Common law marriage

A common law marriage is a form of marriage where a couple takes up residency together and holds themselves out to be a married couple, without having a formal ceremony to recognize the marriage (either civil or religious).

It was the original form of how a couple would be married, but after the Council of Trent proclaimed that no marriage in the Catholic Church would be recognized as valid unless solemnized by a priest, would be outlawed in most predominantly-Catholic countries, and eventually in predominantly-Protestant ones as well.

It has become an increasingly obsolete form of marriage; in the United States it is fully recognized only under provision of military law and in eight jurisdictions[1] along with two other states which allow it for limited purposes[2]. Otherwise, it has either never been recognized, abolished (but such marriages entered into before abolition are recognized), or recognized if validly entered into under the laws of another state (as required by the Full Faith and Credit Clause of the United States Constitution).

In those limited areas where valid, the following are generally required:

* The parties must be of a certain age[3],
* The parties must have an agreement to be married,
* The parties must cohabit for a period of time within the state where the common-law marriage takes place[4], and
* The parties must represent themselves to others as married[5]

Under Federal income tax law, a couple entering into a valid common law marriage can file a joint tax return[6].

Since divorce was not legal under the common law, there is no similar provision for "common law divorce". Generally a common-law married couple must divorce in the same manner as a formally-married couple, but some states allow the couple to walk away without formal proceedings, requiring them only to prove a valid marriage existed[7].

## References[edit]

1. ↑ The jurisdictions are the District of Columbia, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, and Texas.
2. ↑ New Hampshire recognizes it for probate purposes only and requires that the couple have cohabited for three years and until the death of one of the parties; Utah recognizes only those which have been validated in a judicial proceeding; such validation can be up to one year after the marriage was terminated.
3. ↑ This may or may not be the same age as required for a marriage where a civil or religious ceremony is performed; for example in Texas both parties must be 18 to enter into a common-law marriage, but a formal marriage can be entered into if one party is under 18 so long as the person is an emancipated minor.
4. ↑ Not all states have this requirement; also, there is no requirement that the couples actually consummate the marriage.
5. ↑ This can be done by telling others they are married, opening a joint bank account, or one spouse taking the other's surname.
6. ↑ IRS Revenue Ruling 58-66.
7. ↑ Texas requires formal proceedings for an annulment or divorce for both common law and formally married couples, but if a common-law married couple end their cohabitation and relationship and within two years does not commence a proceeding to prove a valid common-law marriage, it is presumed (though rebuttable) that no valid marriage ever existed.