In Texas, a marriage can end in one of three ways: divorce, annulment, or death. Although divorce and annulment ultimately result in the same outcome, there are major differences between the two. As is explained below, an annulment is a declaration by the court that a marriage is not valid. Below is an overview of the grounds for an annulment in Texas. If you have additional questions, please contact a Texas divorce attorney.
What is Annulment?
Annulment and divorce achieve the same result in different ways. A divorce ends a valid marriage. An annulment, on the other hand, ends a marriage that wasn’t valid to begin with. When a marriage is ended through annulment, the court determines that the marriage never existed. In other words, the marriage is legally erased.
Grounds for Annulment in Texas
There are several grounds for annulment in Texas. In order to be eligible for annulment in Texas, an individual must demonstrate that one or more of the following grounds are present:
- Intoxication – One spouse was too intoxicated during the marriage ceremony to consent to marriage.
- Impotence – One spouse is permanently unable to have intercourse.
- Fraud – One spouse misrepresented something essential to the marriage to obtain the other spouse’s consent to marry.
- Incest – The spouses are related.
- Bigamy – One of the spouses was already married when he or she entered into the marriage.
- Underage – One or both spouses were underage at the time of marriage.
- Duress or Force – One spouse was forced to enter the marriage.
Legal Effect of Annulment
When the court declares a marriage void, it is as if the marriage never existed in the first place. This allows both partners in an annulled marriage to legally state that they were never married to one another. However, the court can still treat certain issues in an annulment similar to a standard divorce, such as child custody, child support, visitation, property division, and alimony. In addition, the children of annulled marriages are considered legitimate, which means that they have the same rights as children from valid marriages. The children of annulled marriages have inheritance rights and the right to receive financial support from both parents.
Contact an Attorney Today
If you would like to annul your marriage in Texas, you need an aggressive and experienced Texas divorce attorney on your side. At Youngberg Law Firm, attorney Mike Youngberg is experienced in all facets of the Texas divorce and annulment processes, and he will work hard to ensure that you obtain a successful result in your Texas annulment or divorce. In addition, our talented Texas attorney can assist you with issues like child custody, child support, modifications of existing orders, enforcements, characterization of property, spousal maintenance, protective orders, and temporary restraining orders. Please contact us today to schedule a consultation.