pregnant?
- Has the wife had any children by another man since the date of marriage?
*** If you answered yes to any of the above questions, you may be required to file a Suit Affecting the Parent-Child Relationship. You CANNOT file an original petition for divorce without first clarifying whether a Suit Affecting the Parent-Child Relationship should be filed simultaneously with the divorce petition.
If your answer was no to all of the questions above, the divorce petition will be similar to the following:
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Cause No. ______________________ |
||
| IN THE MATTER OF |
§ |
IN THE DISTRICT COURT |
| THE MARRIAGE OF |
§ |
|
|
§ |
XXXTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT |
|
| PETITIONER |
§ |
|
| AND |
§ |
|
| RESPONDENT |
§ |
____________ COUNTY, TEXAS |
|
ORIGINAL PETITION FOR DIVORCE My name is FIRST MIDDLE LAST. I am the petitioner and am filing this petition for divorce. The last three digits of my driver’s license are _ _ _. My driver’s license was issued in STATE X. OR I do not have a driver’s license number. The last three digits of my social security number are _ _ _. OR I do not have a social security number. My spouse and the respondent in this case is FIRST MIDDLE LAST.
The discovery level in the case is level 2.
I have resided in the county of _______ for the past 90 days and have lived in Texas for the past 6 months. OR My spouse has resided in the county of _____ for the past 90 days and has lived in Texas for the past 6 months.
My spouse and I got married on or around MONTH DAY, YEAR. We ceased living together on or around MONTH DAY, YEAR. The marriage has become insupportable due to discord and conflict of personalities that destroys the legitimate ends of the martial relationship and prevents any reasonable expectation of reconciliation.
There is no children born or adopted of this marriage and none are expected. |
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Property of the spouses– It is important to distinguish between what is classified as community property and separate property. Community property is everything that is acquired during marriage with the exceptions of property received from inheritance or gift. Separate property is everything that you owned prior to the marriage along with any property you receive by gift or inheritance during the marriage.
Final Prayer for Relief – At the end of the petition, the petitioner must ask for relief to be granted in the matter. This portion is simply instructing the judge to grant the divorce.
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Cause No. ______________________ |
||
| IN THE MATTER OF |
§ |
IN THE DISTRICT COURT |
| THE MARRIAGE OF |
§ |
|
|
§ |
XXXTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT |
|
| PETITIONER |
§ |
|
| AND |
§ |
|
| RESPONDENT |
§ |
____________ COUNTY, TEXAS |
|
ORIGINAL PETITION FOR DIVORCE My name is FIRST MIDDLE LAST. I am the petitioner and am filing this petition for divorce. The last three digits of my driver’s license are _ _ _. My driver’s license was issued in STATE X. OR I do not have a driver’s license number. The last three digits of my social security number are _ _ _. OR I do not have a social security number. My spouse and the respondent in this case is FIRST MIDDLE LAST.
The discovery level in the case is level 2.
I have resided in the county of _______ for the past 90 days and have lived in Texas for the past 6 months. OR My spouse has resided in the county of _____ for the past 90 days and has lived in Texas for the past 6 months.
My spouse and I got married on or around MONTH DAY, YEAR. We ceased living together on or around MONTH DAY, YEAR. The marriage has become insupportable due to discord and conflict of personalities that destroys the legitimate ends of the martial relationship and prevents any reasonable expectation of reconciliation.
There is no children born or adopted of this marriage and none are expected.
Petitioner believes Petitioner and Respondent will enter into an agreement for the division of their estate. If such an agreement is made, Petitioner requests the Court to approve the agreement and divide their estate in a manner consistent with the agreement. If such an agreement is not made, Petitioner requests the Court to divide their estate in a manner that the Court deems just and right, as provided by law.
Petitioner owns certain separate property that is not part of the community estate of the parties, and Petitioner requests the Court to confirm that separate property as Petitioner’s separate property and estate.
Petitioner prays that citation and notice issue as required by law and that the Court grant a divorce and all other relief requested in this petition. Respectfully Submitted, Petitioner, Pro Se Name Phone Mailing Address |
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Other considerations when building your own divorce petition:
- Protective Order (none, pending, order in place)
- Family Violence waiting period
For more information, speak directly with one of our Texas lawyers.