By JoAnn Storey
Under Rule 299a, a trial court should not include findings of fact in its judgment. See Tex. R. Civ. P. 299a (“Findings of fact shall not be recited in a judgment.”).
Nevertheless, findings in the judgment have probative value and will be treated as valid findings as long as they do not conflict with findings recited in a separate document. In re Estate of Parrimore, No. 14-14-00820-CV, 2016 WL 750293, at *5 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] Feb. 25, 2016, no pet.); see also Gonzalez v. Razi, 338 S.W.3d 167, 175 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 2011, pet. denied) (“[F]indings of fact recited in an order or judgment will be accorded probative value so long as they are not in conflict with findings recited in a separate document.” (quoting In re Sigmar, 270 S.W.3d 289, 295 n.2 (Tex. App.—Waco 2008, orig. proceeding))); In re C.A.B., 289 S.W.3d 874, 881 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2009, no pet.) (“The mere inclusion of findings in a judgment does not mean the findings have no effect” and “findings improperly included in a judgment still have probative value and are valid as findings.”); Hill v. Hill, 971 S.W.2d 153, 157 (Tex. App.—Amarillo 1998, no pet.) (recognizing that “findings contained in a judgment (contrary to Rule 299a) are not shorn of all authority” but “only to the extent they conflict ” with findings made in a separate document).
In Family Law cases, consult Family Code Section 6.711 (Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law) and section 154.130 (Findings in Child Support Order).