Complicated situation, need help fast

[TXTroubles]

PLEASE HELP - This is a long and complicated story, but we have no idea where to go from here and can't afford legal assistance.

I am posting this to help a friend. He's in Texas and is desperately trying to get a divorce and move on with his life.

This friend, let's call him Carl, has been married to his wife for eight or nine years, but they have been living completely separate lives for five years.

Carl and his wife, let's call her Susan, were young and dumb when they got married. Their marriage ended when Susan cheated on Carl with Robert then Susan and Robert ran away together.

Carl never saw Susan after she left with Robert and moved to a different town, but they didn't keep contact, and Carl never filed for divorce (remember, young and dumb).

Over a year after the last time Susan and Carl saw each other, she gave birth to Robert's child. Carl was aware of the child when she was born.

Since Texas is a state with strict presumed paternity laws, Carl was supposed to be the presumed father of the child since he was still married to Susan, but she lied on the birth certificate and did not include him at all.

Robert signed the birth certificate at the hospital, voluntarily acknowledging he is the father.

Fast forward a few years - Carl finally wants to do the right and get a divorce since he's been living apart from his wife for years.

They both want to get it over with and move on, so they signed uncontested divorce papers. Susan insisted on listing her child on the divorce papers even though Carl is not on the birth certificate.

The same day they signed the divorce papers, Susan, Carl, and Robert also all signed a denial of paternity form which stated Carl was not the child's father and Robert was.

Carl filed for divorce as a divorce with children, and he also filed the denial of paternity. The court then made Carl and Susan take a class about how their divorce would affect the child even though Carl has only met said child one time and Robert has acknowledged he is the child's father and has been acting as the child's father.

They completed the class, but when Carl went to finalize the divorce, the judge would not grant it to him because he is not on the child's birth certificate. He said the birth certificate is invalid.

Everyone would like to get the divorce finalized, but we're not sure where to go from here.

1. Can the child's birth certificate be amended to say Carl is the presumed father but he denies that paternity and Robert acknowledges the paternity? How do we amend the birth certificate?

2. Since Robert acknowledged he was the father at birth, does that supersede Carl's presumed paternity? What would we need to do in this case to make the divorce happen?

3. Would a paternity test enable Carl and Susan to get a divorce without all the convoluted paperwork?

4. Do Carl and Susan need to refile for divorce in a different county?

Please help. It would mean the world if Carl could finally move on. He can't afford a lot of financial burden, so refiling for divorce or getting an expensive paternity test are kind of last resorts.

 

[CTU]

PLEASE HELP - This is a long and complicated story, but we have no idea where to go from here and can't afford legal assistance.

I am posting this to help a friend. He's in Texas and is desperately trying to get a divorce and move on with his life.

This friend, let's call him Carl, has been married to his wife for eight or nine years, but they have been living completely separate lives for five years.

Carl and his wife, let's call her Susan, were young and dumb when they got married. Their marriage ended when Susan cheated on Carl with Robert then Susan and Robert ran away together.

Carl never saw Susan after she left with Robert and moved to a different town, but they didn't keep contact, and Carl never filed for divorce (remember, young and dumb).

Over a year after the last time Susan and Carl saw each other, she gave birth to Robert's child. Carl was aware of the child when she was born.

Since Texas is a state with strict presumed paternity laws, Carl was supposed to be the presumed father of the child since he was still married to Susan, but she lied on the birth certificate and did not include him at all.

Robert signed the birth certificate at the hospital, voluntarily acknowledging he is the father.

Fast forward a few years - Carl finally wants to do the right and get a divorce since he's been living apart from his wife for years.

They both want to get it over with and move on, so they signed uncontested divorce papers. Susan insisted on listing her child on the divorce papers even though Carl is not on the birth certificate.

The same day they signed the divorce papers, Susan, Carl, and Robert also all signed a denial of paternity form which stated Carl was not the child's father and Robert was.

Carl filed for divorce as a divorce with children, and he also filed the denial of paternity. The court then made Carl and Susan take a class about how their divorce would affect the child even though Carl has only met said child one time and Robert has acknowledged he is the child's father and has been acting as the child's father.

They completed the class, but when Carl went to finalize the divorce, the judge would not grant it to him because he is not on the child's birth certificate. He said the birth certificate is invalid.

Everyone would like to get the divorce finalized, but we're not sure where to go from here.

1. Can the child's birth certificate be amended to say Carl is the presumed father but he denies that paternity and Robert acknowledges the paternity? How do we amend the birth certificate?

2. Since Robert acknowledged he was the father at birth, does that supersede Carl's presumed paternity? What would we need to do in this case to make the divorce happen?

3. Would a paternity test enable Carl and Susan to get a divorce without all the convoluted paperwork?

4. Do Carl and Susan need to refile for divorce in a different county?

Please help. It would mean the world if Carl could finally move on. He can't afford a lot of financial burden, so refiling for divorce or getting an expensive paternity test are kind of last resorts.

This is a mess; "we" need to find the money to get Carl an attorney.

 

[Silverplum]

This is a mess; "we" need to find the money to get Carl an attorney.

Also, "we" can't do anything but give money. "We" can't file or prepare any paperwork, or amend birth certificates. eek: at the very idea!)

 

[TXTroubles]

Also, "we" can't do anything but give money. "We" can't file or prepare any paperwork, or amend birth certificates. eek: at the very idea!)

Sorry if I offended you. I am currently in a relationship with Carl, and we're working together on this. He is trying to figure out what to do. Yes, I realize I can't do anything, but he can. We can't afford a lawyer, so we were just trying to see if we had any other options.

 

[Silverplum]

Sorry if I offended you. I am currently in a relationship with Carl, and we're working together on this. He is trying to figure out what to do. Yes, I realize I can't do anything, but he can. We can't afford a lawyer, so we were just trying to see if we had any other options.

I'm not offended, but one cannot change legal documents willy-nilly.

Start here: http://guides.sll.texas.gov/divorce

 

[LdiJ]

Sorry if I offended you. I am currently in a relationship with Carl, and we're working together on this. He is trying to figure out what to do. Yes, I realize I can't do anything, but he can. We can't afford a lawyer, so we were just trying to see if we had any other options.

He clearly needs an attorney and you clearly should stop trying to help him because the questions you asked clearly indicated that you were about to help him make things far worse than they already are.

The reason why he needs an attorney is because an attorney doesn't use pre-printed, fill in the blank forms to file a divorce case. An attorney would have made up a petition for divorce that specifically addresses Carl's situation. That petition would have explained that a child was born during the marriage that was not Carl's child, and that the biological father of that child had already acknowledged paternity.

The judge actually did Carl a favor by refusing to sign off on the divorce petition as written.

 

[TXTroubles]

He clearly needs an attorney and you clearly should stop trying to help him because the questions you asked clearly indicated that you were about to help him make things far worse than they already are.

The reason why he needs an attorney is because an attorney doesn't use pre-printed, fill in the blank forms to file a divorce case. An attorney would have made up a petition for divorce that specifically addresses Carl's situation. That petition would have explained that a child was born during the marriage that was not Carl's child, and that the biological father of that child had already acknowledged paternity.

The judge actually did Carl a favor by refusing to sign off on the divorce petition as written.

Yeah, we weren't going to do anything else until we knew for sure it was the right move, just can't afford an attorney and she screwed us out of getting legal aid. We were hoping there was some feasible way to get this done on our own, but as I feared, there is not. Guess it will have to wait even longer.

 

[TXTroubles]

He clearly needs an attorney and you clearly should stop trying to help him because the questions you asked clearly indicated that you were about to help him make things far worse than they already are.

The reason why he needs an attorney is because an attorney doesn't use pre-printed, fill in the blank forms to file a divorce case. An attorney would have made up a petition for divorce that specifically addresses Carl's situation. That petition would have explained that a child was born during the marriage that was not Carl's child, and that the biological father of that child had already acknowledged paternity.

The judge actually did Carl a favor by refusing to sign off on the divorce petition as written.

Another stupid question, but hear me out - can someone who is not an attorney draft a new petition with the proper language and refile with that after it was signed by all parties and notarized?

 

[stealth2]

Sorry if I offended you. I am currently in a relationship with Carl, and we're working together on this. He is trying to figure out what to do. Yes, I realize I can't do anything, but he can. We can't afford a lawyer, so we were just trying to see if we had any other options.

HIS options are to educate himself, instead of relying on you. And do not tell us he's too busy with work, school, etc. Many here have worked, gone to school, raised a child (or more than one) as a custodial parent AND educated themselves so as to go to court w/o a lawyer. So you're preaching to the choir.

 

[Silverplum]

Another stupid question, but hear me out - can someone who is not an attorney draft a new petition with the proper language and refile with that after it was signed by all parties and notarized?

I thought that was clear already, but no, a non-attorney cannot write your bf's divorce paperwork for him.

 

[LdiJ]

Another stupid question, but hear me out - can someone who is not an attorney draft a new petition with the proper language and refile with that after it was signed by all parties and notarized?

Your boyfriend himself can draft it, but no one else can do it for him. Someone else could proofread what he writes for spelling and grammar, but that is all.