I live in Harris County, Texas. I now live in an apartment in Harris County. My wife moved to Montgomery County with our 3 daughters ages 9 and twins at 4. The strange thing is that she filed for our divorce in Harris County which is not the county she lives in. I was under the impression the divorce had to be filed in the county where she and the kids reside. I also understand that the custody papers will indicate that neither parent can remove the children from the primary conservators county? Isnt she already in violation? What are my options?
Concerned
First, please delete your duplicate post.
The divorce can be filed in the county where EITHER spouse lives - as long as they meet the residency requirements.
Filing for divorce does not automatically prevent either parent from moving with the children in most states (I assume Texas is the same, but you'll need to look it up). Rather, you would have to file for a court order preventing her from moving the children. How long ago did she move? if it has been very long, the court may consider their current home to be the status quo, so it may be hard to get an order to that effect.
Whether she is in violation depends on the order (If there even IS an order on the matter). If, for example, the order states that they can not be moved from their current address, then she's probably OK. If, OTOH, there is an order stating that she can't move them from Harris County, then she would be in violation and you could go to court to enforce the order.
It does seem rather foolish for her to file in a county where she is not living, but there may be a reason. The most likely one is that she has to live in her new county for 90 days to meet the residency requirements and she may not want to wait that long. There may also be a difference in the judges - perhaps her attorney told her she'd get a better settlement in Harris County.
In any event, you should see an attorney to enforce your custody and/or visitation rights.
