Tex. Fam. Code Section 6.501
Temporary Restraining Order


(a)

After the filing of a suit for dissolution of a marriage, on the motion of a party or on the court’s own motion, the court may grant a temporary restraining order without notice to the adverse party for the preservation of the property and for the protection of the parties as necessary, including an order prohibiting one or both parties from:

(1)

intentionally communicating in person or in any other manner, including by telephone or another electronic voice transmission, video chat, in writing, or electronic messaging, with the other party by use of vulgar, profane, obscene, or indecent language or in a coarse or offensive manner, with intent to annoy or alarm the other party;

(2)

threatening the other party in person or in any other manner, including by telephone or another electronic voice transmission, video chat, in writing, or electronic messaging, to take unlawful action against any person, intending by this action to annoy or alarm the other party;

(3)

placing a telephone call, anonymously, at an unreasonable hour, in an offensive and repetitious manner, or without a legitimate purpose of communication with the intent to annoy or alarm the other party;

(4)

intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causing bodily injury to the other party or to a child of either party;

(5)

threatening the other party or a child of either party with imminent bodily injury;

(6)

intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly destroying, removing, concealing, encumbering, transferring, or otherwise harming or reducing the value of the property of the parties or either party with intent to obstruct the authority of the court to order a division of the estate of the parties in a manner that the court deems just and right, having due regard for the rights of each party and any children of the marriage;

(7)

intentionally falsifying a writing or record, including an electronic record, relating to the property of either party;

(8)

intentionally misrepresenting or refusing to disclose to the other party or to the court, on proper request, the existence, amount, or location of any tangible or intellectual property of the parties or either party, including electronically stored or recorded information;

(9)

intentionally or knowingly damaging or destroying the tangible or intellectual property of the parties or either party, including electronically stored or recorded information;

(10)

intentionally or knowingly tampering with the tangible or intellectual property of the parties or either party, including electronically stored or recorded information, and causing pecuniary loss or substantial inconvenience to the other party;

(11)

except as specifically authorized by the court:

(A)

selling, transferring, assigning, mortgaging, encumbering, or in any other manner alienating any of the property of the parties or either party, regardless of whether the property is:
(i)
personal property, real property, or intellectual property; or
(ii)
separate or community property;

(B)

incurring any debt, other than legal expenses in connection with the suit for dissolution of marriage;

(C)

withdrawing money from any checking or savings account in a financial institution for any purpose;

(D)

spending any money in either party’s possession or subject to either party’s control for any purpose;

(E)

withdrawing or borrowing money in any manner for any purpose from a retirement, profit sharing, pension, death, or other employee benefit plan, employee savings plan, individual retirement account, or Keogh account of either party; or

(F)

withdrawing or borrowing in any manner all or any part of the cash surrender value of a life insurance policy on the life of either party or a child of the parties;

(12)

entering any safe deposit box in the name of or subject to the control of the parties or either party, whether individually or jointly with others;

(13)

changing or in any manner altering the beneficiary designation on any life insurance policy on the life of either party or a child of the parties;

(14)

canceling, altering, failing to renew or pay premiums on, or in any manner affecting the level of coverage that existed at the time the suit was filed of, any life, casualty, automobile, or health insurance policy insuring the parties’ property or persons, including a child of the parties;

(15)

opening or diverting mail or e-mail or any other electronic communication addressed to the other party;

(16)

signing or endorsing the other party’s name on any negotiable instrument, check, or draft, including a tax refund, insurance payment, and dividend, or attempting to negotiate any negotiable instrument payable to the other party without the personal signature of the other party;

(17)

taking any action to terminate or limit credit or charge credit cards in the name of the other party;

(18)

discontinuing or reducing the withholding for federal income taxes from either party’s wages or salary;

(19)

destroying, disposing of, or altering any financial records of the parties, including a canceled check, deposit slip, and other records from a financial institution, a record of credit purchases or cash advances, a tax return, and a financial statement;

(20)

destroying, disposing of, or altering any e-mail, text message, video message, or chat message or other electronic data or electronically stored information relevant to the subject matter of the suit for dissolution of marriage, regardless of whether the information is stored on a hard drive, in a removable storage device, in cloud storage, or in another electronic storage medium;

(21)

modifying, changing, or altering the native format or metadata of any electronic data or electronically stored information relevant to the subject matter of the suit for dissolution of marriage, regardless of whether the information is stored on a hard drive, in a removable storage device, in cloud storage, or in another electronic storage medium;

(22)

deleting any data or content from any social network profile used or created by either party or a child of the parties;

(23)

using any password or personal identification number to gain access to the other party’s e-mail account, bank account, social media account, or any other electronic account;

(24)

terminating or in any manner affecting the service of water, electricity, gas, telephone, cable television, or any other contractual service, including security, pest control, landscaping, or yard maintenance at the residence of either party, or in any manner attempting to withdraw any deposit paid in connection with any of those services;

(25)

excluding the other party from the use and enjoyment of a specifically identified residence of the other party;

(26)

entering, operating, or exercising control over a motor vehicle in the possession of the other party; or

(27)

tracking or monitoring personal property or a motor vehicle in the possession of a party, without that party’s effective consent, including by:

(A)

using a tracking application on a personal electronic device in the possession of that party or using a tracking device; or

(B)

physically following that party or causing another to physically follow that party.

(b)

A temporary restraining order under this subchapter may not include a provision:

(1)

the subject of which is a requirement, appointment, award, or other order listed in Section 64.104 (Expenditures by Receiver), Civil Practice and Remedies Code; or

(2)

that:

(A)

excludes a spouse from occupancy of the residence where that spouse is living except as provided in a protective order made in accordance with Title 4;

(B)

prohibits a party from spending funds for reasonable and necessary living expenses; or

(C)

prohibits a party from engaging in acts reasonable and necessary to conduct that party’s usual business and occupation.
Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 7, Sec. 1, eff. April 17, 1997. Amended by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1081, Sec. 6, eff. Sept. 1, 1999.
Amended by:
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 43 (S.B. 815), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2015.
Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 839 (H.B. 2715), Sec. 4, eff. September 1, 2023.

Source: Section 6.501 — Temporary Restraining Order, https://statutes.­capitol.­texas.­gov/Docs/FA/htm/FA.­6.­htm#6.­501 (accessed Jun. 5, 2024).

6.001
Insupportability
6.002
Cruelty
6.003
Adultery
6.004
Conviction of Felony
6.005
Abandonment
6.006
Living Apart
6.007
Confinement in Mental Hospital
6.008
Defenses
6.103
Underage Annulment Barred by Adulthood
6.104
Discretionary Annulment of Underage Marriage
6.105
Under Influence of Alcohol or Narcotics
6.106
Impotency
6.107
Fraud, Duress, or Force
6.108
Mental Incapacity
6.109
Concealed Divorce
6.111
Death of Party to Voidable Marriage
6.201
Consanguinity
6.202
Marriage During Existence of Prior Marriage
6.203
Certain Void Marriages Validated
6.204
Recognition of Same-sex Marriage or Civil Union
6.205
Marriage to Minor
6.206
Marriage to Stepchild or Stepparent
6.301
General Residency Rule for Divorce Suit
6.302
Suit for Divorce by Nonresident Spouse
6.303
Absence on Public Service
6.304
Armed Forces Personnel Not Previously Residents
6.305
Acquiring Jurisdiction over Nonresident Respondent
6.306
Jurisdiction to Annul Marriage
6.307
Jurisdiction to Declare Marriage Void
6.308
Exercising Partial Jurisdiction
6.401
Caption
6.402
Pleadings
6.403
Answer
6.404
Information Regarding Protective Orders
6.405
Protective Order and Related Orders
6.406
Mandatory Joinder of Suit Affecting Parent-child Relationship
6.407
Transfer of Suit Affecting Parent-child Relationship to Divorce Court
6.408
Service of Citation
6.409
Citation by Publication
6.410
Report to Accompany Petition
6.411
Confidentiality of Pleadings
6.501
Temporary Restraining Order
6.502
Temporary Injunction and Other Temporary Orders
6.503
Affidavit, Verified Pleading, and Bond Not Required
6.504
Protective Orders
6.505
Counseling
6.506
Contempt
6.507
Interlocutory Appeal
6.601
Arbitration Procedures
6.602
Mediation Procedures
6.604
Informal Settlement Conference
6.701
Failure to Answer
6.702
Waiting Period
6.703
Jury
6.704
Testimony of Husband or Wife
6.705
Testimony by Marriage Counselor
6.706
Change of Name
6.707
Transfers and Debts Pending Decree
6.708
Costs
6.709
Temporary Orders During Appeal
6.710
Notice of Final Decree
6.711
Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law
6.712
Date of Marriage Requirement in Final Decree
6.801
Remarriage
6.802
Waiver of Prohibition Against Remarriage
6.4035
Waiver of Service
6.6015
Determination of Validity and Enforceability of Contract Containing Agreement to Arbitrate

Accessed:
Jun. 5, 2024

§ 6.501’s source at texas​.gov