Why would someone want an annulment over a divorce?
Asked by: Miss Jaquelin Batz DDS | Last update: July 3, 2025Score: 5/5 (40 votes)
Key advantages to getting an annulment include: Equal sharing of marital debt. You will not be required to pay more than your spouse for any outstanding debts that survive your marriage. An annulment will split any marital debts right down the middle.
Why would you get an annulment instead of a divorce?
If your marriage was invalid, you might prefer an annulment over a divorce for a variety of reasons: Spouses who legally annul their marriage don't usually have to pay alimony or spousal support. The division of property is more straightforward in annulment than in divorce proceedings.
What are good reasons for annulment?
- You were under 18 at the time of the marriage.
- You were tricked into the marriage (fraud)
- You didn't have the mental capacity to marry (unsound mind)
- One of you is physically unable to consummate marriage.
- One of you is still married to someone who you thought was dead, but isn't.
Why would an annulment be denied?
At the time of the marriage, either party was already legally married. At the time of the marriage, either party was ruled incapacitated, incapable of making the decision to marry. At the time of the marriage, either spouse was a minor and did not have parental or court permission to marry.
Which of the following is a valid reason to get a marriage annulled?
Common grounds for annulment include fraud, bigamy, incest, one spouse being underage at the time of marriage, unsound mind, physical incapacity, or force.
Annulment and Divorce
What are the two most common grounds for annulment?
An annulment is a court ruling that a marriage was never valid. The most common ground for annulment is fraud and misrepresentation. For example, one person may not have disclosed to the other a prior divorce, a criminal record, an infectious disease, or an inability to engage in sex or have children.
How long into a marriage can it be annulled?
For example, in California, annulment requests should generally be filed within four years for fraud. However, states like Texas may require annulment petitions within a shorter time frame for specific grounds.
What percentage of annulments are granted?
The short answer is perhaps between 80–90%. The long answer is more complicated. According to Pew Research, 26% of all divorced Catholics in the US have sought an annulment.
Is cheating grounds for annulment?
It is more difficult to get an annulment than it is to get a divorce. Before your marriage can be annulled by the court, you will be required to prove that you have valid grounds for an annulment. Infidelity is not recognized as one of the grounds for annulment.
What are the different types of annulments?
There are two types of annulment—civil and religious—and you may wish for one or both, depending on your personal needs and situation. If you choose an annulment over a divorce, it's important to know the difference between the two types and how to get legal help.
Who needs an annulment?
Grounds for a Civil Annulment
These often include fraud or misrepresentation, lack of consummation, incest, bigamy, lack of consent, unsound mind, or force. This probably means that you will need to consult a lawyer, which is an expense that you may not need to incur if you are pursuing a no-fault divorce.
What makes a marriage invalid?
A marriage can be annulled only when the law considers your marriage either void or voidable. Examples of void marriages—unions that aren't legal to begin with—are where there's bigamy or incest. An example of a voidable marriage is one that took place when the spouses were highly intoxicated.
Is it easier to get an annulment?
In fact, when it comes to annulment versus divorce, divorce is often easier because all states have no-fault divorce. Grounds for annulment are quite specific, and you must prove them if you want your marriage annulled.
What are the top reasons for annulment?
Fraud/misrepresentation: When a spouse lied about important issues relating to the marriage, the other spouse could seek to annul the union. For example, grounds for annulment might include a spouse lying about his or her age, fertility status or concealing the fact that he or she was already married.
What is the disadvantage of annulment?
Disadvantages of an Annulment
Issues or fault are highly probative in an annulment proceeding. Unlike divorce, where fault is not an issue, in an annulment proceeding fault can have a huge impact on how property is split, whether support is issued and how attorney fees are paid. There is no per se community property.
Is it better to divorce or stay unhappily married?
A study showed that unhappily married adults who divorced were no happier than unhappily married adults who stayed married. Divorce did not typically reduce symptoms of depression, raise self-esteem, or increase a sense of mastery. Divorce or separation is likely the best outcome in a destructive marriage.
What is the most common ground for annulment?
- One spouse believes that they were coerced into the marriage or otherwise defrauded by the other spouse.
- One party is legally unable to get married because they're already married to someone else.
- The parties are too closely related by blood to legally get married under state law.
What happens if you cheat and get a divorce?
So, to be clear: the court does not afford you specific rights if there was cheating but infidelity can tip the scales in your favor and impact your case. This may include changing property division and also allow for certain temporary injunctions while your divorce for cheating case is pending.
Can someone else annul your marriage?
An annulment case can be initiated by either party in a marriage. The party initiating the annulment must prove that they have the grounds to do so, and if it can be proven, the marriage will be considered null and void by the court.
Why do annulments get denied?
Procedural Errors: Failing to follow the correct legal procedures, submitting incomplete documents, or lacking proper evidence to support the claim can lead to a denial of the annulment petition.
How long does the annulment process take?
How Long Does an Annulment Take? Since every case is different, it's difficult to put a timeline on the annulment process. That said, the most extensive cases can take anywhere from nine to 18 months, while some of the shorter ones take a matter of weeks.
How many grounds for annulment?
The more common grounds for annulment in the Philippines are psychological incapacity, minority (under 18) , lack of a marriage license, bigamous, and polygamous marriages. The other grounds may be difficult to prove in an actual case, requiring more witnesses and documentary evidence.
How is an annulment different from a divorce?
A divorce ends a legal marriage and declares the spouses to be single again. Annulment: A legal ruling that erases a marriage by declaring the marriage null and void and that the union was never legally valid. However, the marriage records remain on file even if the marriage is erased.
Are you still married if you don't consummate?
It's important to understand that the inability to consummate a marriage is considered a valid legal reason to annul a marriage.
What happens if you don't report a previous marriage?
As long as the previous marriages ended legally, there is no legal requirement for disclosure UNLESS the marriage license specifically asks about them.