Marriage annulments are among the possible ways to end a marriage agreement in California and are available to parties in specific situations. Notably, a marriage annulment will dissolve the union, leaving the two parties single, with a possibility for future legal marriage. However, an annulment differs from a divorce, so you want to ensure you understand the specific circumstances where you can pursue it. To do this, you will need to work with an experienced divorce attorney who understands the procedures and court requirements to satisfy. With Los Angeles Divorce Lawyer, you can access excellent divorce attorneys ready to help you determine whether you can obtain a marriage annulment. We are also prepared to take you through the annulment process upon deciding on pursuing it to ensure you face a smooth process.
What a Marriage Annulment Entails
The first step in establishing whether you can obtain a marriage annulment is understanding what it entails. This is because some parties may know the different ways to end a marriage, including divorce, separation, and annulment. However, without the correct information on each process, they may quickly pursue an invalid option depending on their circumstances.
An annulment order applies specifically for marriages that are legally unrecognizable. Your union must have been illegal from the onset because you and your spouse did not satisfy various elements of a legal marriage. As a result, the annulment order cancels a marriage, rendering it non-existent for future reference.
Although divorce may have the same effect, the primary difference between annulments and divorces is that divorce ends a legally recognized marriage. This means that both parties to the union had satisfied vital elements of marriage like consent, but they chose to end the union. Conversely, marriages that end by annulments had no legal standing even when the parties were together.
When to Request for an Annulment
Understanding when annulment orders apply for marriage is also helpful in determining the specific grounds for requesting the court order. These grounds encompass the failure to meet essential elements for a legal marriage.
Therefore, you can consult your attorney to establish whether any factors below apply to your marriage. If so, you can rightfully commence legal action to obtain an annulment. The following are grounds for requesting a marriage annulment:
Your Spouse was Already Married to Another Person
When parties meet and decide to marry each other, they may not have full access to the other person’s history, including their previous relationships. Subsequently, you may have decided to marry a person already married to a third party. The circumstance is known as bigamy, and the law in California prohibits parties from entering a new marriage agreement without dissolving their previous union.
Notably, knowing whether your spouse was already married is inconsequential to whether you will receive a marriage annulment. This is because they may have intentionally disclosed the information from you or falsely represented it. On the other hand, you may have genuinely believed that being married to a person with another spouse is not unlawful.
Nevertheless, you will need to determine whether your spouse and the third party had a valid marriage certificate and if they have children and properties in their name. Gathering the information is essential for developing your case when requesting an annulment.
Additionally, you can request your divorce lawyer to contact the third party in question to obtain additional relevant details regarding the bigamy in question. However, doing so is not always advisable, and you only need to contact them if you believe they will provide valuable information.
You Were Under Eighteen Years On Your Wedding Day
Additionally, marriages between persons under eighteen also amount to a nullity in California. This is because the minor in question cannot legally consent to enter a marriage, as they have not attained the age of majority. Usually, the general legal rule about minors is that they cannot validly issue consent to intimate considerations like sex or marriage.
It is noteworthy that even though you or your spouse(whoever was underaged) agreed to the marriage, the legal protection available for minors will still apply, resulting in an invalid marriage relationship.
Since you may need to discuss several technicalities when presenting your case, you want to gather sufficient evidence in advance. For example, presenting your birth certificate or any other valid document that displays your age is beneficial, as the judge will have an easier time determining whether you were underaged on your wedding day.
Sometimes, the presiding judge may also request verification documents to ensure your certificates are authentic. If so, your attorney can draft an affidavit confirming the originality of the documents.
A person becomes a year older five minutes after midnight on their birthday, based on general practice and tradition in California. Thus, your wedding date and your birthday are the main elements for the judge to consider in determining whether to annul your marriage.
You and Your Spouse are Blood Relatives
Further, some parties may be unaware of their ancestry owing to different life circumstances. Therefore, if they marry and later discover that they are blood relatives, their marriage is invalid, and an annulment will be necessary.
Each case presents different circumstances, so you can engage your attorney in your experience to help them develop a solid case for you. For example, you may be an adopted child who married your spouse without prior knowledge of your blood relations.
Consequently, you may have discovered the information during a family meeting or while conducting medical checks together. If so, you can rightfully request a marriage annulment without requiring a rigorous divorce matter.
Some families may also have first-cousin marriages based on cultural or religious practices. Although this may be the norm for the community, the law applicable in California prohibits these unions, meaning that the married parties can successfully apply for an annulment.
Once you proceed with your matter in court, you must prove your claims by submitting any information on your family relations. For example, you can provide documents containing DNA test results that indicate a high percentage match between you and your spouse. The results may be from blood tests or other methods used in accredited medical or research facilities.
Your divorce attorney may also recommend including an expert witness who can testify to the integrity of the DNA results. Typically, this would be the scientist, researcher, or medical professional responsible for conducting the tests and concluding that you and your spouse are blood relatives. The additional evidential sources will further prove the need for an annulment, which is essential in convincing the presiding judge to issue it.
You Did Not Consent to Your Marriage
Forced marriages are also common among spouses, resulting in an unlawful union. This is because consent is the primary foundation for any valid marriage, as both parties should be willing and knowledgeable of the union they intend to enter.
Hence, any marriage without proven consent qualifies you to seek a legal annulment through a court process, where you must prove elements of a forced union. Working with your attorney allows you to consider the important details serving as proof.
Gathering sufficient evidentiary sources is necessary in this situation because proving your involvement in a forced marriage requires you to present a compelling case. This is primarily because most parties perceive consent from your behavior, including your acquiescence to certain propositions.
For example, if you received blackmail messages from your spouse or their family forcing you into the marriage, you may have complied and even agreeably presented yourself during the wedding. Therefore, any observations from third parties will not depict the lack of consent unless you present your proof.
Thus, your evidential sources should include recordings, documents, or footage demonstrating the other parties’ coercion. For example, any messages, emails, or letters that impose duress on you to marry your spouse are acceptable.
Moreover, you can have witnesses who understood your situation and were present before your marriage to testify to your position. Their testimonies can include your negative reactions and perceptions towards marriage that you previously disclosed. However, you must establish that their testimonies are relevant and credible in court.
Your Spouse Suffers from a Medical Condition that Prevents Consummation of Marriage
After two parties are formally married, their union becomes official upon consummation. This means the parties can engage in sexual relations as they choose and proceed to have children through marriage consummation. This is based on the need to fulfill both parties' conjugal rights.
However, your spouse may suffer from a medical condition that prevents you from fully consummating the marriage. As a result, your ability to enjoy your union becomes limited, meaning you can request a marriage annulment. This is acceptable under the law, as a marriage without consummation is legally invalid.
Although proving your partner’s inability to consummate touches on a private matter, you want to present sufficient evidence in court. This is because the judge expects a justified reason before canceling the union, as the sanctity of marriage is important under the law.
Hence, you can request your spouse to cooperate with you in the matter by providing their medical records as proof of their incapacity. Conversely, where your spouse is uncooperative, you can rely on your medical records to show that you are capable of consummating the marriage. This would be useful in showing that your spouse’s condition is to blame, warranting an annulment.
You Entered a Marriage Through Fraudulent Misrepresentation
Apart from forced marriages, some parties agree to marriage because their spouses were fraudulent towards them. The situation would mean that you relied on false or altered circumstances to consent to the marriage, meaning that you did not truly consent to the union. Your union will be invalid under the law based on the importance of consent in marriage.
Typically, most duped parties discover the fraud well into the marriage, resulting in the need for court proceedings. Therefore, you should prepare your case by gathering quality evidence that shows your spouse’s fraudulent efforts to obtain your consent.
For example, they may have been aware of your requirements for an ideal spouse, then falsely used this information to represent themselves according to your preferences. This may include forging financial profile documents, business ownership certifications, or medical records. These include concealing their ailments that would have otherwise deterred you from consenting to marry them.
Cases involving fraud can cause serious outcomes for you, especially where your spouse omitted crucial medical information about themselves. For example, changing their HIV status from positive to negative to obtain your consent exposes you to infection. Thus, pursuing legal redress for damages is highly advisable, on top of requesting an annulment.
Your Spouse is Mentally Unsound
Lastly, you can also request a marriage annulment if your spouse is of unsound mind. This is based on two primary premises that form the foundation for a valid marriage. Firstly, a mentally unsound person cannot issue consent as they are unaware of the proposal.
Secondly, the unsound person may be unable to meet marriage expectations, including full consummation. Therefore, the law does not recognize this type of union, as you may have multiple expectations unfulfilled.
Upon presenting your matter to court, you want to provide medical records that establish your partner’s mental condition. In doing so, you should ensure that the records show they suffered from the condition when you formally married each other. This way, you will have shown that the party could not have legally issued consent to the marriage.
Noteworthy, having an unsound mind does not have to include a medical condition associated with reduced cognitive ability. It may also mean that your spouse was intoxicated during your wedding, so they could not have legally provided consent.
However, you should prove they were highly intoxicated, meaning they did not know what they were doing. Obtaining the evidence may require you to call on witnesses who may have seen the spouse drunk or high. Any information regarding their alcohol consumption, like alcohol purchase receipts dated the same as your wedding day, is helpful.
Observing the Statute of Limitation Guidelines
Although an annulment option is available if your marriage comprises any circumstances discussed above, you will only have access to courts for a limited duration. Hence, you want to act within the timeline relevant to your circumstances to avoid losing your chance to end the marriage.
If your spouse suffers a physical challenge that limits their ability to consummate the marriage, you should apply for an annulment within four years of your wedding date. Similarly, if you were underage when entering the marriage, you want to file your request within the same timeframe of four years from your wedding day.
Additionally, parties who gave marriage consent based on fraud or were forcibly married can seek an annulment within four years of their marriage commencement.
On the other hand, if your spouse is involved in bigamy, you can seek an annulment at any time during your marriage, provided the third-party spouse is alive. This is because their death would automatically end their union, and your spouse would not be answerable for bigamy. As a result, their sole existing union with you would be valid under the law, and your only option to end it would be through a divorce.
Additionally, marrying someone of unsound mind requires you to seek an annulment any time before their death. This is for the same reason as bigamy, as their death would end your marriage automatically. Therefore, pursuing legal action when they are still alive gives you a chance to leave the union early, so you can exercise your right to remarry if you want to do so.
Determining Property Division After an Annulment
Once the presiding judge grants an annulment order, it dissolves the marriage and marks it as having been invalid under the law from its onset. Consequently, you and your former spouse do not need to divide property as in divorce proceedings.
Instead, each party leaves their separate property because no legal union existed. However, if you purchased valuable items or property jointly, you can discuss the best approach in separating ownership with your divorce attorney’s help.
Contact a Los Angeles Divorce Attorney Near Me
If you entered a marriage agreement under unlawful circumstances, you have the chance to nullify it through the formal annulment process. Doing so will help you leave the marriage with no additional responsibilities or collateral financial consequences, as is often the case with divorces. Since an annulment requires you to pursue legal action, you want to find a skilled attorney with a wealth of experience in family law and a specialization in divorce law. At Los Angeles Divorce Lawyer, you have access to all these benefits. Our knowledge and input are valuable in helping you submit a valid request and have the court process it without setbacks. Moreover, we will provide valuable guidelines and advice on what to do after the marriage annulment. For more information, call us today at 310-695-5212.
