Divorce Attorney in Austin, Texas
Does it matter who files for divorce first?
Does it matter who files for divorce first?
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00:04
there is only a
00:07
minor minor advantage to somebody filing
00:10
first in a divorce case
00:13
and it’s minor because the only impact
00:17
it has is in the in the event that the
00:20
case goes to a final trial
00:23
most of our cases the vast majority of
00:26
our cases settle before it ever reaches
00:28
the courtroom for a final trial
00:31
but there is a very slight advantage to
00:34
having filed first in that instance
00:37
because the person who has filed first
00:40
the petitioner is able to present their
00:42
case first in the final trial but even
00:46
then
00:47
this is not a dispositive advantage to
00:50
having filed first it does not determine
00:52
the outcome of your case if you get to
00:54
present first
00:55
so
00:56
again it is a very minor advantage to
00:59
having filed a divorce petition first
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Austin, TX family law attorney Jamie Kerr talks about the impact of who files for divorce first. He points out that there is only a minor advantage to filing first in a divorce case. This advantage is limited to situations where the case goes to a final trial. In that scenario, the petitioner—the person who filed first—gets to present their case first.
However, he emphasizes that the vast majority of cases settle before reaching a final trial, and even when the case does go to trial, presenting first does not determine the outcome. Therefore, the benefit of filing first is very minor and not dispositive in the case.
