If you have lived with your spouse, chances are that you cannot get an annulment. See why below.
General Law of Voidable Marriage (Annulments) in Texas
Annulments are not available in Texas for people that need a divorce due to the disappointments that have occurred in the marriage. Annulments are for a man/woman that somehow entered the marriage ceremony, without understanding what they were doing, and then the man/woman has not lived with the person, since the “marriage” occurred.
Are You Eligible to Get an Annulment of Your Marriage in Texas?
Unlike the rules and laws of divorce in Texas, very few people will qualify to get his or her marriage annulled. If you carefully review the avenues as listed below, you will see how narrow the circumstances are, to qualify for an annulment.
Can You Get an Annulment if You Were Drunk or High When You Got Married?
If you did not have the capacity to knowingly consent the marriage when you got married, and you have not lived with your spouse since the effects of the alcohol or drugs have worn off, then you can get the marriage annulled.
Can You Get an Annulment in Texas if You Got Married Under the Age of 18?
Yes, but only if: 1. You got married without parental consent; and the marriage has lasted less than 90 days.
If your 18th birthday has passed, you cannot get an annulment under the “underage” annulment rule above.
Can You Have a Marriage Annulled If Your Spouse Was Just Divorced?
If your spouse got divorced and then married you less than 30 days after the divorce, the marriage can be annulled, but only if you did not know about the divorce, and after you found out you did not live with your spouse.
Can You Get Your Marriage Annulled if Your Spouse Has Died?
No, Texas does not permit any suit to annul a marriage which is started after the death of either spouse.
Can You Annul a Marriage, if Husband or Wife Entered the Marriage, Without Really Knowing They Were Getting Married?
No, Texas does not permit a person to annul a marriage due to the fact that the person entered the marriage with a mental health disease or any other condition that prevented complete mental capacity at the time of marriage, unless the person, upon having proper mental capacity did not thereafter live with the person that they married.
So in other words, Section 6.108 of the family code will permit an annulment if a person did not understand they were getting married and still after the marriage, continued to not understand they were married. But, if any time they did understand that they had gotten married, and with that understanding continued to live with the spouse, then no annulment may take place. In sum, any understanding of what happened, combined with any living together of the spouses, removes the possibility of the annulment.
Can You Get an Annulment If You Were Forced Into the Marriage?
You can get an annulment if you were forced into the marriage, and have not since the date of marriage voluntarily cohabited with the other party, The word “force” will mean something more than pressure from one’s family to be married, or other similar word.
Can You Get Your Marriage Annulled if Your Spouse Tricked You and Committed Fraud Against You Before the Marriage or In Order to Induce the Marriage to Take Place?
If the other party used fraud, duress or force to induce you into the marriage, and you have not lived with your spouse since learning of the fraud or being released from the duress, then you can annul the marriage.
Texas Law on Getting a Marriage Annulment
Sec. 6.102. ANNULMENT OF MARRIAGE OF PERSON UNDER AGE 18. (a) The court may grant an annulment of a marriage of a person 16 years of age or older but under 18 years of age that occurred without parental consent or without a court order as provided by Subchapters B and E, Chapter 2.
(b) A petition for annulment under this section may be filed by:
(1) a next friend for the benefit of the underage party;
(2) a parent; or
(3) the judicially designated managing conservator or guardian of the person of the underage party, whether an individual, authorized agency, or court.
(c) A suit filed under this subsection by a next friend is barred unless it is filed within 90 days after the date of the marriage.
Sec. 6.103. UNDERAGE ANNULMENT BARRED BY ADULTHOOD. A suit to annul a marriage may not be filed under Section 6.102 by a parent, managing conservator, or guardian of a person after the 18th birthday of the person.
Sec. 6.104. DISCRETIONARY ANNULMENT OF UNDERAGE MARRIAGE. (a) An annulment under Section 6.102 of a marriage may be granted at the discretion of the court sitting without a jury.
(b) In exercising its discretion, the court shall consider the pertinent facts concerning the welfare of the parties to the marriage, including whether the female is pregnant.
Sec. 6.105. UNDER INFLUENCE OF ALCOHOL OR NARCOTICS. The court may grant an annulment of a marriage to a party to the marriage if:
(1) at the time of the marriage the petitioner was under the influence of alcoholic beverages or narcotics and as a result did not have the capacity to consent to the marriage; and
(2) the petitioner has not voluntarily cohabited with the other party to the marriage since the effects of the alcoholic beverages or narcotics ended.
Sec. 6.106. IMPOTENCY. The court may grant an annulment of a marriage to a party to the marriage if:
(1) either party, for physical or mental reasons, was permanently impotent at the time of the marriage;
(2) the petitioner did not know of the impotency at the time of the marriage; and
(3) the petitioner has not voluntarily cohabited with the other party since learning of the impotency.
Sec. 6.107. FRAUD, DURESS, OR FORCE. The court may grant an annulment of a marriage to a party to the marriage if:
(1) the other party used fraud, duress, or force to induce the petitioner to enter into the marriage; and
(2) the petitioner has not voluntarily cohabited with the other party since learning of the fraud or since being released from the duress or force.
Sec. 6.108. MENTAL INCAPACITY. (a) The court may grant an annulment of a marriage to a party to the marriage on the suit of the party or the party’s guardian or next friend, if the court finds it to be in the party’s best interest to be represented by a guardian or next friend, if:
(1) at the time of the marriage the petitioner did not have the mental capacity to consent to marriage or to understand the nature of the marriage ceremony because of a mental disease or defect; and
(2) since the marriage ceremony, the petitioner has not voluntarily cohabited with the other party during a period when the petitioner possessed the mental capacity to recognize the marriage relationship.
(b) The court may grant an annulment of a marriage to a party to the marriage if:
(1) at the time of the marriage the other party did not have the mental capacity to consent to marriage or to understand the nature of the marriage ceremony because of a mental disease or defect;
(2) at the time of the marriage the petitioner neither knew nor reasonably should have known of the mental disease or defect; and
(3) since the date the petitioner discovered or reasonably should have discovered the mental disease or defect, the petitioner has not voluntarily cohabited with the other party.
Sec. 6.109. CONCEALED DIVORCE. (a) The court may grant an annulment of a marriage to a party to the marriage if:
(1) the other party was divorced from a third party within the 30-day period preceding the date of the marriage ceremony;
(2) at the time of the marriage ceremony the petitioner did not know, and a reasonably prudent person would not have known, of the divorce; and
(3) since the petitioner discovered or a reasonably prudent person would have discovered the fact of the divorce, the petitioner has not voluntarily cohabited with the other party.
(b) A suit may not be brought under this section after the first anniversary of the date of the marriage.
Sec. 6.110. MARRIAGE LESS THAN 72 HOURS AFTER ISSUANCE OF LICENSE. (a) The court may grant an annulment of a marriage to a party to the marriage if the marriage ceremony took place in violation of Section 2.204 during the 72-hour period immediately following the issuance of the marriage license.
(b) A suit may not be brought under this section after the 30th day after the date of the marriage.
Sec. 6.111. DEATH OF PARTY TO VOIDABLE MARRIAGE. Except as provided by Section 47A, Texas Probate Code, a marriage subject to annulment may not be challenged in a proceeding instituted after the death of either party to the marriage.
How to Get an Annulment in Texas
If you do qualified for an annulment, then you can petition the court for an annulment, and have a hearing before a Texas Judge who will decide on whether to grant or deny your Petition. The procedural rules closely follow those of a divorce case in Texas. If your case is granted, then you will not longer be married.
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