82R10628 JSC-D
By: Christian H.B. No. 3707
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the waiting period for certain spouses filing for
divorce on the grounds of insupportability.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 6.702, Family Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a) and (c) and adding Subsection (a-1) to
read as follows:
(a) Except as provided by Subsection (a-1) or (c), the court
may not grant a divorce before the 60th day after the date the suit
was filed. A decree rendered in violation of this subsection is
not subject to collateral attack.
(a-1) Except as provided by Subsection (c), the court may
not grant a divorce before the first anniversary of the date the
suit was filed if:
(1) the divorce is sought on the grounds of
insupportability;
(2) the household of one of the spouses is the primary
residence for a child under the age of 18 born of the marriage; and
(3) the respondent does not agree to the divorce.
(c) A waiting period is not required under Subsection (a) or
(a-1) before a court may grant a divorce in a suit in which the court
finds that:
(1) the respondent has been finally convicted of or
received deferred adjudication for an offense involving family
violence as defined by Section 71.004 against the petitioner or a
member of the petitioner's household; or
(2) the petitioner has an active protective order
under Title 4 or an active magistrate's order for emergency
protection under Article 17.292, Code of Criminal Procedure, based
on a finding of family violence, against the respondent because of
family violence committed during the marriage.
SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to a suit for dissolution of a marriage filed on or after the
effective date of this Act. A suit for dissolution of a marriage
filed before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law
in effect on the date the suit was filed, and the former law is
continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.