April 27, 2021
For Immediate Release
For More Information: info@ruthinstitute.org
Ruth Inst. President Testifies for Texas Unilateral Divorce Repeal
“No government should have a policy of always taking sides with the party who wants the marriage least,” said Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse, Ph.D., President
of the Ruth Institute, on April 26, 2021.
Morse was testifying in support of House Bill 3188, filed by Representative
Matthew Krause, which would permit “no-fault” divorce in Texas only by mutual consent of spouses.
Morse explained: “Only about one-quarter of divorces take place by mutual consent. Seventy-five per cent of divorces take place against the will of one
of the parties.
“One party can drag the other into court and have the assets of the family subject to division.” Also, “The division of custody of the children comes under
the jurisdiction and control of the state.”
Morse charged, “The forced division of financial assets and child custody amounts to a serious penalty imposed by the State on a law-abiding citizen, simply
at the request of their spouse.” That might mean, for instance, that a party guilty of adultery “could unilaterally end the marriage and have the legal
right to contract another marriage with his or her paramour. The law supports the guilty spouse against the innocent spouse.”
The losses to children of divorce are “staggering and well-documented,” Morse said. “One survey of the literature cataloging the harms to the children
from divorce includes more than 300 footnotes.”
These children experience diminished academic performance, greater likelihood of drug abuse and suicide, “loss of stability of their relationships with
their parents,” inability to trust, and “compromised ability to form stable and satisfying love relationships of their own.”
In conclusion, Morse noted: “These considerations lead me to support an end to unilateral no-fault divorce. No citizen should have the right to unilaterally
inflict costs of this magnitude on their spouse and children without a finding of fault.”
Read Morse’s full testimony.
As well as being Founder and President of the Ruth Institute, Morse:
- Taught economics at Yale and George Mason University for a total of 15 years
- Is the author of six books on marriage, family and human sexuality, including The Sexual State: How Elite Ideologies Are Destroying Lives.
- Has had her writings translated into Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Polish, and Chuukese (the native language of the Micronesian Islands).
- Was named one of the “Catholic Stars of 2013” on a list that included Pope Francis and Pope Benedict XVI.
- Was the campaign spokesman for California’s Proposition 8, (against the redefinition of marriage) which passed in 2008. California Votes for Prop 8 – WSJ
The Ruth Institute is a global non-profit organization leading an international interfaith
coalition to defend the family and build a civilization of love.
To schedule an interview with Dr. Morse, contact info@ruthinstitute.org.