A Divorce trial can be very contentious and stressful, so you would be very thankful when it’s all over. However, the hassle would continue if you find the final orders unacceptable. Is there still a way to overturn the decision?

Appealing the Court Decision

The family Court has jurisdiction for divorce cases. Thus, the rules of the family court apply. If you want to Appeal the final orders of your divorce, you have to do it within thirty days.

When appealing civil cases in Texas, you cannot only air your objection to the final orders. It must be shown that the judge didn’t follow the law or overstepped his boundaries.

This is particularly difficult. The appellate court usually gives judges much leeway in interpreting the evidence that leads to his decision. Many divorce cases, without clear cases of abuse, are often subject to interpretation.

The Time Period for Filing

A notice of appeal is filed within 30 days. This is from the date of entry of the final judgment. You need to prepare a brief which explains the basis of the appeal along with the trial transcript. You will also need to present the evidence, pleadings, and other supporting documents. These have to be compelling and persuasive.

This sounds like a daunting task because it is. Appeals take up the time and resources of the court. They would want to make sure that there is a valid reason to re-examine a case.

Reasons for Appeal

In some instances, appeals happen when testimony is proven false or inaccurate. For example, if accusations of infidelity were strongly validated by multiple witnesses, an appeal is proper.

If the evidence proves there was a false accusation, it could be a basis to appeal the final orders. However, this is still subject to interpretation. Infidelity in itself is not a crime in Texas. The weight that judges place on it when rendering their final orders is entirely subjective.

Reasons for appeal are, however, not limited to false or inaccurate testimony. It could also be a violation of due process. The Appeals court would not necessarily proceed with the appeal based on how the judge decreed, but the appellant may argue that the judge was misled and was not capable of rendering a fair and equitable decision at that time.

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