Bigamy Laws in Texas

Bigamy occurs when an individual is simultaneously married to two spouses. Sometimes bigamy occurs accidentally
because one spouse was not properly informed of the status of a previous marriage. In other instances,
one spouse may be duped into getting married to a person who is already married to another individual.
Depending on your situation, if you are a victim of bigamy, you may have grounds to file either for
an annulment or for divorce.

Grounds for Annulment

Under Texas law, a marriage is considered invalid if one spouse was already married to someone else
at the time of the marriage. If you find out that your spouse is already married to another person,
you can file for an annulment and have the marriage declared void, meaning that under the law the marriage
never occurred.

Grounds for Divorce

Sometimes individuals don’t find out that their spouse was simultaneously married to another individual
until the first marriage has already ended in divorce. As soon as the first marriage ends, the second
one is automatically considered valid by Texas law. Therefore if you want to leave your spouse because
you discovered the bigamy after the fact, you will have to seek a divorce.

A similar situation occurs when a spouse in a first marriage discovers bigamy and wants to leave the
bigamist spouse. If you are married to an individual as his or her first spouse and then discover that
they marry another person while your marriage is still valid, your spouse has committed bigamy. Because
your marriage came first, it is the valid marriage, and the second marriage is void under law. This
means that if you want to end your marriage as the first spouse, you will need to seek a divorce.

Contact Us

If you are involved in bigamy, consider contacting a Texas divorce attorney immediately. Not only does
bigamy interfere with your marriage, it is also a felony offense in Texas. A divorce lawyer can help
you resolve this complex situation and advise you on what would be the best course of legal action for
your circumstance.

For sound legal advice on bigamy in Texas and how it affects your marriage, please
contact the experienced Austin Family Lawyers of KennonLegal Ltd. LLP today at 512-931-3726.