Declaratory judgment actions allow parties to a potential action to determine their rights and responsibilities before a lawsuit is filed. ""Declaratory judgment actions are subject to a fouryear statute of limitations.On the other hand, at least one court has refused to construe art. 21.42 as a limitation on the cases to which Texas law can apply. Civil cases also are tried in district court. They begin when a plaintiff – the party seeking relief from an alleged wrong – files a complaint. If not commenced within the statute of limitation (which is 2 years), there is a rebuttable presumption that the parties did not have a common law marriage. A declaratory judgment is a binding judgment from a court defining the legal relationship between parties and their rights in a matter before the court. Any person seeking a declaratory judgment may also demand additional, alternative, coercive, subsequent, or supplemental relief in the same action. History.—s. Defendants first argue that XTO is not entitled to recover any attorneys' fees or costs, because the Texas Declaratory Judgment.