Author: Marie E. Matyjaszek
We all have things in life we wish we could do over – actions, comments, clothing choices (think parachute pants) – but for most of us, it’s virtually impossible to rewind the clock. The law can provide you with the ultimate mulligan in the form of an annulment if you meet the strict criteria. Legal annulments are not the same as an annulment from a church – for example, if you obtain an annulment from the Catholic Church, the courts do not recognize this as valid.
In Michigan, two statutes, MCL 552.1 and 552.2, control the ways you can receive an annulment. MCL 552.1 requires any of the following to be met – the married couple is related (start the Kentucky jokes now), hubby or wife is already legally married to someone else (think “Sister Wives” if that guy tried to legally marry all of those women) or one of the parties is incapable of entering into a legal marriage contract. All of these reasons automatically void the marriage. MCL 552.2 provides for an annulment if one of the “spouses” is under the age of legal consent, the consent to marry was obtained by fraud or duress and there was no subsequent cohabitation of the parties.
Based on health reasons alone, it makes sense that you shouldn’t marry someone you’re related to, but the law in Michigan also prohibits marrying your mother-in-law and step-son as well. The prohibition extends past blood relationships and carries over into a relationship based on the blood relative of your spouse – see MCL 551.3 and 551.4. If you’re already married to someone else, any marriage after this is void. However, if you’re dead-set on marrying your cousin, you can get hitched in a state that permits this and then drive back to your home in Michigan, where the marriage will be recognized as valid.
Marriages where the person is incapable of entering into a marriage contract are also void, unless that person later becomes capable and chooses to continue living as husband or wife with his or her spouse.
The age of consent in Michigan is 18, but if one of your parents or legal guardians consents to the marriage, you can get married at age 16 or 17, as long as that consent is in writing (I don’t know about you, but I was far more interested in getting my driver’s license at 16 then obtaining a ball and chain). And, if you have really great parents, with both sets consenting, you can get married under 16 years of age.
Fraud or duress can also annul a marriage, with examples being telling the man he is your child’s father when you know he’s not, if you are a homosexual but do not tell your husband or wife this before you marry him or her, marrying so you can stay in the United States and not be deported, or if you’re drunk or on drugs when you get married (I think this happens a lot in Vegas). If you have no intention of consummating the marital relationship, this can also be grounds for annulment.
Kids born of an annulled marriage are still recognized as legitimate, and the courts go about dividing property, awarding custody and child support pretty much the same as in a divorce. Michigan’s statute for spousal support does not provide this right for those whose marriages have been annulled, and if the marriage was annulled due to fraud or force, the parent who was wronged must be awarded custody of the children.
Everybody makes mistakes in life and it’s only appropriate that the law would provide relief for some of those errors in judgment. Of course, if you’re Britney Spears, Zsa Zsa Gabor or Renee Zellweger, you’re not going to completely erase your now-invalid marriage because it’s been plastered across tabloids for months. Luckily, Jay Leno won’t be talking about us common folk on the late night shows, and there’s a good chance that an annulment would be a mere blip on the radar screen of scandals, reduced to non-planetary status like Pluto.
Courtesy of Jackson County Legal News, 1/17/11, Vol. 46, No. 15
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