Burt v. Francis arose from a contentious Texas divorce involving family violence. The trial court dissolved the marriage on May 29, 2014. There were three children. Although the couple had agreed to the terms of the divorce decree, they still fought over their three children. The mother later testified that…
Articles Posted by Kelly McClure
Right to Designate a Child’s Primary Residence in Texas
In Philips v. Filla, a couple married in 2004 and divorced in 2007. They had one child. When they made their initial custody arrangement during the divorce proceedings, the mother had the exclusive right to designate the child’s primary residence. In 2010, however, they agreed to modify the divorce terms…
Dissolution of an Informal Marriage in Texas
In In re Interest of JJFR, a man appealed from the denial of his motion for summary judgment, arguing there was insufficient evidence to prove his partner and he had entered into an informal marriage. In Texas, an informal (or common law) marriage under Texas Family Code §2.401(a)(2) can be proven…
Enforcing a Child Support Order in Texas
In Ochsner v. Ochsner, the Texas Supreme Court ruled on a child support order that required the father to pay for his daughter’s school and to pay through a registry when she changed schools. The couple had divorced in 2001, and the divorce decree included a child support order. The…
Parents’ Agreement to Terminate a Mother’s Rights in Texas
In the 2016 Texas case In re Morris, an appellate court considered a father’s request for a writ of mandamus after the mother and he agreed to the rendition of an order terminating the mother-child relationship. The adjudicated father of the child asked the appellate court to compel the lower court to vacate…
Right to Reimbursement in Texas Divorce
In McCoy v. McCoy, a Texas husband appealed from a divorce decree, arguing that the lower court should not have denied his claim for reimbursement. The couple started dating in 2009. In the following year, they got engaged, and the husband moved to start law school. His fiancée joined him there…
Enforceability of a Rule 11 Agreement in Texas
Family law judges encourage those getting a divorce to enter into settlement negotiations rather than proceed to trial. Under rule 11 of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure, agreements reached during these negotiations are not enforceable unless they are written, signed, and filed with the divorce papers as part of…
How to Catch Your Cheating Spouse–or How Not to Get Caught
Advances in technology are constantly changing how people work, play, and–unfortunately–cheat on their spouses. People often ask us what tools are available to catch a cheating spouse or what tools a spouse might be using to conceal their own infidelity. D CEO Magazine asked us how to catch a cheating spouse–or…