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Husband thought secret divorce could avoid property division

On Behalf of | Feb 2, 2016 | Property Division |

Dividing marital assets in a Texas divorce can be difficult and sometimes it gives rise to high levels of contention. Some individuals will go to any lengths to avoid property division and sharing their assets with their spouses. A 59-year-old woman in another state recently filed a lawsuit against the man to whom she thought she was married for 20 years.

Court documents indicate that, in 1994, the couple got married in another state. The woman claims that she recently learned that the man she married obtained divorce documents from another country four months after their wedding. She apparently became suspicious in November when she received a tax bill related to their condo. She noticed that the bill was addressed to only her husband and not to both of them.

She retained the services of an attorney who looked into the condo issue and discovered that the man she had spent 20 years with had divorced her many years ago. It was also found that he used the divorce documents that were issued in the Dominican Republic in an attempt to have her name removed from the deed of the condo. She says she believes her “husband” wants the condo to be purchased by a daughter from a previous marriage.

The lawsuit is a motion to declare the divorce invalid and to prevent her husband from selling the condo which, she claims, is marital property. The woman contends that she cannot remember ever signing any documents related to a divorce and asserts that they have lived as a married couple with all the associated ups and downs typical of any marriage. Any Texas resident who finds him or herself in circumstances that may need legal action to address property division issues may find that an experienced family law attorney can suggest the appropriate manner in which to deal with the issues of contention.

Source: yahoo.com, “Husband Secretly Divorces Wife of 20 Years“, Jan. 25, 2016