Proving a Common Law Marriage

Marriage is a certain type of legal status that is granted to a couple by their state government. It legally binds two parties together, much like a contract, and is a legal union between the two parties, utilizing a license and a ceremony to create the marriage contract.

However, there may be some exceptions; traditional marriage is recognized in every state in the United States and every nation around the world, regardless of where it was issued.

Marriage provides the couple with several unique rights, protections, and obligations at both the state and federal levels. This includes benefits surrounding:

  1. Lower-income taxes through a marital deduction
  2. Ease of joint property ownership
  3. Right to next-of-kin benefits with regard to your spouse’s healthcare
  4. Family leave benefits
  5. Tax-free inheritance
  6. The right to the other party‘s social security benefits if they predecease you
  7. The right to IRA funds if they predecease you
  8. The right to claim alimony
  1. What is Common Law Marriage?
  2. Which States Allow Common Law Marriages?
  3. How Can I Prove a Common Law Marriage?
  4. Do I Need an Attorney to Prove or Dispute a Common Law Marriage?

What is Common Law Marriage?

We are all familiar with a traditional marriage that starts with a state license and a ceremony. There is also another little-known type of marriage called “common law” marriage. This legal framework allows spouses to be regarded as married even though their union has never been recognized in a legal ceremony.

In other words, you and your spouse are considered a married pair for inheritance and other potential legal concerns without going through the formalities of getting a marriage license. Once a common law marriage has been established, it is considered just as valid and legally binding as a traditional marriage.

In a common law marriage arrangement, the couple lives together for a required period (how long varies by state) and presents themselves to the world as being married to each other. They often do so by owning a house, a car, or other property together; by referring to each other as husband and wife; by instructing their friends and family members that they are married; and, in general, by responding to questions and life circumstances as if they were married in the traditional sense.

The couple may intend to be married to each other at some point; in some states, that is a requirement for obtaining status as common-law spouses.

One common law marriage scenario occurs when there is no capacity to be legally married. There is some legal reason why one party cannot legally marry. An example would be when one party is already married but is going through a divorce. The pair cannot legally marry each other until the divorce has been finalized, but their state may recognize their arrangement as a common-law marriage.

Another example is if two cousins want to marry each other. In most states, they cannot legally do so. If they do marry in the standard way, their marriage is “voidable,” meaning it can be ended without the necessity of divorce (the couple says they are divorced and their marriage has ended; that action made it true). A voidable marriage can be ended when the couple decides to end it, so they have a valid marriage until and unless they do.

Once a common law marriage has been established, it is just as legally valid as a traditional marriage.

A common law marriage must meet many prerequisites in the majority of states to be recognized:

  1. Both must be mentally stable
  2. In some states, a couple is required by law to cohabitate for some time
  3. In most states, both must be 18 years of age or older
  4. Neither of them may be wed to someone else already
  5. Both parties must want to get married to each other (there is no fraud or coercion)
  6. The couple must present themselves to the general public as married

Which States Allow Common Law Marriages?

There are three groups into which states fall concerning common-law marriage: