Reasons to Get an Annulment Instead of a Divorce
Sometimes relationships run their course, or your partner does something alarming that prompts you to want to end things, or there might be some other reason entirely that you’re looking to conclude your marriage.
The point is, it happens, and when it does, your first instinct might be that you’ll need to start the divorce process to bring your marriage to a close. That’s not always the case, however. When you head over to that Riverside divorce attorney’s office, you might also ask them if you’re eligible for an annulment.
What Is An Annulment?
Like a divorce, an annulment is a way to end a marriage. Unlike divorce, though, which is the dissolution of a valid marriage, an annulment is a process that cancels the marriage entirely. In other words, an annulled marriage, in the eyes of the law, never technically existed, was not valid, and is effectively erased.
You can only get an annulment if you have the grounds to do so, and while each individual state has their own specific laws regarding what makes a marriage eligible for annulment or not, there are certain generalities that typically apply across the board, such as fraud, bigamy, and forced consent.
Why Annul Instead Of Divorce?
So why would you try to annul a marriage instead of heading to your local divorce lawyer in Oceanside? There are plenty of reasons, and for starters, it might just be the case that an annulment is less complicated.
In some states, for instance, the division of property and assets can throw a real complexity into the issue of divorce, and if it’s the case that you’ve had some venture take off during your marriage, you might not be keen on giving a percentage of that up to complete a divorce. Annulments can sometimes provide an alternative that allows you to keep certain assets to yourself.
An attempt to avoid property disputes isn’t the only reason you might choose to have an annulment, though. In some cases, you might prefer to go this route because of social or religious reasons.
There are still communities in which divorce has a negative social stigma that annulment does not carry. In these cases, annulments are preferable as they allow you to avoid divorce and still end the marriage.
In contrast, divorce has lost its stigma in many other communities, so it might just be the case that you want to get an annulment to send a message. Instead of a no-fault divorce, an annulment would be a clear sign that you blame the other party for the end of the marriage, and you want the public to know about it.
