Have you recently experienced a divorce outcome that left you dissatisfied? The process can be arduous, involving significant time and financial investment, yet yielding outcomes that fall short of expectations. If attempts to reach a settlement with your spouse proved futile and you found yourself compelled to proceed to a trial by judge, you may have felt constrained by your options. Uncertainty about the possibility of a second chance before the judge may have compounded your frustration and exhaustion. Indeed, enduring the divorce process only to face an unfavorable trial outcome can be immensely challenging. However, it’s essential to know that you have the option to appeal a divorce decision if you believe it was made in error or unfairly.
Appealing a Texas Divorce: Know Your Grounds
You can appeal a divorce in Texas, but it’s crucial to determine your reason for doing so. You must have valid grounds under Texas law, not just general dissatisfaction, to pursue an appeal. If not, you will not be able to appeal your divorce. You would have to live with the results of your case.
To start with, reading through blog posts like this one is an excellent place to start. This will allow you to obtain a basis of knowledge for learning about the appeal process. From there, I would recommend contacting an experienced family law attorney with the Law Office of Bryan Fagan. Learn even more about the appeals process in the context of a divorce. You can provide information about your specific circumstances to the attorney. Receive feedback about your life and the prospects of appealing a decision by a family court judge.
How does your final decree of divorce come into play?
A final decree of divorce is the court order produced by your divorce case. This document, which is typically long, contains all the information about your divorce case. This includes issues regarding your children, child custody, child support, spousal maintenance, and a division of your community estate. This is an essential document and is why you get divorced in the first place. You go through all of the difficulties associated with the divorce to obtain this court order. You and your spouse will both use it in the future to ensure that the other is abiding by the agreement made or the orders of the judge.
Contrary to common belief, your divorce doesn’t conclude immediately after the trial. It concludes when the judge signs the final decree of divorce. Usually, you, your spouse, and both attorneys involved in your case will also sign the document. The final decree of divorce includes your name and your spouse’s. It also includes case number for identification, particularly if you need to appeal your case later on. The same court that issued the divorce decree would hear your appeal. The final decree of divorce will indicate the date when it becomes final.
This is where the possibility of an appeal becomes relevant for your case. If you believe that the divorce decree contains inaccuracies or is unfair based on the facts and evidence, you should actively pursue an appeal. Pursuing an appeal involves considering its appropriateness and gathering more information. As discussed earlier in today’s blog post, the attorneys at the Law Office of Bryan Fagan are ready and equipped to assist you with your appeal. However, time is limited, and delaying your decision is not an option. Therefore, it’s crucial to collect information promptly and make a decision.
Appealing a divorce decree in Texas
Challenging your divorce decree in Texas necessitates legitimate reasons, not just discontent with the outcome or a need for protection for yourself or your children. As discussed earlier, having valid grounds is crucial for moving forward with your divorce case. An experienced family law attorney can guide you in understanding these grounds and their application to your case. Otherwise, you might struggle to determine your next steps or whether appealing your divorce decree is worthwhile.
Appealing a Divorce Decree for Legal Errors
Appealing a divorce decree because the judge made an error in applying the law is probably the first place you should look to in filing your appeal. The Texas family code will contain all the statutes that a judge would have utilized to apply state law to your case. Therefore, you and your attorney should review the judges’ decisions from the court and your final divorce decree when determining whether there are valid grounds to appeal that divorce decree. As you can see, you need to have an experienced family law attorney guiding you during this time. It is unlikely that you will be knowledgeable of the Texas family code sufficient to make a point in this regard.
Another interesting point that I will make is that many people believe that they will learn what it takes during a divorce to determine whether an appeal is in their best interest or just to learn about the divorce process. However, remember that just because you have a divorce case ongoing does not mean that the rest of your life is put on hold.
Planning for Life After Divorce
There will be many other circumstances that can impact your life moving forward, such as your family, your work situation, and a long list of other considerations. Just because you will be going through a divorce does not mean that these issues will all go away. As a result, you need to work with an experienced family law attorney to help you get through these topics. This is so you will be as well prepared as possible when it comes to making an essential decision like whether to appeal your divorce.
An appellate court would review the decisions of your judge would determine whether to move forward with your appeal. Not agreeing with the judges’ decisions is not grounds to appeal your case. In fact, in the appellate court, who would look at the evidence most favorable to the lower court’s determination. It is not as if he will be able to present new evidence, or an appellate court will look at the evidence in the light most favorable to you. Instead, the appellate court will essentially look for any reason not to grant your appeal. So, you must have solid grounds for an appeal and be ready to present those grounds in your petition to appeal the case.
Grounds for an appeal of your divorce
Sometimes you or your attorney may discover information that could not have been reasonably discovered during your divorce case itself. In that case, you can alert the appellate court to that information or those facts to determine whether they would potentially be sufficient to overturn the judge’s decision. For example, suppose it came to light that your spouse was hiding Community property from you or other financial documents.
Undiscovered Documents in Post-Divorce Discovery
In such instances, documents not provided to you during discovery but discovered afterward could serve as grounds to appeal your case. You’re searching for documents that existed but were not reasonably discoverable by you or your attorney during the divorce proceedings. Not requesting discovery and then finding out after the divorce that there were simple documents that could have changed the outcome of your case are not grounds for an appeal.
Next, a court could determine that your spouse concealed evidence from you and your attorney during your divorce. Again, failing to disclose every single document related to the division of your community property is not necessarily concealing assets or critical information. They were under no obligation to turn over every document under the sun when it came to any subject. So long as they made known the most relevant documents or responded to discovery appropriately, then failing to come forward with every document imaginable is not necessarily grounds to appeal your divorce. This is a circumstances-based issue that you should probably run by your attorney before filing an appeal.
Duress, Perjury, and Fraud in Testimony
When duress, perjury, or fraud come to play, these would also be potential grounds for an appeal. From my experience, fraud or coercion rarely comes to play, but if you have proof that your spouse or an essential witness of theirs lied on the witness stand, then this will be valid to consider an appeal. This is true mainly if the judge relied a great deal upon the testimony of one witness or another when it comes to the results of a trial.
Similarly, if A judge allowed evidence to be admitted into the record over and above an objection, these are potential grounds for an appeal. This is a particular area of the law; it is not something that I would necessarily recommend that you consider too much without the assistance of an attorney. Once you get into issues related to the admissibility of evidence in a family court appeal case, you have the situation on your hands where you need to be sure about what you are doing. For that reason, having an experienced family law attorney to assist you in your appeal is a great idea.
What is the process like to appeal a divorce decree in Texas?
To properly appeal a divorce decree, you must follow a basic procedure. You need to file a motion appealing the judge’s decision in the appropriate appellate court for your county. There are 14 appellate courts in Texas for you to possibly file your appeal in. However, you must be aware of the correct court for your jurisdiction and follow their rules when filing an appeal.
Alongside your motion for an appeal, you would file a complaint specifying the grounds for your appeal and providing specific reasons from your case why you believe an appeal is warranted. Evidence must also be provided to the court to show why its appeal is appropriate. The trouble with an appeal is that a court can take a relatively long time to decide whether to grant your request. It would help if you waited for the court’s decision and could not move forward with other areas of your life while you wait. It could be like your entire life is put on hold to wait on whether your appeal is granted.
What if you cannot get your appeal granted?
It is possible that the court will not grant your appeal request. In that case, you need to know what options are potentially available for you. Not having valid grounds to appeal your divorce decree does not mean you have no options to consider. However, you need to be aware of those options to pursue those grounds. Likely, your best option after having your request for an appeal granted would be to have your case modified by filing a modification.
Understanding Grounds for Appeal in Texas Divorce Decrees
Just as we saw with that appeal, however, specific grounds in certain areas of your divorce decree can be appealed under Texas law. For one, there must have been a material or substantial change in circumstances that you have under God, your spouse is under God, or one of your children has undergone since the last time you were in court. This is a high burden to meet and reflects the courts’ hesitancy about overturning divorce decrees, even in part. For that reason, you should make sure that you have grounds for an appeal before moving forward with the case. Filing an appeal without the appropriate circumstances could waste valuable time and resources that could be better allocated elsewhere.
You can modify spousal maintenance in your divorce decree if there’s a significant change in circumstances involving you or your ex-spouse. Typically, these changes revolve around your ex-spouse remarrying or cohabiting with a romantic partner. Proving that they have moved in with a romantic partner is the most critical aspect of this type of modification. You can potentially have the burden of paying spousal maintenance removed if you successfully prove that this has occurred.
Common Reasons for Modifying Child Custody and Visitation
Next, probably the most frequently filed for a reason to modify a divorce decree is child custody and visitation. When we file for modification on either of these areas, it is usually due to something no longer working in the possession schedule for the kids. Either you want more time, the kids need a schedule change to accommodate their changing needs, or another issue has come up with you or your ex-spouse. In either case, a modification on child custody matters can relate to time with the kids or your conservatorship rights.
Finally, child support issues can be modified as well. For example, suppose that your child developed a disability over the past few years that makes the current amount of support no longer viable. In that case, you should consider modifying the child support to consider these circumstances. Or, you may have had your income significantly reduced due to a job change or a disability suffered on your part. A modification would be appropriate to consider in any of these circumstances.
Conclusion
When faced with a divorce trial outcome that feels unjust or unfavorable, remember that the journey doesn’t necessarily end there. Exploring the option to appeal a divorce decision can provide a pathway to address perceived errors or injustices. The appeal process may pose its own challenges and complexities. However, it represents a vital opportunity to seek redress and pursue a fair outcome. By leveraging legal expertise and understanding your rights, you can navigate the appeals process with confidence and determination, ultimately advocating for your interests and objectives in the pursuit of justice and closure.
Questions about the material contained in today’s blog post? Contact the Law Office of Bryan Fagan
If you have any questions about the material contained in today’s blog post, please do not hesitate to contact the Law Office of Bryan Fagan. Our licensed family law attorneys offer free of charge consultations six days a week in person, over the phone, and via video. These consultations are an excellent way for you to learn more about the world of Texas family law as well as about how your family’s circumstances may be impacted by the filing of a divorce or child custody case.
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Other Articles you may be interested in regarding Custody
- Can you appeal the division of property outcome from your divorce trial?
- How Mediation Can Reduce Divorce Costs in Texas
- Comparing Divorce Mediation Costs to Litigation Expenses
- Amicus Attorneys in Child Custody Disputes in Texas?
- Sole Managing Conservator in a Child Custody Case in Texas?
- Teens with Children, Child Custody and Child Support in Texas
- Child Custody Appeals in Texas: A Second Chance
- Custody and Visitation Rights of Grandparents in Texas
- 11 Things You Must Know About Texas Child Custody
- 12 Texas Custody & Conservatorship Battle Tips
- Appealing a family court decision in Texas
Frequently Asked Questions
The duration of a divorce appeal in Texas can vary depending on the complexity of the case and the caseload of the appellate court. It typically takes several months to a year for the appeal process to be completed.
Under specific circumstances, Texas allows for the reopening of a finalized divorce. If new evidence surfaces or if there was a material mistake in the original divorce decree, you can file a motion to reopen the case.
Once a divorce agreement is finalized and signed by the judge, it becomes legally binding. However, in some cases, a judge may modify the agreement if there are substantial changes in circumstances for one or both parties.
Reversing a divorce decree is a complex and rare process. To do so, you would typically need to demonstrate that there was a serious error or fraud that affected the outcome of the case.
Bryan Fagan, a native of Atascocita, Texas, is a dedicated family law attorney inspired by John Grisham’s “The Pelican Brief.” He is the first lawyer in his family, which includes two adopted brothers. Bryan’s commitment to family is personal and professional; he cared for his grandmother with Alzheimer’s while completing his degree and attended the South Texas College of Law at night.
Married with three children, Bryan’s personal experiences enrich his understanding of family dynamics, which is central to his legal practice. He specializes in family law, offering innovative and efficient legal services. A certified member of the College of the State Bar of Texas, Bryan is part of an elite group of legal professionals committed to ongoing education and high-level expertise.
His legal practice covers divorce, custody disputes, property disputes, adoption, paternity, and mediation. Bryan is also experienced in drafting marital property agreements. He leads a team dedicated to complex family law cases and protecting families from false CPS allegations.
Based in Houston, Bryan is active in the Houston Family Law Sector of the Houston Bar Association and various family law groups in Texas. His deep understanding of family values and his professional dedication make him a compassionate advocate for families navigating Texas family law.