Given Nikki Araguz's recent admission that she and her husband Thomas committed perjury during an April 2010 deposition in a previous child custody lawsuit, it seems likely that Nikki may have a difficult time persuading a judge that her statements have credibility unless they are proffered with convincing supporting evidence. If some form of verifiable digital or written evidence exists to support her statements, such evidence might enable her to persuasively make statements during any new deposition, or future courtroom testimony, and provide documentary evidence that supports her statements, thereby enabling her to withstand challenges on cross examination that she has committed perjury previously and that she has a history of convictions for various petty crimes.
In any event, it doesn't seem like Nikki's revelation about the timing of the disclosures she and her husband made to Heather Delgado and Simona Longoria make much difference regarding the core foundation of her defense against them. The only claim of Heather Delgado's that it seems like the timing of the disclosures to them would be relevant to is the fraud cause of action against Nikki. However, the Fraud claim seems based upon Heather's Delgado's contention that Nikki defrauded Thomas with regard to their marriage. it doesn't seem like there is any fact pattern in the relationship between Nikki Araguz and Heather Delgado that could support a fraud claim involving their relationship. However, the best evidence that has been published thus far to document Nikki's contention that Thomas Araguz knew about Nikki's medical history are the October 2008 email messages between them while Nikki was in Trinidad, Colorado, where Marci Bowers, MD, apparently performed genital reconstruction surgery on Nikki to create a vagina for her. In addition, the mere timing of that surgery, and the post-surgical care involved with such surgery, would make it seem all but impossible for Thomas Araguz not to have been aware of what was going on medically with Nikki Araguz and her genitals.
However, even if the court views that evidence in a light most favorable to Nikki Araguz, she and her attorneys must still overcome what seems like a rather thin "common law" marriage assertion, based on the September 1, 2009 change in the Texas Marriage Statute to succeed with a claim that she was legally married to Thomas Araguz. Such a legal argument seems like an uphill battle, especially in a hostile Texas court. If Nikki Araguz and Thomas Araguz had applied for a marriage license after September 1, 2009, it seems like they would have a stronger case, although not one with any assurance of persuading a Texas judge to rule in her favor. A lawsuit like this one doesn't seem likely to be won or lost in a few weeks either. It seems like that at least some period of months will pass before either a summary judgment proceeding or a trial in this case. More than likely, either or both parties will file a motion for summary judgment before the court without a trial within a few months, rather than waiting to go to trial. What seems most important to understand about the process of this litigation, is that everything which happens in the trial court is only preparation for what is likely to be a case decided by one or more appeals courts. The attorneys for Nikki Araguz have a huge responsibility before them, which is to persuade the judge to allow them to fully develop and fully present their evidence and legal arguments thoroughly, so that the appellate process that follows has something adequate to work with, including all their factual, documentary evidence, appropriate expert medical evidence, and testimony from appropriate supporting witnesses.
The attorneys for Heather Delgado, the plaintiff, and biological mother of Thomas Araguz's two children, who are the actual parties at interest, seem primarily interested in obtaining a quick decision from the court. Those attorneys, Chad Ellis and Frank Mann, seem to have overlooked the likelihood that this case will be appealed no matter who obtains a favorable verdict, and the money at issue kept frozen in the interim until a final appeals court decision occurs, and that could take years.
It seems like Nikki Araguz and her local supporters could serve their interests better by publishing their own videos with copyright attribution, rather than allowing Nikki Araguz to be exploited and abused by the local television stations and newspapers. What would make better sense yet would be to have an appropriate and skilled representative speak on her behave, since every one of her direct statements could be used as evidence by the plaintiffs who give the impression of wanting to litigate aggressively.
