In Texas, specific legal grounds exist for dissolving a marriage based on the actions of one spouse. One such ground pertains to situations where one spouse has voluntarily left the marital residence with the intent to abandon the other, and remains away for a period exceeding one year. This abandonment must be without the consent of the other spouse, and without any intent to return. For example, if a husband moves out of the family home in January 2023, with no intention of returning and without his wife’s agreement, and remains absent until January 2024, this could form the basis for a divorce based on abandonment.
Establishing abandonment as grounds for divorce provides a pathway to legal separation when one spouse has effectively ended the marital relationship through their prolonged absence. It offers the remaining spouse the ability to finalize the divorce process, even if the abandoning spouse is uncooperative or unreachable. Historically, these provisions recognized the hardship faced by individuals deserted by their partners and sought to provide a legal remedy for situations where the marital relationship had irrevocably broken down due to the actions of one party.