The 2023 revisions of the reimbursement claim section of the Texas Family Code apply to a claim for reimbursement pending on September 1, 2023, not just cases filed after that date. The 2023 law that amended the reimbursement statute says that it took effect on September 1, 2023 and “[t]he change in law made by this Act applies to a claim for reimbursement that is pending in a trial court on the effective date of this Act or that is filed on or after that date.” H.B. 1537 (R.S. 2023) sections 6 and 7.
A June 20025 opinion from the Dallas Court of Appeals held that the new statute applied even to a case that went to trial before the effective date. In re T.E.R., 05-24-00014-CV (Tex. App. – Dallas 6/26/2025)(mem. op.) involved a divorce case filed in March 2022, a trial in March 2023 and entry of the final decree in December 2023.
Footnote 7 of this opinion says:
We cite to the current version of the “Claims for Reimbursement” subchapter of the family code, which became effective September 1, 2023, because the final decree of divorce was not entered in this case until December 20, 2023, and thus, Wife’s reimbursement claim is governed by the current statutory language. See Act of May 17, 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., ch. 411, § 6, 2023 Tex. Gen. Laws 1003, 1005 (H.B. 1547) (“The change in law made by this Act applies to a claim for reimbursement that is pending in a trial court on the effective date of this Act or that is filed on or after that date.”).
Note, that the law says to “a claim for reimbursement pending in a trial court” and not to a divorce case pending on that date. So, if a divorce was filed but the reimbursement claim was not added until after September 1, 2023, presumably the prior version of the reimbursement statute would apply.
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