A dissolution, which is commonly called a divorce, is the most common way to legally end a marriage. If a judge grants an annulment, however, it is like the marriage never happened in the first place. An annulment can be granted on one of three grounds. The first ground is called lack of capacity, which means that one or both of the parties were unable to consent to the marriage because of mental illness, alcohol or drugs. If a party was forced or tricked into the marriage, that can also be grounds for claiming lack of capacity. The second reason a court may grant an annulment is called lack of physical capacity. This means that one party is unable to consummate the marriage by sexual intercourse, and the other party was unaware of this incapacity at the time of the marriage. The third reason a court may grant an annulment is based on age. If one or both of the parties was under the age of 18 at the time of the marriage, and the underage party had not obtained the proper consent from a parent, guardian, or the court, the marriage can be annulled. Annulments and dissolutions of marriage are complex legal matters. If you have questions about an annulment or dissolution of marriage, stop in or call Derek Trosvig at [nap_phone id=”LOCAL-CT-NUMBER-3″].
