Void Marriage Or Domestic Partnership vs Voidable Marriage
(Family Code Section 2200)

Void Marriages Or Domestic Partnerships

When a court declares a void marriage or domestic partnership, in effect, the marriage or domestic partnership is deemed invalid from the beginning. Thus, a valid marriage or domestic partnership never existed.

California Family Code Section 2200 and 2201 govern marriages or domestic partnerships that are considered void. Under Section 2200, a marriage is never legally valid when it is incestuous. These are marriages or domestic partnerships between a parent and a child, ancestors and descendants of every degree, siblings, half-siblings, and between uncles and nieces or aunts and nephews.

Under Family Code Section 2201, a marriage or domestic partnership is never legally valid when it is bigamous. A marriage or domestic partnership is bigamous when a spouse is already married to or when a domestic partner is in a registered domestic partnership with someone else who is still alive. However, there is an exception to bigamous marriages. A bigamous marriage could still be considered valid if:

• The former marriage or domestic partnership has been dissolved or adjudged a nullity before the date of the subsequent marriage or domestic partnership
• The former spouse is missing or not known to be living for five years prior to the subsequent marriage or domestic partnership; OR
• The former spouse is reputed or believed to be dead.

California Family Code Section 306 governs marriages or domestic partnerships and states that a marriage or domestic partnership is considered void when the parties fail to satisfy any of the requirements needed for a valid marriage or domestic partnership in California.

Voidable Marriages Or Domestic Partnerships

A marriage or domestic partnership that is voidable will become valid, or non-voidable, despite its defects until a family law court formally declares the marriage or domestic partnership to be void. Thus, there is a period of time in which a nullity of marriage or domestic partnership proceeding must commence. If a voidable marriage or domestic partnership becomes valid, the only way to terminate the marriage or domestic partnership is through divorce proceedings.

California Family Code Section 2210 states when a marriage or domestic partnership is voidable. The grounds for a voidable marriage or domestic partnership are the following:

• Age: A marriage or domestic partnership is considered voidable when either party is under the age of consent, which is 18 years-old. A marriage or domestic partnership with a minor is also voidable if there was no consent from either of the minor’s parents or from a court at the time of the marriage or domestic partnership. The exception is that if the parties freely cohabitate as husband and wife after the minor has reached the age of consent, then the marriage or domestic partnership becomes validly recognized.

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  Prior Existing Marriage or Domestic Partnership: If either party is already legally married or in a registered domestic partnership, the marriage or domestic partnership is voidable. This differs from bigamy because this is the exception to the rule under California Family Code Section 2201(a).

• Unsound Mind: If either party is of “unsound mind” or unable to understand the nature of the marriage or domestic partnership, the marriage or domestic partnership is voidable. But if the party of unsound mind, after coming to reason, freely cohabited with the other as husband and wife, then the marriage or domestic partnership is valid.

• Fraud: If either party got married or registered the domestic partnership due to fraud, the marriage or domestic partnership is voidable. The fraud must be vital to the relationship and the party deceived was affected by the fraud. But if the deceived party has full knowledge of the facts constituting the fraud and freely cohabited with the other as husband and wife, the marriage or domestic partnership is valid.

• Force: If either party consented to the marriage or domestic partnership as a result of force, the marriage or domestic partnership is voidable. But if the forced party afterwards freely cohabited with the other as husband and wife, the marriage or domestic partnership is valid.

• Physical Incapacity: If either party is incapable of physically “consummating” the marriage or domestic partnership and the incapacity continues and appears to be “incurable,” the marriage or domestic partnership is voidable.

Statute of Limitations to File for an Annulment

For voidable marriages or domestic partnerships, there is a period of time in which an annulment must be filed. The following grounds have the following statute of limitations period:

• Age: For the party who was a minor at time of the marriage or domestic partnership, he or she must file within four years after arriving at the age of consent. The parent, guardian, conservator, or others in charge of the minor must file at any time before the married minor has arrived at the legal age of consent.

• Prior Existing Marriage or Domestic Partnership: Either party may file for an annulment as long as both parties to the current marriage or domestic partnership are alive. The prior existing spouse or domestic partner may also file for an annulment.

• Unsound Mind: The party that is of unsound mind may file for an annulment. In addition, a relative or conservator of the party of unsound mind, at any time before the death of either party, may file for an annulment.

• Fraud: The deceived party must file for an annulment within four years of discovering the fraud.

• Force: The forced party must file for an annulment within four years of the marriage or domestic partnership.

• Physical Incapacity: The injured party must file for an annulment within four years of the marriage or domestic partnership.

California Annulment Attorney

Annulments can be very complex. The experienced annulment attorneys from Wallin & Klarich have been handling  annulment cases for over 30 years. If you are thinking about getting a divorce or an annulment, you can rely on the  family law attorneys at Wallin & Klarich to work hard to achieve the best possible outcome in your case.

With offices located in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego,  Victorville, West Covina, Sherman Oaks, Torrance and Ventura , there is a Wallin & Klarich attorney available wherever you happen to live.

To consult with an experienced California annulment attorney about your case, please call us at (888) 749-7428. We will get through this together.