Annulment
Annulment is a legal or religious process that declares a marriage invalid, distinguishing it from divorce, which ends a valid marriage. Unlike divorce, which acknowledges a marriage that has failed, annulment asserts that the marriage was never legally recognized, addressing specific grounds such as fraud, impotency, lack of consent, or legal barriers. In various religious traditions, such as Islam, Anglicanism, Methodism, and Catholicism, annulment may be the only acceptable means to dissolve a marriage, although these religious annulments typically lack civil recognition.
There are two classifications of marriages that can be annulled: void marriages, which are invalid from the outset due to legal prohibitions (such as incest or existing marriages), and voidable marriages, which are initially valid but can be declared invalid based on issues like misrepresentation or lack of consent. Historically, annulment emerged as a solution for individuals in faiths that do not recognize divorce, allowing them to remarry within their religious framework.
Today, annulments are less common than divorces, as many seek divorce due to its comparatively straightforward process. However, some may prefer annulment to avoid the social stigma associated with divorce or for religious reasons, especially in faiths where divorce is frowned upon. Individuals considering annulment should consult a legal expert to understand the specific requirements and procedures in their state, as these can vary significantly.
Annulment
Annulment is a legal or religious procedure for having a marriage invalidated. Unlike divorce, which is a legal termination of a marriage, an annulment is a retroactive legal declaration based on the idea that the marriage was never valid and, therefore, is not recognized as having legally existed. While a legal divorce may be obtained for any reason and in the United States does not require one or the other spouse to prove fault, annulment requires proof that a marriage can be considered void or voidable for a specific set of considerations. These may include issues like fraud, impotency, lack of consent, legal barriers, or concealment of identity or history by one or more parties.
In some religious traditions, annulment is the only permissible way to end a marriage. Islam, Anglicanism, Methodism, and Catholicism offer religious annulments. Religious annulments are not generally recognized by civil authorities. The requirements for obtaining a religious annulment differ from the legal requirements of annulment and may include strictly religious or church-based considerations. In some cases, divorce may be easier to obtain than an annulment, though some prefer annulment out of the belief that having the marriage declared void is less of a social stigma than being identified as a divorcée.
History of Annulment
The existence of annulment in civil law is a result of religious restrictions prohibiting divorce or remarriage in cases where a marriage has been officially recognized by the church. Catholicism and Hinduism are among the religions that do not recognize divorce and consider sanctioned marriage to be a permanent, spiritual contract. Under the ecclesiastical courts of England, a married person could only end their marriage through church sanctioned annulment. While England did not permit legal divorce until 1857, the American colonies began establishing civil divorce laws in the 1600s. The first recorded divorce in the American colonies occurred in 1643 in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. By 1900, all US states at the time had laws providing for both annulment and divorce.
Void versus Voidable Marriage
There are two types of marriage that may be subject to annulment: void marriage and voidable marriage. A void marriage is one that, for some reason, is found to have been invalid from the beginning. A void marriage is usually invalid because it is legally prohibited. Common reasons that a marriage might be found void include situations where the marriage is incestuous or where one or more spouses are already married. In places where same-sex marriage is prohibited by law, a marriage between same-sex spouses is void. A void marriage is considered invalid irrespective of whether the individuals married wish to have the marriage invalidated.
By comparison, a voidable marriage is a marriage that is legally valid until declared invalid due to new information provided by one or both spouses. The requirements for voidable marriages differ from state to state but often include considerations such as fraud, concealment of identity or history, marriages enacted under duress or force, and cases in which one spouse is found to be impotent. A voidable marriage is generally considered valid unless one or both spouses take steps to obtain an annulment.
Fraud or Concealment
Fraud includes cases where one spouse lied or concealed information that might have been cause for the other spouse to avoid or reconsider the marriage. Situations where an individual enters into marriage despite legal prohibitions, already being married to another individual, being below the legal age of consent, or conducting a marriage under a false identity are all considered fraudulent. Examples of concealment accepted in some annulment cases include hiding felony convictions, former or current substance abuse problems, sexually transmitted diseases, or other medical issues that might affect a person’s marriage. One type of fraud, called a sham marriage, occurs when one or both spouses enter into marriage for ulterior motives, such as to help one spouse obtain citizenship or as part of a broader criminal enterprise.
In both religious and civil annulments, serious misrepresentation and willful fraud are usually considered sufficient for annulment. However, some courts and religious authorities require proof that the spouse seeking annulment did not have foreknowledge of the alleged fraud or misrepresentation. For instance, a person who willfully enters into marriage for the purpose of helping their spouse obtain citizenship may be denied an annulment because the marriage was entered into with foreknowledge of the fraud.
Impotency, Incest, and Childbirth
In some cases, an individual may seek an annulment based on the belief that the marriage will not produce children. Annulments based on procreation are related to historical and cultural beliefs that producing children is one of the primary reasons for marriage. Some states and religious authorities allow spouses to seek annulments in cases where a spouse is impotent or physically unable to have children. Both religious and civil authorities consider the inability to have children a valid cause for annulment, though some authorities may deny annulments in cases where the issue affecting procreation was known to both parties at the time of marriage.
Incest is considered a valid reason to annul a marriage; however, state laws differ on the legality of entering into marriage with blood relatives. While immediate family members are prohibited from marriage in all states, laws differ regarding the legality of marrying cousins and more distant relations. Laws regarding incest are also related to concerns about the ability to bear healthy children.
Consent and Capacity
Marriages may also be considered invalid in cases where one or both spouses claim that they did not fully consent to the marriage. Instances of lack of consent include cases in which one spouse was threatened into consenting to marriage, or where one spouse was underage at the time of marriage and was therefore considered legally unable to consent to the marriage contract.
Another accepted justification for annulment involves cases where one or both partners claim diminished capacity, such as from intoxication, at the time of the marriage. Intoxication is generally only accepted as sufficient justification in cases where one party can prove intoxication to a level that the individual was incapable of realizing the nature, legitimacy, or significance of the marriage contract. In other cases, mental incapacity, including various types of diagnosed temporary insanity, have been used and accepted as justification for annulment. In considering mental incapacity as justification, the courts may consider whether both parties had prior knowledge of the alleged incapacity, and whether the nature of the incapacity was such that it could have reasonably interfered with the individual’s ability to enter into a marriage contract.
Annulment Today
In 2023 annulment was far less common in the United States than divorce. The primary reason for seeking annulment rather than divorce was out of religious considerations or the desire to avoid social stigmas. In some religions, including Catholicism, divorce is not recognized and individuals who cannot obtain an annulment are prohibited from remarrying within the faith. According to the Annuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae, in 2022 the Catholic Church recorded 84,551 (divorces, separations, and annulments). Out of these, 81,203 were divorces, 3,210 were separations, and only 39 annulments.
Civil annulments are more difficult to obtain than civil divorce and, in most cases, require the ability to prove cause. In 2024 all US states offered no-fault divorce based on one or both parties citing irreconcilable differences. Divorce carries no legal prohibitions, and divorced individuals are free within the United States to remarry. Some individuals seeking annulment may feel that annulment lacks the same stigma as divorce, as it is a legal declaration that the marriage was never valid, rather than a legal declaration that the marriage failed.
In both divorce and annulment, cases in which the couple have children, shared property, or shared assets may require legal determinations regarding the division of assets and future provisions for the care of children, or shared property. Individuals who wish to have their marriage annulled, like those seeking to obtain a divorce, should begin by speaking to a legal specialist regarding local laws and procedures. In some states, it is possible to file for a divorce or annulment without legal representation, but laws regarding annulment proceedings differ from state to state.
Bibliography
"The Code of Hammurabi." Trans. L. W. King. Avalon Project. Lillian Goldman Law Library, Yale Law School, 2008. Web. 10 Apr. 2015.
"Family Law: Divorce, Legal Separation and Annulment." Sacramento County Public Law Library.SCPLL, Apr. 2014. Web. 10 Apr. 10.
Garrity, Paul V. "The Annulment Dilemma." America: The National Catholic Review. America Press, 16 Feb. 2015. Web. 10 Apr. 2015.
Grossman, Joanna L. "Annulments Based on Fraud: What Is the ‘Essence’ of Marriage? Part One in a Two-Part Series of Columns on Traditional and Modern Annulment." Findlaw. Thomson Reuters, 2 Mar. 2010. Web. 10 Apr. 2015.
Grossman, Joanna L., and Chris Guthrie. "The Road Less Taken: Annulment at the Turn of the Century." Amer. Jour. of Legal History 40.3 (1996): 307–330. Scholarly Commons at Hofstra Law. Web. 24 Apr. 2015.
"Massachusetts Court System: Who Can Get an Annulment?" Mass.gov. Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 2015. Web. 10 Apr. 2015.
Packard, Chloe. "Annulment vs. Divorce: What's the Legal Difference?" LegalZoom, 11 Sept. 2024, www.legalzoom.com/articles/whats-the-legal-difference-between-annulment-and-divorce. Accessed 27 Oct. 2024.
Vasoli, Robert H. What God Has Joined Together: The Annulment Crisis in American Catholicism. New York: Oxford UP, 1998. Print.