Legal Question in Family Law in Texas

If either party has an attorney, you should talk to your attorneys.

If the parties are pro se (without attorneys representing them) litigants, they should read the document carefully BEFORE signing the FINAL DECREE OF DIVORCE.

One of the parties must read a statement under oath in front of the Judge in order to "prove up" the divorce in the State of Texas before the divorce can be granted.

After both parties sign the Final Decree of Divorce then the Judge signs the document.

Once the judge signs the Final Decree of Divorce, the Decree becomes final in 30 days. After 30 days, the Court (aka "the Judge") loses jurisdiction over the case & no changes can be made in the case. In other words, the case is over & it is completed. It is FINAL.

During the 30 day period, either party can go back to the judge and ask that changes be made. However, the party that wants to make a change must go to the Judge and prove to the Judge the reason there should be a change to the Decree. The other party can object to any change. The final decision if the change is allowed is up to the Judge. The Judge does not have to allow the change to be made.

In order to ask the Judge for a hearing to make a change in the Final Decree of Divorce, there is a document that must be filed & a procedure that must be followed. Many judges are very strict in how this process must be done. It is not done very often. It can be a "tricky" process. The other party to the divorce must be given notice of this hearing. If the other party hires an attorney or incurs any expenses, they can ask for their expenses to be paid & most Judges will require the party asking for the change to compensate the "innocent" party to be reimbursed in full in order for the change to be even considered. (This is one reason changes are rarely requested.)

I hope that answers your question.