A contested divorce in Texas is one where the spouses cannot agree on at least one major issue and need a judge to resolve it. Before anything can be filed, one spouse must have lived in Texas for six months and in the filing county for 90 days.1State of Texas. Texas Family Code 6.301 – General Residency Rule for Divorce Suit Once the petition is on file, Texas imposes a mandatory 60-day waiting period before any divorce can be finalized, giving both sides time to negotiate or prepare for litigation.2State of Texas. Texas Family Code FAM 6.702 – Waiting Period The only exception is cases involving family violence, where a protective order or conviction allows the court to move sooner.
Most contested cases run through the same sequence: petition, service, temporary orders, discovery, mediation, and, if nothing settles, trial. What follows walks through each stage and the substantive law the judge will apply along the way.
Grounds You Can File On
Texas allows both no-fault and fault-based grounds, and the choice is strategic, not just formal. The no-fault ground is “insupportability,” which means the marriage has broken down due to conflict with no reasonable expectation of reconciliation.3State of Texas. Texas Family Code 6.001 – Insupportability Neither spouse has to prove wrongdoing. You state that the marriage is insupportable, and the court accepts that as sufficient reason to grant the divorce.
Fault grounds matter because a judge can consider fault when dividing property or making decisions about the children. Texas recognizes:
- Cruelty severe enough to make living together insupportable4State of Texas. Texas Family Code FAM 6.002 – Cruelty
- Adultery
- Abandonment for at least one year with intent to abandon
- Felony conviction with at least one year of imprisonment and no pardon
- Living apart without cohabiting for at least three years
- Confinement in a mental hospital for at least three years with little likelihood of recovery5State of Texas. Texas Family Code 6.007 – Confinement in Mental Hospital
Alleging fault means proving it with real evidence, whether documents, witness testimony, or both. The payoff is that a judge who finds one spouse at fault can award a larger share of the marital estate to the other.
The Stages of a Contested Case
Filing and Service
The petitioner files an Original Petition for Divorce in the district court of the qualifying county. The petition names the grounds and lays out what the petitioner wants regarding property, children, and support. The respondent must then be formally served, usually by a process server or constable who delivers the papers in person.
After service, the respondent has until 10:00 a.m. on the Monday following the 20th day after service to file a written answer. Missing that deadline is serious. If no answer is filed, the petitioner can ask for a default judgment, and the judge can grant the divorce largely on the petitioner’s terms. The court still reviews the proposed property division and any orders involving children to make sure they comply with Texas law, but the absent spouse loses the ability to argue for a different outcome.
Temporary Orders
Either side can request a temporary orders hearing soon after filing. This hearing decides the urgent questions that cannot wait for trial: who stays in the family home, who pays the mortgage and utilities, temporary conservatorship and visitation, and temporary child support. Temporary orders remain in effect until the divorce is finalized or the court modifies them, and they often set the tone for the rest of the case.
Discovery
Discovery is the formal exchange of information. It runs on three main tools: requests for production (demands for specific documents), interrogatories (written questions answered under oath), and depositions (sworn testimony taken outside court). Hidden assets tend to surface here, income disputes crystallize, and each side builds the factual record it will use at trial. A spouse who stalls on discovery or gives incomplete answers risks court sanctions.
Mediation
Texas courts can order spouses into mediation at any point after filing, and most judges do.6State of Texas. Texas Family Code FAM 6.602 – Mediation Procedures A neutral mediator works with both sides to negotiate a resolution. Mediation is not binding unless the spouses choose to make it so. If they reach a deal, they sign a mediated settlement agreement that must include a prominent statement that it is not subject to revocation, be signed by both parties, and be signed by any attorney present at the signing. An agreement meeting those requirements binds both spouses and the court.7Texas Public Law. Texas Family Code 153.0071 – Alternate Dispute Resolution Procedures
Mediation resolves most contested divorces in Texas. A private mediator’s fee is almost always a fraction of what a multi-day trial costs, and even a partial agreement narrows what has to be tried.
Trial
If mediation fails or issues remain, the case goes to trial. Both sides present evidence, call witnesses, and argue. The judge (jury trials are available in Texas divorces but rare) decides every open dispute: property division, conservatorship, possession, child support, and spousal maintenance. A final decree is then issued. The 60-day waiting period must have run since the petition was filed before the court can sign it.2State of Texas. Texas Family Code FAM 6.702 – Waiting Period
How Property Gets Divided
Texas is a community property state. Anything either spouse earned or acquired during the marriage is presumed to belong to both of them: wages, retirement contributions, real estate bought with marital funds, and debts taken on by either spouse.8State of Texas. Texas Family Code 3.003 – Presumption of Community Property The court must divide the community estate in a way it considers “just and right,” which does not automatically mean 50/50.9State of Texas. Texas Family Code FAM 7.001 – General Rule of Property Division Fault in the breakup, each spouse’s earning capacity, and the needs of any children can tilt the split.
Separate property stays with the spouse who owns it. Under Texas law, separate property includes anything owned before the marriage, gifts and inheritances received during the marriage, and most personal injury recoveries.10State of Texas. Texas Family Code 3.001 – Separate Property The catch is that you have to prove an asset is separate by clear and convincing evidence, which is a high bar.8State of Texas. Texas Family Code 3.003 – Presumption of Community Property This is where the fights start. One spouse claims the down payment on the house came from an inheritance; the other says it was commingled with marital funds; now you need bank records going back a decade.
Valuing complex assets adds another layer of conflict. In a divorce involving a family business, stock options, or large retirement accounts, both sides may hire appraisers or forensic accountants whose conclusions differ sharply, and the judge decides which numbers are more credible.
Conservatorship Instead of Custody
Texas uses the word “conservatorship” where other states use “custody.” The court’s overriding concern in every conservatorship decision is the best interest of the child.11State of Texas. Texas Family Code 153.002 – Best Interest of Child Most contested cases involve a fight over which parent gets the exclusive right to decide where the child lives. In a typical joint managing conservatorship, both parents share decision-making, but one parent is designated as the primary conservator with the right to establish the child’s residence.
The other parent gets a “possession and access” schedule spelling out their time with the child. Texas has a Standard Possession Order that serves as the default, but parents frequently argue over modifications for holidays, summer breaks, and school schedules. Geographic restrictions are another common flashpoint. Courts often limit the primary conservator to keeping the child within a specific county or group of counties, and disagreement over how wide that boundary should be can get intense.
How Child Support Is Calculated
Texas calculates child support as a percentage of the paying parent’s monthly net resources:
- One child: 20%
- Two children: 25%
- Three children: 30%
- Four children: 35%
- Five or more children: at least 40%
These percentages apply to net resources up to a statutory cap, currently $11,700 per month.12State of Texas. Texas Family Code FAM 154.125 – Application of Guidelines to Net Resources For parents earning less than $1,000 per month, a lower schedule applies with percentages reduced by five points across the board.
Net resources are not the same as take-home pay. Start with all income sources, then subtract social security taxes, income taxes, union dues, and health insurance premiums for the child. The biggest disputes involve self-employed parents whose actual income is hard to pin down. A parent running cash through a business, writing off personal expenses, or underreporting earnings can turn the calculation into a real battle. Courts can impute income to a parent they believe is intentionally underemployed.
Spousal Maintenance Is Harder to Get Than You Think
A court will only order spousal maintenance if the requesting spouse lacks enough property, including separate property, to cover their basic needs and meets at least one of these conditions:
- The other spouse was convicted of or received deferred adjudication for family violence during the marriage.
- The requesting spouse has a physical or mental disability that prevents them from earning enough income.
- The marriage lasted at least 10 years and the requesting spouse cannot earn enough to meet minimum reasonable needs.
- The requesting spouse is the primary caretaker of a child with a physical or mental disability requiring substantial care.
Even when a spouse qualifies, the amount and duration are capped. Monthly maintenance cannot exceed $5,000 or 20% of the paying spouse’s average monthly gross income, whichever is less.14State of Texas. Texas Family Code 8.055 – Amount of Maintenance Duration depends on how long the marriage lasted:
- Under 10 years, in family violence cases: up to 5 years
- 10 to 20 years: up to 5 years
- 20 to 30 years: up to 7 years
- 30 years or more: up to 10 years
Those limits mean the real question is usually whether a spouse can clear the eligibility hurdle at all. In many contested divorces, the fight shifts to getting a larger share of the property division rather than securing ongoing payments.
Preparing Your Case
Contested divorces live and die on documentation. Start gathering financial records early. Once the divorce turns adversarial, access to shared accounts and records can shut down fast.
Financial Records
Pull at least three years of bank statements for every account either spouse used, joint and individual. Collect pay stubs, W-2s, and federal tax returns for both spouses. Gather statements from all retirement accounts and any brokerage or investment accounts. Get credit card statements and mortgage records so shared debts are clear. If either spouse owns a business, add profit and loss statements, balance sheets, and business tax returns.
Property Inventory
Write down every significant asset with its estimated market value: real estate, vehicles, jewelry, art, firearms, anything of meaningful worth. List every debt with its current balance and whose name is on it. This inventory becomes the foundation for property negotiations and will be required by the court.
Records for the Children
If children are involved, organize school records, medical and dental records, and a detailed list of child-related expenses like daycare, tutoring, and health insurance premiums. Documentation of each parent’s day-to-day involvement, including who handles school runs, doctor’s appointments, and activities, strengthens a conservatorship case more than most people expect.
When to Bring In a Forensic Accountant
In high-asset divorces or cases where a spouse suspects hidden income, a forensic accountant can change the outcome. These professionals trace income and expenses through bank records, tax returns, and credit reports to find undisclosed accounts, undervalued business interests, or personal spending buried inside business deductions. They can also provide an independent valuation of a private business and testify at trial so the judge is working from real numbers rather than each spouse’s competing claims.