Overview

• A coalition of eight state and national outlets filed a plea to intervene Tuesday in Collin County, asking the court to reverse a July order that sealed the Paxtons’ divorce case with only limited exceptions for confidentiality.
• The intervenors are Dow Jones, The Washington Post, Hearst Newspapers, ProPublica, The Texas Lawbook, The Texas Observer, The Texas Tribune, and The Texas Newsroom.
• Angela Paxton filed in July citing adultery; Judge Ray Wheless sealed the records and later recused, and the case now sits with Judge Lindsey Wynne.
• Angela Paxton’s initial petition sought a disproportionate share of assets plus temporary exclusive use of the McKinney home and her business account, while Ken Paxton issued a general denial in court and blamed political enemies in a post on X.
• The filing argues divorce records are presumptively public for elected officials, notes recent corrections to the Paxtons’ property disclosures after reporting this summer, and points to Ken Paxton’s U.S. Senate bid as heightening public interest.