The case of In re Marriage of McCoy & Els, 488 S.W.3d 430, 435 (Tex. App.-Houston [14th Dist.] 2016, no pet.) applied the pre-2023 reimbursement law but it is still probably applicable because both the old and new reimbursement statutes apply an “enhancement of value” measure to claims arising from improvements. The court in this case […]
A 2024 decision says once again that evidence of the costs of improvements on a separate property house does not prove the amount the property’s value was enhanced because of the improvements. The court in Vasquez v. Bailey, No. 03-22-00290-CV (Tex. App. – Austin, 4/25/2024)(mem. op.) stated: Although Father introduced evidence about the costs of the […]
In a case where the husband sought reimbursement for his separate estate paying the mortgage on a community property house, the court in Day v. Day, No. 04-23-00476-CV (Tex. App. – San Antonio, 6/20/2024)(mem. op.) held: In the present case, the marital home was purchased during the marriage, and the parties do not dispute that the […]
An October 2024 opinion says that a waste claim is not a reimbursement claim and holds that pleadings are required to recover on a waste claim. The court in Mohammed v. Mohammed, No. 02-23-00449-CV (Tex. App. – Fort Worth, 10/10/2024)(mem. op.) stated: From a procedural standpoint, it is axiomatic that “a judgment must be supported […]
A February 2025 opinion from the Corpus Christi-Edinburg Court of Appeals seems to say that a jury does not get to decide whether a reimbursement claim should be granted but may decide factual issues on which a reimbursement claim could be based upon. For example, a jury could decide the specific question of whether community […]
2025 decisions from the two Houston Courts of Appeals in Houston both say that reimbursement claims are waived by a premarital agreement only if the agreement specifically references reimbursement claims. McCartney v. McCartney, 14-24-00310-CV (Tex. App. – Houston [14th Dist.] 8/5/2025)(mem. op.) said: To release a claim effectively, the releasing instrument must “mention” the claim […]
A June 2025 case from the Dallas Court of Appeals shows how hard it is to prove “enhancement of value” in pursuing a reimbursement claim for funds expended on the property of another estate. This case also reminds us that tracing is required when trying to prove a reimbursement claim owed by the community estate […]
