Am I married?

You would think that the question “Am I married?” would be an easy question to answer as surely a bride and groom or husband and wife know if they are married or not. However, it is not that uncommon for top London divorce solicitors to be consulted by a husband or wife on a separation or planned divorce and for the question to be raised as to whether the couple are in fact legally married.

From the best London divorce solicitors’ point of view, if the question is raised as to whether a husband and wife are legally married, a quick look at the wedding pictures is not sufficient to answer the question. After all, from a legal perspective all the wedding photographs establish is that a ceremony took place and not whether the ceremony was a legal wedding.

When either a husband or wife raise the question as to whether their marriage is valid or not, a top London divorce solicitor will need to ask questions about the ceremony and other circumstances of the marriage. That way they can give an assessment of whether the couple are legally married or not. The sort of questions that a London divorce solicitor needs to ask are:

• In which country did the wedding take place; and
• Was the marriage recognised in law in the country in which it was celebrated; and
• If the wedding took place in the UK, where was the wedding celebrated.

All of these questions by the best London divorce solicitors are necessary to establish if a couple are legally married or not.

In which country did the wedding take place?

In this day and age you might think that it does not matter where you get married, after all nowadays it is very common for wedding functions to take place on the beach in Thailand, at a Las Vegas wedding chapel in the States, or on the shores of Lake Garda.

If the marriage took place abroad there is often an assumption that the bride and groom are not legally married in the UK unless they register the marriage in the UK or perform another wedding ceremony and obtain a UK marriage certificate. Top London divorce solicitors will tell you that this assumption is not necessarily correct.

The UK recognition of marriages that took place in other countries is extremely important because if the marriage is legally recognised in the UK then it gives a passport to start divorce and financial settlement proceedings in the UK. This is provided that the husband and wife meet the jurisdiction criteria for starting divorce proceedings in the UK. If they meet those criteria they can start UK court proceedings even if the marriage ceremony took place overseas.

The best London divorce solicitors will tell you that starting divorce proceedings in the court in London then enables either the husband or wife to start financial settlement court proceedings in London enabling the London court to decide how property, pensions and other assets are divided between the couple. The London divorce court is known to be generous to the economically weaker financial party to the marriage when ruling on how property should be divided and if spousal maintenance should be paid it often in the interests of the financially weaker party to the marriage to challenge any suggestion that the marriage is not legally recognised in the UK. That is not always the case so it can pay to get top London divorce solicitors advice prior to starting any divorce proceedings in London.

Is the marriage recognised in law in the country in which it was celebrated?

The best London divorce solicitors will normally advise a husband or wife that if they got married outside of the UK then provided that the marriage was recognised as legally valid in the country in which it took place it is normally accepted in the UK as a legal marriage.

In order to start divorce proceedings in the UK, the person starting the divorce by issuing a divorce petition will need to provide documentary evidence of the marriage, normally in the form of the marriage certificate and official translation into English.

If the wedding took place in the UK, where was the wedding celebrated?

The common misapprehension is that if a couple got married in the UK the marriage must be legally valid. However, top London divorce solicitors advise that the important question to ask is “Where did the couple get married?” This is because if the wedding ceremony did not take place at a licensed venue or if the couple did not subsequently participate in a civil ceremony of marriage they will not be legally married in the UK.

What happens if husband and wife cannot agree on whether they are legally married to one another?

If there is a challenge to the legal validity of a marriage then an application can be made to the divorce court for the court to decide if the couple are legally married even if the husband and wife did not comply with the UK legal requirements at the time of their wedding ceremony.

A husband or wife can ask the divorce court to declare that they are married if criteria are met. This type of court application is known as “declaration of marriage” proceedings. This court application is unusual and so it is sensible to get expert advice from a top London divorce solicitor before commencing declaration court proceedings.

What happens if the court decides that a couple are not legally married to one another?

If the UK family court decides the couple are not legally married to one other then divorce Court proceedings in the UK cannot be started. If the marriage took place outside the UK then it might be legally recognised in another country, for example the country where the wedding took place or where one of the spouses is domiciled.

If the declaration court proceedings conclude that the couple are not legally married to one another then neither one will be able to start divorce and financial settlement court proceedings in the UK. In real terms this means that the husband and wife will not be able to get a UK divorce financial settlement court order. They may be able to commence court proceedings and make claims as a cohabitee. The best London divorce solicitors would recommend that early specialist legal advice is taken as cohabitee financial claims are generally far more restricted than those of a spouse.

How can OTS Solicitors help?

The law on marriage is far from straight forward. The beach wedding in Thailand may be valid and legally recognised in the UK but a UK marriage ceremony that took place at an unlicensed venue may not be, despite the wedding album. That is why it is important to get expert legal advice from the best London divorce solicitors on your options and legal remedies if you have any question marks about marriage and its legal validity.

OTS Solicitors advise on all aspects of divorce and financial settlement law.  OTS Solicitors provide specialist divorce, family and children law advice especially where there are international elements. Please get in touch with us on 0203 959 9123 to arrange an appointment to speak to one of our experienced divorce and financial settlement solicitors.