The ending of a marriage is not uncommon. Often, spouses take different paths and choose to live apart. Less commonly, circumstances exist that invalidate the marriage, allowing one or both parties to seek an annulment of the marriage rather than a divorce. While a divorce is the legal dissolution of a marriage, an annulment declares that a true marriage never existed.
If you believe you have legal grounds for the annulment of your marriage, it’s crucial to have experienced legal representation to guide you through the exacting process. Call our family lawyer in Denver, CO for skilled legal counsel throughout every step of the required paperwork, filings, and legal proceedings for a marriage annulment in Denver. Contact us at (303) 451-0300.
The legal team at Ciancio Ciancio Brown, P.C. has over 100 years of combined experience in family law, including in challenging Colorado marriage annulment cases. With Ciancio Ciancio Brown, P.C., you’ll find the following advantages:
Your divorce attorney from Ciancio Ciancio Brown, P.C. will be an unwavering ally throughout the process of your annulment.
When the court grants an annulment, it declares the marriage null and void, determining that a legal marriage never existed. An annulment isn’t an answer for all spouses seeking to end their marriage, even if they wish they’d never married their spouse.
The Colorado court only annuls a marriage if legal grounds exist, showing that the circumstances of the marriage justify the annulment process. Legal grounds for a court to consider granting a marriage annulment in Denver or elsewhere in Colorado include those described below.
If one spouse entered into marriage based on the other spouse’s misrepresentation or purposeful fraud, the court may decide that no true marriage existed, for example, if one spouse enters the marriage purely for financial gain, citizenship, or insurance benefits without the other spouse’s knowledge, or if one spouse marries under a false identity.
If one spouse was already legally married to someone else, then the marriage to a third party is not valid, warranting an annulment of the marriage.
If one spouse fails to disclose a history of criminal violence or incarceration, the court considers this as concealment or misrepresentation, similar to a false identity, which may be grounds for annulment.
Similar to concealing a criminal history, failing to disclose substantial financial assets or debts before a marriage is misrepresentation and may give cause for the court to grant an annulment.
Finance and identity fraud are not the only types of misrepresentation that justify a marriage annulment in Colorado. If one party fails to disclose a known serious health condition before entering the marriage, the other party may seek an annulment. Common health-related grounds for annulment include those described below.
If one spouse intentionally hides a health condition that impacts procreation, the court considers this misrepresentation and grounds for an annulment. Examples include impotence, infertility, or an undisclosed unwillingness to have children.
If one spouse conceals a known serious illness that leads to disability, impairment, or death, it may be grounds for an annulment. The court also considers the failure to disclose a sexually transmitted disease or infectious illness as grounds for an annulment.
If one spouse has a serious addiction or substance abuse problem and hides it from the other spouse until after the marriage, it may be grounds for an annulment if the addiction has a significant financial or emotional impact on the marriage.
In rare cases, one or both spouses are unaware of a familial relationship when they marry and discover the blood relationship later, making the marriage eligible for an annulment.
Financial misrepresentation, fraud, and concealed health and reproductive problems are the most common grounds for spouses to request an annulment of their marriage rather than a divorce in Colorado; however, the court may consider other types of misrepresentation as grounds for annulling a marriage.
For example, if one party concealed their religious beliefs, and the other spouse’s false understanding of their partner’s religion played a significant role in the decision to marry. Similarly, the intentional misrepresentation of wealth, social status, or professional achievements may be grounds for annulment.
Finally, when one partner misrepresents their intended fidelity to the other while having sexual relationships with others during the engagement, the court may consider this as grounds for an annulment.
As with divorce, there is a specific legal process required for the court to grant the annulment of a marriage. First, it’s essential to hire an experienced Denver annulment lawyer to represent you during the process and ensure that the case meets all filing requirements and deadlines.
Your attorney must assess the circumstances of the marriage to ensure that the case meets one or more of the legal requirements for an annulment. Then, the attorney assists in filing the petition for annulment in court, carefully presenting the reasons for requesting the annulment, before serving the respondent with the petition and a court summons. The respondent must file a response within 21 days of receiving the annulment petition.
If the respondent contests the annulment, the case goes to court, where both parties present their arguments before a judge. After hearing both sides, the judge carefully considers the testimony and evidence before granting or dismissing the annulment.
If you believe an annulment could be a suitable legal option to end a marriage entered into due to the other party’s fraud or misrepresentation, contact the experienced Denver annulment lawyers at Ciancio Ciancio Brown, P.C.
