epcounty.com - Domestic Relations Office

Domestic Relations Office

Divorce Procedures
Many people seek a divorce without hiring an attorney, but the Family Law Information Center ("FLIC") strongly suggests that at some time during the divorce process you consult with an attorney even if you cannot afford to hire one to completely handle your divorce for you .
This flyer is intended to give basic information about the "nuts and bolts" of obtaining a divorce on your own. If you are the person filing, you are known as the "Petitioner." If you are the person who receives it, you are known as the "Respondent."
I. Where to go?
To file an original petition for divorce you go to the District Clerk's office (first floor of the El Paso County Courthouse, room 103), unless you hire a private process server.
If you need to schedule a hearing you go to the individual court to which your case is assigned. Your case will be assigned to a Family Law District Court by the District Clerk's Office when you file your divorce petition. Different District Courts have different procedures for scheduling hearings.
For an uncontested final divorce hearing you may need to go to the Associate Judge for the District Court to which your case is assigned. Again, different District Courts have different procedures for scheduling uncontested hearings, so you need to check with each individual court.
Leave your Child Support Notification Form in the court's DRO box or with the court's bailiff. Then file your final divorce decree and any accompanying documents that have been signed by the judge with the District Clerk's Office. If wages are going to be garnished for child support or alimony, you must go to the DRO to have your Withholding Order issued to the Obligor's employer.
II. Filing Fees & Court Costs
Unless you file a "pauper's oath" stating that you truly cannot afford to pay the fees, there is a filing fee of between $166 and $189, depending on whether or not you have children and whether or not you need a Citation prepared by the clerk.
If you hire a private process server there will be an additional fee of between $45 and $65.
If you need the Sheriff to serve the papers for you it is a minimum of $83.
If you wish to have the DRO prepare a Withholding Order for you there is a $30 fee.
There is also a $30 fee to have a Withholding Order issued to an employer.
If your divorce decree includes provisions for child support of any kind there is a $36 annual service fee due from each parent to the El Paso County DRO until the youngest child is 18 years old.
III. Timeliness
In order to file for a divorce in El Paso County the petitioner or respondent must have lived in the state of Texas for 6 months and in El Paso for 90 days prior to filing.
There is a mandatory 60-day waiting period from date the divorce is filed until the divorce can be finalized. From the day a person is formally served with divorce papers, he or she has until the first Monday occurring more than 20 days after the day of service to file an answer. In other words, to find the date an answer is due, you count 20 days beginning with the day after being served, then go to the next Monday. The answer is due by that Monday.
IV. Where can I go to obtain family law forms?
Family law forms are available in the El Paso County Law Library in a set of books called the State Bar of Texas Family Law Practice Manual. The forms in the practice manual are put out by the State Bar of Texas, and are very good if you know how to use them. There are also various companies that offer to help you represent yourself by preparing your forms for you; some of these forms are not very good. Some of these companies give you incorrect information about how to calculate child support, or how to divide debt. As stated above, it is best to consult with an attorney familiar with the Family Law of Texas.
V. What forms do I need for a divorce?
See FLIC flyer What Forms Do I Need For a Divorce? for a list of commonly used divorce forms.
VI. Need for an attorney.
Family law is extremely complicated and it is always best to seek the help of an experienced attorney. For example, the division of property in a divorce decree is generally final and cannot be changed. For this and many other reasons we strongly recommend that the person going through a divorce consult with an attorney at some point during the process.
Both the El Paso Bar Association and the Family Law Information Center maintain a roster of attorneys who handle family law cases. For help in finding a lawyer you may contact:
A) Family Law Information Center (915) 834-8203 or (915) 834-8200 extension 4039.
B) El Paso Bar Association, Nancy Gallegos, (915) 532- 7052.
C)The State Bar of Texas maintains a website www. texasbar.com or at their toll free number (877) 983- 9227.