annulment

Annulment Marriage in Arkansas

Arkansas has the highest divorce rate, with 10.7 divorces per 1,000. Additionally, by age 30, 19.5% of marriages end in divorce in the Natural State.

With such a high divorce rate, it’s common for people to confuse annulment and divorce. However, the two couldn’t be any different.

Although both legal processes end a marriage, there are unique qualifications for annulment in Arkansas.

What is Annulment?

Annulment is when a court voids your marriage. In other words, the marriage never happened.

This definition is very different from a divorce that ends a state-recognized valid marriage. In annulments, the state doesn’t recognize marriage as legally valid.

Qualifications for Annulling a Marriage in Arkansas

Understanding the difference between annulment and divorce is helpful, but what gives the courts the right to void marriage and completely erase it?

In Arkansas, there are four reasons why someone could annul their marriage.

Reasons #1: “Want of Age”

In cases concerning “want of age,” one or both members of the marriage were underage. This type of marriage is sometimes called child marriage. In these cases, one partner wasn’t old enough to seriously consider the consequences of their actions.

Reasons #2: “Want of Understanding”

“Want of understanding” plays a role in annulments because when individuals are under the influence of drugs or alcohol, they might decide to marry quickly. When they eventually sober up, they realize they can’t commit to the marriage.

Another way of understanding this qualification is that one or both parties involved could not intellectually process the marriage and its consequences.

Reason #3: Impotence

Impotence is another reason why a person might look to annul their marriage.

Whether it’s a male’s impotence or a female who feels pain during sex, physical causes like these might give the courts a reason to annul your marriage, especially if the other spouse hid this information from you before the wedding.

Reason #4: Duress

An Arkansas court might annul your marriage if one of the partners wed under duress.

Marriage under duress means that one person forces the other to marry through coercion or fraud when they otherwise wouldn’t have married the other person.

How to Annul Your Marriage

If you believe your marriage meets the legal grounds for annulment, follow these steps to begin the process.

Step 1: Communication

Begin by speaking with an experienced family law attorney, like Hickey and Hull Law Partners. With expert advice, they can help you build your case.

Step 2: Building Your Case

Even if you request an annulment for one of the listed reasons above, you must prove it. No matter the reasons you request an annulment, prepare documents and evidence with your legal team.

The more information you have available for the judge to review, the better your chances.

Step 3: Presentation

Once you and your lawyer prepare your case, you’ll present your case to a judge to let them decide.

Conclusion

Although divorce and annulment are legal processes to end a marriage, they differ in purpose and execution. An annulment voids a marriage based on age, understanding, sex life, and coercion.

Call us today if you believe you qualify for one of these four reasons and are ready to speak with a family attorney who can give you advice.