Annulments in Texas, Part Two

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Houston Divorce Attorneys: In yesterday’s blog post I introduced the topic of annulments in Texas by discussing the situation of a potential client of the Law Office of Bryan Fagan who came in for a consultation last year. In short, she wanted to know if she could get an annulment from her friend whom she married after stumbling into a Harris County Municipal Court building while intoxicated.

While you may never find yourself in her exact situation, there are different sorts of circumstances that can lead a person to need an annulment in Texas.

Yesterday we discussed impotency and persons getting married while under age 18 as reasons to possibly annul a marriage. Today we will conclude our series of blog posts on annulments. Did the young lady who came in to talk to me find out that she could get an annulment? Read on to find out more.

ANNULMENT GROUNDS OF- FRAUD OR DURESS

If you were married due to your having been forced into the marriage then it is possible for you to get an annulment. The same goes for fraud- if you mistakenly relied on the assurance or promise of another person in order to marry him or her then you may have grounds to get an annulment. Let’s unpack this issue a little more.

Fraud or force are available as grounds for an annulment if you did not live with the person after you were no longer under the control of the fraud or force. If this seems a little tricky to navigate then I would have to agree with you.

Determining when you were no longer under the direct control of these factors will be up to the judge to figure out. The bottom line is that it would likely be in your best interest to get out of contact with your “spouse” as quickly as you can.

ANNULMENT GROUND OF- CONCEALED DIVORCE

Divorce Attorneys Houston: If your spouse did not disclose that he or she had been divorced previously then you have a limited opportunity with which to request an annulment of the marriage.

If your spouse got their divorce fewer than thirty days prior to your marriage then you have a shot to get an annulment. However, there are three additional circumstances that must be met:

1. You must not have known about the divorce prior to your marriage and it must be shown that a reasonably prudent person would not have known about the divorce
2. Since you found out about the divorce you have not lived with your spouse
3. You must then file for an annulment within one year’s time of your marriage having begun

ANNULMENT GROUND OF- MENTAL INCAPACITY

Mental incapacitation is the next way that a marriage in Texas may be annulled. You or your spouse can attempt to argue to a judge that you lacked the ability to consent to the marriage or even understand what was occurring at the time you and your spouse became married.

Likewise, if it is your spouse who suffers from the mental incapacitation, you may bring the annulment proceeding if you can show that you did not know of your partner’s mental state prior to the marriage nor would a reasonably prudent person have the ability to know of the incapacitation at the time the marriage took place.

Again- and stop me if you’ve heard this before- you and your spouse cannot have lived together after the discovery of the mental incapacitation.

If you are the spouse with the mental incapacity and you live with your spouse during a time that you were able to understand that you were married then an annulment may not be possible.

ANNULMENT GROUND OF- UNDER INFLUENCE OF ALCOHOL OR DRUGS

Divorce Attorney in Houston: Finally, you can be successful in an annulment petition if you show that you were unable to provide consent to the marriage due to your having been under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the exchange of vows.

Once you are no longer intoxicated you must take steps to remove yourself from the residence that you shared with your spouse or you risk being unsuccessful in your annulment attempt.

TAKEAWAYS FROM THESE POSTS ON ANNULMENTS IN TEXAS FAMILY LAW

By the end of my conversation with the woman in our office, I was able to tell her that it appeared that she did have grounds to seek an annulment due to her having been intoxicated at the time she got married.

She was happy to learn this, as was her boyfriend who was also at the consultation. I told him that he deserves some credit for sticking with his girlfriend despite her lack of judgment. He sheepishly smiled at me but didn’t add anything to the discussion.

The bottom line is that while there are many ways to qualify for an annulment in Texas, those ways are pretty narrow in that the facts have to be just right to qualify. It’s always best to seek out the advice of a family law attorney to learn if your situation presents itself within one of those narrow areas.

On top of that, for each of the above ways to potentially qualify for an annulment, you must not have resided with your spouse after you became aware of a circumstance that justified the annulment.

Otherwise, if you do, you may qualify instead as common law spouses thus invalidating any justifications for the annulment in the eyes of a judge. Recognizing the grounds for an annulment is important, but then acting in the correct way after that recognition can be just as crucial for you.

THE LAW OFFICE OF BRYAN FAGAN- ADVOCATES FOR SOUTHEAST TEXAS FAMILIES

Houston Family Attorney: When it comes to taking pride in their work and putting the interests of their clients first, the attorneys with the Law Office of Bryan Fagan have no peers. Our office represents clients across southeast Texas and would be honored to speak to you about doing the same for you and your family … Continue Reading