Legal Question in Family Law in Texas

The law of informal marriage can be found in the Texas Family Code, Chapter 2. An excerpt provides:

� 2.401. PROOF OF INFORMAL MARRIAGE. (a) In a judicial,

administrative, or other proceeding, the marriage of a man and

woman may be proved by evidence that:

(1) a declaration of their marriage has been signed as

provided by this subchapter; or

(2) the man and woman agreed to be married and after

the agreement they lived together in this state as husband and wife

and there represented to others that they were married.

(b) If a proceeding in which a marriage is to be proved as

provided by Subsection (a)(2) is not commenced before the second

anniversary of the date on which the parties separated and ceased

living together, it is rebuttably presumed that the parties did not

enter into an agreement to be married.

(c) A person under 18 years of age may not:

(1) be a party to an informal marriage; or

(2) execute a declaration of informal marriage under

Section 2.402.

(d) A person may not be a party to an informal marriage or

execute a declaration of an informal marriage if the person is

presently married to a person who is not the other party to the

informal marriage or declaration of an informal marriage, as

applicable.