Annulment in California

Divorce Papers » Annulment in California

An annulment in California is known as 'Nullity of Marriage'. According to the statute of California, for some specific reasons existing during the marriage, a valid marriage never occurred and thus the bond is illegitimate right from its inception. The definition of marriage according to the statute of California is as follows: "a personal relation arising out of a civil contract between a man and a woman, to which the consent of the parties capable of making the contract is necessary."

The 'Nullity of marriage' is applicable to two types of marriages. These types of marriages eligible to obtain the nullity are as follows:

1. Void Marriage - A void marriage is null and invalid right from its inception due to some specific conditions at the time of the wedding.
2. Voidable Marriage - A voidable marriage is valid until the grounds are provided and it is nullified.

Grounds for the Annulment / Nullity of Marriage in California:

There are specific grounds given by the statute of California for the grant of the nullity of marriage or annulment in California. These grounds are different for void marriages and voidable marriages.

Let's take a detailed look at these grounds:

Grounds for the Annulment or Nullity of Void Marriage in California:

There are three grounds specified for the annulment or nullity of void marriages as given by the statute of California. These grounds are as follows:

• Consanguinity - The couple having a marriage within the full or half blood relatives is considered as incestuous whether it is legal or illegal. A person is not supposed to marry their parent, grand-parent, step-parent, sibling, cousin, step-sibling, step-cousin or any other relations that are practically family.

• Bigamy - If a person finds out that his / her spouse has a living non-divorced spouse before entering into the current wedlock, they can file for an annulment. However, some proof must be produced for testifying the claim. The only exception is if the spouse is believed to be dead or is absent for almost five years before entering into current marriage; which also needs to be proved.

• Illegal Contract - The marital partnership is to be contracted legally and registered with the family court in the city where the couple gets married. If it was not legally contracted, either of the spouse can file for the annulment.

Grounds for the Annulment or Nullity of Voidable marriages in California:

• Underage Marriage - If either of the spouses was underage while the wedding took place, the court considers it as a voidable marriage and the nullity of this marriage can be granted readily on this ground. The legal marriageable age according to the statute of California is 18 and any person who married before 18, the marriage is considered as illegal and hence voidable.

• Existence of Previous Marriage - If a spouse is married to a surviving non-divorced spouse while entering the current marital relationship, it is a firm base for the grant of the annulment or nullity as bigamous marriage is considered as illegal in the USA.

• Mental Instability - If a partner finds out that his / her spouse is mentally unstable; whether temporarily or permanently and thus can behave violently or unreasonable, they can file for an annulment on the grounds of insanity thus rendering the normal functioning of the marriage impossible.

• Force - If either partner was forced to enter the wedlock by threats, force, coercion or duress, the marriage is considered as invalid and the annulment is granted almost immediately after the petition is filed with the court. Free consent is the main requisite of a valid and happy marriage which is not considered while carrying out a forcible marriage.

• Concealment of Physical Incapacity - If a person conceals factors which are important for the normal functioning of the marriage such as being sterile, unable to procreate, inability to consummate the marriage, incurable inability to copulate, different sexual orientation, etc. which are necessary for a successful and happy marital relationship, they can get an annulment on the same grounds.

• Fraud - If the marital commitment was entered on the basis of fraud such as lying about the income, status and other things closely related to the normal functioning of the marriage, the annulment can be granted on the same.

However, these grounds cannot be considered valid if both the partners have cohabited with each other for the duration of marriage and annulment cannot be granted on the basis of these allegations.

For a marriage to be valid, the free consent should be followed by the issuance of the marriage license by the state court, solemnization, grant of the authenticity and the certificate of marriage is granted after the completion of the marriage ceremony. We can conclude that valid marriage cannot be made mere with cohabitation and free consent. There are other things that need to be considered.

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