J. Hudson Schlueter and Richard Stephen Schlueter, Petitioners v. Karen Sue Schlueter, Respondent

Summary

The Texas Supreme Court held that a spouse cannot maintain an independent tort action for fraud on the community; redress is limited to the "just and right" division of marital property in divorce, and exemplary damages are unavailable. The Court reversed the trial court's judgment for actual and punitive damages and attorney's fees against the husband and remanded for a new property division, while affirming the remainder of the appellate judgment. Two dissenting opinions argued that fraud should be actionable as an independent tort and that punitive damages should be available.