Texas Annulments - things you should know

As a San Antonio Texas divorce lawyer, lots of folks ask me about annulments, as opposed to divorce.  Typically, the couple, hasn't been together very long, and they realized that the marriage was a mistake very quickly.  Many people have some very strange ideas about how and why you can have a marriage annulled, so I wrote this blog to get rid of a lot of misconceptions about the annulment process.

An annulment can be granted in Texas under some very specific statutory grounds.  For instance, if you find out after the marriage that your spouse has recently escaped from mental institution, you can have your marriage annulled.  If you got married under duress, or if you were under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time, you can get your marriage annulled.  There are a number of other statutory grounds, including "impotence" (although I've never had anyone seek an annulment on that ground).

The most common ground for annulment is "fraud in the inducement."  Simply put, this means that if your spouse used fraud to induce you into the marriage, you can have the marriage annulled if you stop living with him or her as soon as you discover the fraud. 

Now what the term "fraud" includes is anyone's guess.  A typical situation:  spouse "A" who lives in another country induces spouse "B," who lives in Texas, to marry her/him, promising love, affection, undying devotion, etc.  As it turns out, all Spouse "A" wanted was to get into the country, and she/he quickly makes it clear that there will be no real marital relationship, and that the only thing spouse "A" really wants is a green card. That seems to me to be a clear case of fraud, and in fact I have had a number of clients come to me seeking annulments under that circumstance.

On the other hand, if the "fraud" in that instance was Spouse "A"'s false promise that he or she wanted to marry for legitimate reasons (love and affection, etc.), then that leaves open a number of interpretations.  For instance, can someone have the marriage annulled when he or she realizes that the other spouse only married him or her for his or her money? 

The list goes on and on.  However, judges in Bexar County are more likely to grant annulments based on the length of the marriage.  If the parties have been married and living together for say, a year or so, it is unlikely the Court will grant the annulment.  On the other hand, if they've been married for 3 or 4 weeks, most Bexar County judges will probably grant the annulment, for any reason.

The lesson to be learned is twofold:  (1)  don't expect to get an annulment if you've been married for a long time, and (2) be sure you have clear-cut grounds to allege fraud in the inducement.

J. Michael Clay is a family law attorney in San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas whose practice focuses on family law issues like annulment, divorce, child custody, child support, child custody modification, child custody enforcement, child support modification, child support enforcement, and adoption.

J. Michael Clay is licensed to practice in all Texas state courts, and in federal courts in the Western District of Texas.

Not certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in any particular area.