Texas Family Code 6.406 – Mandatory Joinder of Suit Affecting Parent-Child Relationship
(a) The petition in a suit for dissolution of a marriage shall state whether there are children born or adopted of the marriage who are under 18 years of age or who are otherwise entitled to support as provided by Chapter 154.
(a-1) If the parties to a suit for dissolution of a marriage are the intended parents under a gestational agreement that is in effect and that establishes a parent-child relationship between the parties as intended parents and an unborn child on the birth of the child, the petition in the suit for dissolution of a marriage shall state:
(1) that the parties to the marriage have entered into a gestational agreement establishing a parent-child relationship between the parties as intended parents and an unborn child on the birth of the child;
(2) whether the gestational mother under the agreement is pregnant or a child who is the subject of the agreement has been born; and
(3) whether the agreement has been validated under § 160.756.
Terms Used In Texas Family Code 6.406
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
(b) If the parties are parents of a child, as defined by § 101.003, and the child is not under the continuing jurisdiction of another court as provided by Chapter 155, the suit for dissolution of a marriage must include a suit affecting the parent-child relationship under Title 5.