Adultery and Divorce in Texas

Discovering an affair is devastating, and it often brings the end of a marriage into sharp focus. If you are in New Braunfels or elsewhere in Comal County and your spouse has been unfaithful, or you are the one accused, you probably want to know whether it will make a difference in the divorce. In Texas, adultery can matter, but usually not in the way people expect. A divorce attorney can help you decide whether raising adultery will actually help your case.

How Texas Defines Adultery

Texas Family Code § 6.003 allows a court to grant a divorce if the other spouse has committed adultery. Texas courts generally define adultery as voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and someone other than their spouse.

A few points that surprise people:

• Emotional affairs alone are not adultery. Inappropriate texting or an emotional connection, without sexual intercourse, generally does not meet the definition, though it may still be relevant to other issues.
• Separation does not end the marriage. Sexual relations with someone else while separated, or after filing but before the decree, can still be adultery under the law.
• Adultery is not a crime in Texas. It is a civil matter that matters only in family law.

Proving Adultery

Adultery is rarely proved by direct evidence. Texas courts allow it to be proved with circumstantial evidence, but the evidence must be clear and positive. Suspicion, rumor or innuendo is not enough.

Common forms of evidence include:

• Text messages, emails and social media messages
• Photographs or videos
• Hotel receipts, travel records and credit card statements
• Testimony from witnesses, including the other person
• The spouse’s own admissions, in conversation, writing or under oath at a deposition
• Phone records showing frequent contact
• Reports from a licensed private investigator

Be careful how you gather evidence

Some ways of gathering evidence can create legal problems for you. Accessing your spouse’s email or phone without permission, installing tracking software, or recording conversations you are not part of can violate state or federal law and may make the evidence unusable. Talk with a lawyer before you start investigating.

How Adultery Affects Property Division

Texas divides the community estate in a manner that is “just and right,” which does not have to mean equal. A court may consider fault in the breakup of the marriage, including adultery, along with factors like earning capacity, health and the needs of the children.

In practice, adultery tends to have the most impact when:

• Community money was spent on the affair. Gifts, trips, hotel rooms, rent or support for a paramour can be treated as waste of the community estate. The court can account for that spending, for example by awarding the wronged spouse a larger share or ordering reimbursement.
• The affair is part of a broader pattern of financial misconduct or cruelty.
• There is significant community property to divide, so a disproportionate share makes a real difference.

Adultery does not mean the unfaithful spouse loses everything. Judges vary in how much weight they give to fault, and many cases settle with only a modest adjustment.

Adultery and Spousal Maintenance

Court-ordered spousal maintenance in Texas is limited and available only to spouses who meet strict eligibility rules. When deciding the amount and duration of maintenance, a court may consider marital misconduct, including adultery, by the spouse seeking maintenance. So an affair can weaken a request for maintenance in some cases. Learn more on our spousal maintenance page.

Adultery and Child Custody

Custody decisions in Texas focus on the best interest of the child. An affair, standing alone, usually does not decide conservatorship or the possession schedule. It becomes relevant when it affects the children, for example:

• A parent neglected the children to pursue the relationship
• The new partner has a history of violence, substance abuse or criminal conduct
• The children were exposed to inappropriate situations
• A parent’s choices created instability in the children’s home

Judges also look poorly on a parent who tries to turn the children against the other parent by telling them about the affair. Keep the children out of it. See divorce with children.

Dating During a Divorce

You are still legally married until the decree is signed. Dating, and especially living with a new partner, while the case is pending can:

• Be cited as adultery
• Upset your spouse and make settlement harder
• Raise questions about your judgment if children are involved
• Create financial issues if community money is spent on the new relationship

Some temporary orders or agreements restrict overnight guests during a parent’s possession time. The safest course is to wait until the divorce is final, or at least talk with your lawyer first.

If You Are the Spouse Accused

Being accused of adultery does not mean the court will punish you. Your lawyer can challenge weak or speculative evidence, show that the marriage had broken down earlier, and keep the focus on a fair division. Be honest with your lawyer about what happened so they can plan for it. Avoid deleting messages or other evidence once a case is filed or expected, because destroying evidence can lead to serious consequences.

Should You Plead Adultery?

Pleading adultery can make sense when there is strong evidence and meaningful community property or a maintenance claim at stake. It may not be worth it when the evidence is thin, the estate is small, or the cost of proof outweighs the benefit. Many petitions plead insupportability and adultery in the alternative. Our page on grounds for divorce explains the options, and community property explains how the estate is divided.

Adultery Cases in New Braunfels and Comal County

Infidelity cases are filed and heard like any other divorce, with the district clerk in Comal County or the correct neighboring county. In a growing community like New Braunfels, where many people know each other through work, church, schools or the river, these cases can also feel very public. Discretion matters, and much of the work happens through settlement rather than open court.

Talk With a New Braunfels Divorce Attorney

Whether you discovered an affair or are facing an accusation, you deserve a clear-eyed assessment of what it means for your divorce. Our family law team serves New Braunfels, Comal County and the surrounding area, and we offer a free, confidential consultation by phone, video or in person. Call (830) 302-4071. Se habla español.

Last reviewed November 13, 2026. General information only, not legal advice.