Category: Advice

Question: Can a spouse in Texas sue a third party for negligently interfering with their marriage? Answer: No, Texas law does not recognize a cause of action for negligent interference with a marital relationship. In Helena Laboratories Corp. v. Snyder, 886 S.W.2d 767 (Tex. 1994) (per curiam), the Texas Supreme Court held that no independent […]

Question:Can a spouse in Texas sue the person who had an affair with their partner by framing it as a claim for emotional distress? Answer:No. In Truitt v. Carnley, 836 S.W.2d 786 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 1992, writ denied), the court made it clear that emotional distress claims arising from adultery won’t stand in Texas. The […]

Question:Can a spouse sue a third party in Texas for having an affair with their husband or wife? Answer:No. Texas law bars such lawsuits. Under Tex. Fam. Code § 1.106, there is no cause of action for criminal conversation—legal-speak for suing someone for sleeping with your spouse. In Smith v. Smith, 126 S.W.3d 660 (Tex. […]

Question:Can a physician sue a surviving spouse for services rendered without having to join the deceased spouse’s estate? Answer:Yes. In Klein & Associates v. Klein, 637 S.W.2d 507 (Tex. App.—Eastland 1982, no writ), the court held that a physician could properly sue a widow without joining the estate of her deceased husband. The trial court […]

Question:Can a wife bring a lawsuit in Texas without her husband’s involvement, or must he be joined as a party? Answer:Yes, a wife has the legal right to sue on her own. In Few v. Charter Oak Fire Insurance Co., 463 S.W.2d 424 (Tex. 1971), the Texas Supreme Court held that a married woman could […]

Question:If a husband files a lawsuit regarding jointly managed community property without naming his wife as a party, can the outcome of that lawsuit bind the wife’s legal interests? Answer:No, the outcome cannot bind her. In Cooper v. Texas Gulf Industries, Inc., 513 S.W.2d 200 (Tex. 1974), the Texas Supreme Court held that the rights […]

Question:Can one spouse file or defend a lawsuit on behalf of the other without written permission in Texas? Answer:No. In Texas, one spouse cannot stand in court for the other unless there is written consent. The law is clear-eyed on this. Each spouse has the right to sue or be sued alone under Section 1.105(a) […]

Question:What legal status does a minor regain if their marriage is annulled in Texas? Answer:If a minor’s marriage is annulled in Texas, the law puts the minor back in the shoes of a child. The cloak of adulthood, briefly worn, is taken away. All legal disabilities of minority are reinstated. That means the minor once […]

Question:Does a parent have any continuing legal obligation to support a child in Texas after the child enters into a valid marriage? Answer:No. In Texas, once a minor marries in accordance with Texas law, that child is considered legally emancipated. This emancipation grants the minor the full legal capacity of an adult and severs the […]

Question:Is it ever possible in Texas family law to get the court to replace a prior judgment with an agreed mediated settlement after rendition? Answer:Yes, but it’s a narrow path. The court may render a new judgment based on a later MSA if it does so within its plenary power. The new rendition can supersede […]