Divorce, property division, and custody in Texas: what the statutes lay out
This guide describes how the Texas Family Code structures a divorce — the grounds and residency rules of chapter 6, the separate/community property system of chapter 3, the "just and right" division rule of chapter 7 — and how suits affecting the parent-child relationship ("SAPCRs") attach to it. It explains what the statutes say and how the Supreme Court of Texas has read them; it is not legal advice. Every section and case discussed here links to the full text hosted in this library.
Informational only — not legal advice. This page describes statutes and court opinions; it does not apply them to any situation. Verify every section against the official Texas statutes ↗. The conservatorship, possession-order, and child-support chapters (Family Code chapters 153 and 154) are not hosted in this library; their official text is at the same site ↗.
The governing law at a glance
| Section | What it covers |
|---|---|
| § 6.001 — Insupportability | The no-fault ground: discord that "destroys the legitimate ends of the marital relationship" |
| §§ 6.002–6.008 — Other grounds | Cruelty, adultery, felony conviction, abandonment, living apart, confinement in a mental hospital |
| § 6.301 — General Residency Rule | Six months' Texas domicile and 90 days' county residence before filing |
| § 6.502 — Temporary Injunction and Other Temporary Orders | Orders while the suit is pending, including a sworn inventory and appraisement |
| § 3.001 — Separate Property | Property owned before marriage, or acquired by gift, devise, or descent, plus most personal-injury recoveries |
| § 3.002 — Community Property | Everything else "acquired by either spouse during marriage" |
| § 3.003 — Presumption of Community Property | Property possessed during or on dissolution is presumed community; separate character requires clear and convincing evidence |
| § 7.001 — General Rule of Property Division | The court "shall order a division of the estate of the parties in a manner that the court deems just and right" |
| § 102.003 — General Standing to File Suit | Who may bring a suit affecting the parent-child relationship |
| § 105.001 — Temporary Orders Before Final Order | Temporary conservatorship, support, and protective orders "for the safety and welfare of the child" |
| Chs. 153–154 — Conservatorship; Child Support | Not hosted here; official text ↗ — the best-interest standard, possession orders, and support guidelines |
The suit, step by step
Text version of this diagram
- Petition filed — grounds and residency — §§ 6.001–6.008, 6.301
- Temporary injunctions and orders — property and children — § 6.502; § 105.001
- Characterization: separate vs. community — community presumed — §§ 3.001–3.003
- Division of the estate of the parties, 'just and right' — § 7.001
- Conservatorship, possession, and support (official site) ↗ — chs. 153–154
- Final decree of divorce — ch. 6
1. Grounds and residency. Chapter 6 states seven grounds for divorce. The first — § 6.001 insupportability — is the no-fault ground: the court "may grant a divorce without regard to fault if the marriage has become insupportable because of discord or conflict of personalities that destroys the legitimate ends of the marital relationship and prevents any reasonable expectation of reconciliation." Sections 6.002–6.008 state the fault and separation grounds. § 6.301 adds the filing prerequisites: one party must have been "a domiciliary of this state for the preceding six-month period" and "a resident of the county in which the suit is filed for the preceding 90-day period."
2. Temporary orders. While the suit is pending, § 6.502 lets the court issue temporary injunctions "for the preservation of the property and protection of the parties," including — first on the statute's list — "a sworn inventory and appraisement of the real and personal property owned or claimed by the parties." Where children are involved, the parallel SAPCR provision, § 105.001, authorizes temporary orders "for the safety and welfare of the child," including temporary conservatorship and temporary support.
3. Characterization. Chapter 3 sorts the marital estate. § 3.001 defines separate property: what a spouse "owned or claimed … before marriage," what was "acquired … during marriage by gift, devise, or descent," and most personal-injury recoveries. § 3.002 defines community property as "the property, other than separate property, acquired by either spouse during marriage." § 3.003 supplies the tiebreaker: property possessed by either spouse "during or on dissolution of marriage is presumed to be community property," and separate character must be proved by "clear and convincing evidence."
4. Division. § 7.001 states the division rule in one sentence: the court "shall order a division of the estate of the parties in a manner that the court deems just and right, having due regard for the rights of each party and any children of the marriage." What "just and right" permits — and what "estate of the parties" excludes — is the subject of Murff and Eggemeyer, below.
5. The children. Conservatorship (what other states call custody), possession and access, and child support are governed by chapters 153 and 154, which this library does not host (official text ↗). The organizing principle those chapters codify — the best interest of the child — has a long case-law pedigree; its canonical factor list comes from Holley, below. The hosted SAPCR procedure chapters do appear here: § 102.003 lists who has standing to file, and § 105.001 governs temporary orders.
6. The decree. The final decree dissolves the marriage on a chapter 6 ground, divides the estate under § 7.001, and — where a SAPCR is joined — enters the conservatorship and support orders.
The key sections, closely read
**§ 3.003 — the presumption.* Two sentences do a great deal of work. The presumption attaches to possession* — everything either spouse holds at dissolution starts as community — and the escape route runs through an elevated standard: "clear and convincing evidence" of separate character. That is why acquisition records (dates, deeds, gift and inheritance documents) dominate characterization disputes: tracing is how the presumption is met or not.
**§ 7.001 — "just and right."* The rule is deliberately open-textured: no equal-split command, no factor list — "just and right," with "due regard" for the parties and children. The statute's breadth is the holding of Murff; its limit — that the "estate of the parties" the court divides does not include a spouse's separate property — is the holding of Eggemeyer*.
How the courts have read it
The opinions below — all from the Supreme Court of Texas — are hosted in this library in full; each links to its authoritative source from its own page. Each construed the statutes as they stood when decided (Eggemeyer and Murff construed § 3.63, the predecessor of today's § 7.001; Holley construed former § 15.02, the predecessor of the current termination chapter).
Murff v. Murff, 615 S.W.2d 696 (Tex. 1981)
- Issue — After a trial court divided a community estate unevenly, the court of civil appeals
held it an abuse of discretion. The questions were whether fault in the breakup and disparity in the spouses' earning capacities may be weighed in a "just and right" division.
- Holding — The court held both may be considered: trial courts exercise broad discretion in
dividing the estate, and may weigh, among other circumstances, the spouses' capacities and abilities, benefits the innocent spouse would have derived from the marriage's continuation, education, relative financial condition, and fault. It reversed the court of civil appeals and affirmed the trial court's division.
- Turns on — § 7.001 (the "just and right" standard, then codified as § 3.63).
- Connects — The leading statement of how much room the division statute leaves the trial
court; Eggemeyer supplies the boundary of the estate that discretion operates on.
- Read it — Full opinion in this library.
Eggemeyer v. Eggemeyer, 554 S.W.2d 137 (Tex. 1977)
- Issue — Whether a divorce decree may divest one spouse of title to separate real property
and award it to the other spouse as part of the property division.
- Holding — The court held it may not: the division statute authorizes division of the
parties' estate, and does not authorize divesting a spouse of separate realty. The judgment of the court of civil appeals, which had reversed the trial court's transfer of the husband's separate farm, was affirmed.
separate property is); § 3.003 (how separate character is established).
- Connects — Fixes the characterization stakes the flow diagram shows: whether an asset is
community or separate decides whether it is in the divisible estate at all — which is what makes § 3.003's presumption and its clear-and-convincing escape standard decisive.
- Read it — Full opinion in this library.
Holley v. Adams, 544 S.W.2d 367 (Tex. 1976)
- Issue — In a suit to terminate a parent-child relationship, whether the evidence showed
termination was in the best interest of the child.
- Holding — The court reversed and rendered judgment denying termination, and in doing so set
out the factor list Texas courts have used ever since to ascertain a child's best interest: "(A) the desires of the child; (B) the emotional and physical needs of the child now and in the future; (C) the emotional and physical danger to the child now and in the future; (D) the parental abilities of the individuals seeking custody; (E) the programs available to assist these individuals …; (F) the plans for the child …; (G) the stability of the home or proposed placement; (H) the acts or omissions of the parent …; and (I) any excuse for the acts or omissions" — a list the court called "by no means exhaustive."
- Turns on — the best-interest standard now codified in the (unhosted) conservatorship and
termination chapters; among hosted provisions, the standard surfaces in § 105.001's "safety and welfare of the child" temporary-order power and § 7.001's "due regard … for any children of the marriage."
- Connects — The factor list travels far beyond termination cases: Texas courts apply the
Holley factors wherever the code asks what a child's best interest requires — the standard the unhosted chapters 153 and 161 make central.
- Read it — Full opinion in this library.
Evidence and elements
Text version of this diagram
| From | To |
|---|---|
| Marriage date, separation date, and residency records | Separate or community: when and how the property was acquired |
| Sworn inventory and appraisement of assets and debts | A 'just and right' division of the estate of the parties |
| Title and acquisition records: deeds, gifts, inheritances | Separate or community: when and how the property was acquired |
| Title and acquisition records: deeds, gifts, inheritances | The community presumption — rebutted only by clear and convincing evidence |
| Evidence bearing on the children's circumstances | Orders for the child's safety and welfare; the best-interest standard |
| A 'just and right' division of the estate of the parties | Murff v. Murff (Tex. 1981) |
| Separate or community: when and how the property was acquired | Eggemeyer v. Eggemeyer (Tex. 1977) |
| The community presumption — rebutted only by clear and convincing evidence | Eggemeyer v. Eggemeyer (Tex. 1977) |
| Orders for the child's safety and welfare; the best-interest standard | Holley v. Adams (Tex. 1976) |
The map above pairs each statutory element with the kinds of records the courts in the linked cases discussed — acquisition and title records measured against §§ 3.001–3.002's definitions and § 3.003's presumption (the tracing fight Eggemeyer makes decisive); the sworn inventory § 6.502 authorizes, which frames the estate that § 7.001's "just and right" standard divides under Murff's factors; and evidence bearing on the children's circumstances, which courts weigh through the Holley factors in orders from § 105.001 temporary orders onward. The map describes what those opinions examined; it is not a checklist for any particular situation.
Where to verify
- Official statute text: statutes.capitol.texas.gov ↗ —
including Family Code chapters 153 (conservatorship and possession), 154 (child support), 156 (modification), and 161 (termination), which this library does not host.
- In this library: Family Code chapter 3 · chapter 6 · chapter 7 ·
- Every case page above carries its own hand-off link to the authoritative source of the opinion.