Definition: The legal relationship between 2
people created by civil contract.
(1) ABSENCE OF LEGAL IMPEDIMENTS:
(a) Existing Marriage (b) Too Closely
Related: whole or half blood relatives
in DIRECT-LINE & COLLATERALS w/in
the 4th Degree. NOTE - ADOPTED -
treated as blood relatives. NOTE 2 -
AFFINITY - NO impediment.
(2) MARRIAGE CEREMONY: (a) Qualified
celebrant or reasonably believed to be be
QC; (b) Attendance by BOTH parties; (c)
Mutual Consent Expressed at Ceremony.
COVENANT MARRIAGE
(1) FORMATION: (a) Special
Counseling; (b) Declare Intent to
Contract a CM; (c) Execute a
Notarized Declaration of Intent to
Contract a CM.
(2) COMMITMENT TO COUNSELING:
To preserve marriage - begins once
the parties experience marital
difficulties AND continue until the
rendition of divorce.
(3) TERMINATION:
(a) DIVORCE - (i) adultery; (ii) Felony- DS/HL; (iii)
Abandoned - 1 year & refusal to return; (iv)
Physical/Sexual Abuse of Spouse or kids of
either spouse; (iv) Separate + Apart
CONTINUOUSLY for 2 years + NO
reconciliation IF NO CHILDREN; (v) Separate
+ Apart CONTINUOUSLY for 1 &1/2 years IF
THEY HAVE A CHILD - UNLESS abuse was the
basis for separation (if abuse, 1 year living
apart from the judgment of separation.
(b) JUDICIAL SEPARATION - SAME as DIVORCE +
(vi) habitual intemperate or engages in other
excesses, cruel treatment, or other outrageous
conduct of such a nature as to render living
together insupportable.
CANNOT BE dissolved, rescinded,
or terminated by the mutual
consent of the spouses.
NULLITY OF MARRIAGE
RELATIVE NULLITY
(1) CIRCUMSTANCES: a marriage
lacking consent MAY be
declared relatively null.
(2) EFFECTS: Valid and
produces civil effects until
OFFICIALLY declared null by
the court.
(3) NULLITY MUST BE RAISED
BY NONCONSENTING PARTY:
in a judicial proceeding.
(4) CONFIRMATION BY NONCONSENTING
PARTY PRECLUDES ACTION TO ANNUL:
ABSOLUTE NULLITY
(1) CIRCUMSTANCES: a marriage is
absolutely null when contracted
EITHER: (a) in violation of legal
impediment or (b) without a valid
marriage ceremony attended by
both parties .
(2) EFFECTS: (a) Null Ab Initio - devoid
of all legal effect from the the
moment from inception - no judicial
declaration is required, but ANY
INTERESTED PARTY MAY BRING
ACTION TO ANNUL; (b) Putative
Marriage Doctrine.
PUTATIVE MARRIAGE DOCTRINE
(1) PUTATIVE MARRIAGE: applies
when marriage is absolutely
null, AND at least one of the
spouses was in good faith in
contracting the marriage.
(a) GOOD FAITH: honest and
reasonable belief that no
legal impediment to the
marriage exists.
(i) PM DOCTRINE
APPLIES TO FACTUAL
& LEGAL ERRORS.
(ii) PRESUMPTION OF
GF on the part of the
party making a
putative marriage
claim.
(iii) CHALLENGINg PARTY
bears BOP ---
EXCEPTION: a spouse
who is a party of a
previous .
(iv) KNOWLEDGE -
firsthand knowledge
of an impediment
vitiates GF.
(v) GF WITHOUT A MARRIAGE
CEREMONY - would have to be
EXCEPTIONAL CASE (Marinoni
Case).
(b) CIVIL EFFECTS: Civil effects
of a putative marriage are the
same as in a normal marriage
--EXCEPT as to CP.
(i) a GF spouse in a
putative marriage is
eligible for: (1) SPOUSAL
SUPPORT; (2) LEGITIMACY
OF THE CHILDREN; (3)
MARTIAL PORTION; (4)
WRONGFUL DEATH
ACTION; and (5) CP
acquired during PM.
(ii) SPECIAL RULE GOVERNING CP AT
DEATH OF COMMON SPOUSE: (1)
BAD FAITH - his 1/2 CP goes to LEGAL
SPOUSE & the other 1/2 to the GF
PUTATIVE SPOUSE; (2) GOOD FAITH -
heirs acquire 1/2 of COMMON
SPOUSE'S CP & LEGAL and PUTATIVE
share remaining 1/2, each getting
1/4.
(iii) DURATION OF CIVIL
EFFECTS: continue as
long as the spouse
remains in GF.
BIGAMY EXCEPTION: civil
effect continue even after
the nonbigamous, innocent
spouse learns of the
impediment, until EITHER: (1)
there is an official
declaration of nullity, or (2)
the nonbigamous innocent
spouse remarries.
(iv) CHILDREN: A marriage contracted
in GF produces civil effects for ALL
children of the marriage.
PROVISIONAL AND INCIDENTAL
PROCEEDINGS IN ACTIONS OF NULLITY
(1) A COURT MAY award a party the
incidental relief afforded in a divorce
proceeding.
(2) INTERIM RELIEF : Claims for relief PENDING
the nullity action include interim spousal
support - which may be grnated regardless of
nature of alleged nullity AND regardless of
whether he was in GF or BF in contracting the
marriage.
(3) PERMANENT RELIEF: Relief that is intended to
continue in effect past the effective date of the
judgment of nullity is available ONLY (i) to parties to
relatively null marriages, and (ii) to parties to absolutely
null marriages who are deemed entitled to civil effects
as putative spouses.
INCIDENTS OF MARRIAGE
(1) MUTUAL DUTIES: Spouses owe each other the following
duties: (a) Fidelity - NEGATIVE (not commit adultery) &
POSITIVE (submit to "reasonable and normal sexual desires";
(b) SUPPORT - furnish necessities of life; (c) ASSISTANCE -
care for ill or infirm spouse.
(2) NOT ENFORCEABLE DURING MARRIAGE: Spouses cannot generally sue each
other for breach of duties during the marriage. NOTE: Only able to sue after
physical separation. HOWEVER, breach of these duties MAY mount to fault
sufficient to bar FINAL SPOUSAL SUPPORT.
(3) PARENTAL AUTHORITY: Parents JOINTLY
exercise parental authority and assume
moral and material obligations.
(4) SURNAMES: Marriage does not change either spouse's surname, but
a married person may use the surname of either or both spouses. A
widowed, divorced, or remarried woman may use her former spouse's
name or may resume using her maiden name; no special steps are required.
(5) CONFLICT OF LAW: If a marriage is valid where contracted or where the
parties first were domiciled as spouses, then it is valid in Louisiana unless
validity would violate a strong public policy of Louisiana.