If you live in Arlington and want a divorce, your case is handled by the Tarrant County Family District Courts, not a separate Arlington court. Arlington sits in eastern Tarrant County between Dallas and Fort Worth, so residents from neighborhoods like Dalworthington Gardens, Pantego, East Arlington, and the entertainment district near AT&T Stadium all file at the same county courthouse in downtown Fort Worth. This guide walks through where to file, what it costs, how long it takes, and the Texas statutes that control the outcome.
Arlington Divorce: Key Facts at a Glance
Arlington residents file divorce paperwork with the Tarrant County District Clerk at the Family Law Center in Fort Worth. The base filing fee is $350 for a divorce without children and $401 with children, at least one spouse must meet a 6-month Texas and 90-day Tarrant County residency rule, and no divorce is granted before day 60.
| Item | Detail for Arlington (Tarrant County) |
|---|---|
| County | Tarrant County |
| Filing court | Tarrant County Family Law Center (District Clerk, 3rd floor) |
| Court address | 200 E. Weatherford Street, Fort Worth, TX 76196 |
| Filing fee | $350 (no children) / $401 (with children) |
| Residency requirement | 6 months in Texas + 90 days in Tarrant County |
| Waiting period | 60 days minimum after filing |
| Property model | Community property, divided just and right |
How do I file for divorce in Arlington, Texas?
To file for divorce in Arlington, you submit an Original Petition for Divorce to the Tarrant County District Clerk and pay $350, or $401 if you have minor children. Tarrant County requires self-represented filers to follow specific e-filing rules, and you must include a Civil Case Information Sheet with the petition when you open the case.
The process starts when one spouse, the petitioner, files the Original Petition for Divorce. After filing, the other spouse must be formally notified. If your spouse signs a Waiver of Service, you avoid service costs entirely. If not, you arrange service through a Tarrant County constable, the sheriff, or certified mail through the District Clerk's office, which typically runs $75 to $125. Tarrant County is one of the counties that requires non-attorney filers to e-file in a particular manner, so review the District Clerk's instructions before submitting. The clerk can be reached at (817) 884-1574 or dclerk@tarrantcounty.com.
Where do I file for divorce in Arlington? (which courthouse)
Arlington divorces are filed at the Tarrant County Family Law Center, 200 E. Weatherford Street, Fort Worth, TX 76196, open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. There is no divorce court located inside Arlington itself, so all paperwork goes to the District Clerk on the third floor of this downtown Fort Worth courthouse.
The Family Law Center is organized by floor. The first floor houses the IV-D courts that handle child support and paternity cases initiated by the Texas Attorney General. The second floor holds the Domestic Relations Office, which manages social studies, supervised visitation, drug testing, and mediation, along with the child support office. The third floor is where the District Clerk keeps records and where you file documents, pay fees, and obtain certified copies. From most Arlington neighborhoods the courthouse is roughly a 20 to 30 minute drive west via Interstate 30. The general county operator is 817-884-1111.
How much does a divorce lawyer cost in Arlington?
A divorce lawyer in Arlington typically charges $250 to $400 per hour, with most attorneys requesting a retainer of $2,500 to $5,000 for a contested case. An uncontested divorce with a flat fee often falls between $1,500 and $3,500, separate from the $350 to $401 court filing fee paid to the Tarrant County District Clerk.
Your total cost depends heavily on whether the divorce is contested. An uncontested Arlington divorce, where both spouses agree on property, support, and parenting, keeps attorney involvement and hours low. A contested case involving disputes over the marital home, retirement accounts, or conservatorship of children can multiply legal fees quickly because of discovery, hearings, and possible trial. Beyond legal fees, budget for service of process ($75 to $125), certified copies of your Final Decree ($1 to $5 each, needed for name changes, Social Security updates, and QDROs), and mediation if the court orders it. If you cannot afford court costs, you may file a Statement of Inability to Afford Payment, and a judge decides whether to waive the filing fee. To estimate your situation, use our divorce cost estimator.
How long does a divorce take in Arlington?
The fastest an Arlington divorce can finalize is 61 days, because Tex. Fam. Code § 6.702 bars any court from granting a divorce before the 60th day after the suit is filed. Uncontested divorces where both spouses agree on every issue commonly finalize within 2 to 4 months, while contested cases can take 6 to 18 months or longer.
The 60-day waiting period is a mandatory cooling-off window that applies to every divorce except those involving a final family-violence conviction or an active protective order under Tex. Fam. Code § 6.702(c). Even a perfectly agreed divorce cannot beat the 60-day floor. After that, timing depends on court scheduling in the Tarrant County family courts and how quickly the spouses resolve property and parenting issues. Disputes over the marital estate, child conservatorship, or spousal maintenance push cases toward mediation and trial settings, extending the timeline considerably.
What are the residency requirements to file in Tarrant County?
To file for divorce in Tarrant County, at least one spouse must have been a Texas domiciliary for the preceding 6 months and a resident of Tarrant County for the preceding 90 days, under Tex. Fam. Code § 6.301. These two requirements can be satisfied by either the petitioner or the respondent, so a recently moved spouse can still file if the other spouse qualifies.
Residency is a jurisdictional rule, meaning the court cannot maintain the divorce suit unless it is met. For Arlington residents who have lived in the city for years, this is rarely an obstacle. The rule matters most for military families stationed elsewhere, people who recently relocated to the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, or spouses living in different counties. If you moved to Arlington fewer than 90 days ago but your spouse has lived in Tarrant County longer, you can still file here. Texas property is divided under the community property system: the court orders a division of the marital estate in a manner it deems just and right under Tex. Fam. Code § 7.001, which can produce a 50/50 split or a disproportionate division based on fault, earning capacity, and the needs of the children.
How is child custody decided for Arlington parents?
Texas uses the term conservatorship instead of custody, and Tarrant County courts start from a rebuttable presumption under Tex. Fam. Code § 153.131 that naming both parents joint managing conservators serves the child's best interest. Joint conservatorship means shared decision-making on education and healthcare, but it does not require equal physical time.
Under a joint managing conservatorship, one parent usually receives the exclusive right to determine the child's primary residence, often within a defined geographic area such as Tarrant and contiguous counties. The other parent typically follows a Standard Possession Order for visitation. Courts weigh evidence of family violence under Tex. Fam. Code § 153.004, and credible evidence of abuse can defeat the joint-conservatorship presumption. Child support in Texas follows statutory percentage guidelines based on the paying parent's net resources and the number of children. To estimate obligations, Arlington parents can use our child support calculator before negotiating a parenting plan.