Christopher Jay Harding’s Answers

The short answer to the question is yes - a parent can petition the court to terminate his or her parent-child relationship. Normally, however, the Courts do not favor such action. (Texas Family Code 161.005 and note after in Sampson and Tindall) Perhaps another route is to file for the adoption and have the non-custodial parent sign a Consent of Adoption form. (Information found in Tex. Fam. Code 162.010) In either case, you should consult an attorney to make sure you cover all your...

That all depends on what the final order was and the facts of your case. You really need to sit down with an attorney, many give free initial consults. That way you can determine if you even have standing to file.

She can certainly ask to have him moved out. Understand that while the house is hers, mortgage payments made during the marriage are likely paid with income generated during the marriage, or community funds. Her husband could get half of those payments back, but not the home. However, if he used and benefited from the payments by living in the house, most courts are not going to make her pay it back as it is comparable to renting the space. She should still hire a lawyer, if just to...

No. That is his obligation, not yours.

Texas does not recognize legal separation. JAG may know of an option that allows him to travel if that is what he wants, or he could talk with his commanding officer about the coding issue.

You will need to take her back to court. If she is worried about you failing to pay the loan, she has to wait for you to fail to pay, then sue you. You might be able to just go get the car using the decree as the instrument showing ownership, if it lists the VIN... you would still need to figure out how to get keys and all, or switch the keys on the car. You could hire a lawyer to draft a letter to her first, and see if that gets her to move. Disclaimer: This answer is intended for...

He needs to file a suit affecting the parent child relationship. With that filing, request a temporary orders hearing and that on hearing, the court grant temporary orders stating neither party can remove the child without permission from Tarrant county (or TX). Once granted, you can have it enforced by the cops if you have to. As it stands now, there is nothing preventing her from taking the child to another state. If you file suit, your son will need to consider child support and...

Good question - the answer is no, the two are treated differently and you have different options. Court-Ordered means your ex is disobeying a court order, can be fined and jailed. Contractual means he has breached a contract and you must sue for breach of contract (in the same court the order issued from). Send a demand letter first - those are free for you to send, but you need to make sure you follow all the requirements. If he fails to pay, file suit and have him served. You might...

Divorce cases in Dallas are starting to move more quickly, which just means that you can get a final trial in typically 6 - 9 months, barring extensive discovery and if you push for it. Sit down with an attorney and discuss the situation. You may likely see allegations of family violence next, as that is one way divorcing spouses that are immigrants can maintain their status in the US. Should this occur, DO NOT SIT BY IDLY. Fight it and fight it hard. Findings of family violence can...

The Court (and Texas law) requires you to make a good faith effort to find him. After you can prove that, the Court may allow service by an alternative method, such as publication or through a family member. Recently, an appellate decision showed disfavor on the publication avenue, so it will be interesting to see how that would work now. Occasionally, you can pay a private party to find someone for a couple hundred dollars, and they can come up with a list of possible hits. It is...