More Questions For The Legal Eagles
Has the federal government ever refused to recognize marriages valid in one of the states, except for same-sex marriage?
Has a state government ever refused to recognize marriages valid in another state, except for interracial and same-sex marriages?
Sure. For example, in VA cases a veteran’s spouse will claim benefits for themselves when they were not “married” according to the law of the nation they claimed marriage in. The state will often recognize the marriage (as will the INS), but the Dept. of Veterans Affairs may not.
for example: http://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-federal-circuit/1288023.htmlReport
I am not sure that applies since it involves recognition of marriage performed in another nation without an affirmative act from any governing body of a US State such as the issuance of a marriage certificate. Now if you could find a similar case where a state like Oklahoma refused to recognize a valid marriage certificate or license from Kentucky on grounds other than same-sex or interracial that would be what is being asked for.Report
does this include common law marriages?Report
My understanding is that even non-common law marriage state recognize common-law marriages entered into in other states. I’m no lawyer, however.Report
What about the case of the Utah Territory: It appears that polygamous marriages were recognized from its organization, but not recognized by the feds, eventually the government changed the law to make them illegal in Utah. This was after Lincoln, who said effectivly we have enough on our plate with the Civil War let the Mormons be in peace at least till the Civil War is over.Report
I wondered about this, too, in respect to pre-statehood Utah.
I do think, though, that an organized territory would technically be under “federal” jurisdiction, because it’s a territory and not a state (yet).
However, I don’t know. I hadn’t heard that anecdote about Lincoln, either.Report
You might want to look into age of consent/minimum ages for marriage/require consent of guardian, you might find some cases there. That’s where there is — or at least was — a sizeable variation in state laws AND a topic that might have gotten some push-back rather than a rubber stamp.Report
That’s one reason I asked (that is, asked JB to ask for me.) As far as I know, neither variations of age of consent or consanguinity laws have ever led to a marriage not being recognized.Report
I don’t believe it has either, but that’d be the place to search in my opinion.
I know that Texas, for instance, cheerfully recognizes a marriage performed in Nevada even if said marriage doesn’t meet Texas’s own fairly lax standards. (I think there was a minor wait between application for the marriage license and getting it? I don’t remember).
Which, you know, kinda sinks in the notion that I never had to worry at ALL about getting married in one state and another accepting it. I’d have been freaking FURIOUS and felt like some basic right was being denied me if Texas had been “Oh no, we don’t agree with Nevada’s easy marriage policies. You’ll have to do it again here”.
Which, you know, sorta highlights how much us straights take for granted.Report
“I’d have been freaking FURIOUS and felt like some basic right was being denied me if Texas had been “Oh no, we don’t agree with Nevada’s easy marriage policies. You’ll have to do it again here”. ”
The comparable situation would have been “Oh no, we don’t agree with Nevada’s easy marriage policies. You are not married in Texas, pure and simple. “.Report
I keep trying to respond to Burt Likko’s sub-blog but either my comments vanish or I get errors saying “duplicate comment detected.” Help?Report
Which browser are you using?Report
I’ll check and see where they are when I am at a computer again.Report
Comment found. The system flagged it as spam.Report
Same thing just happened at Tim Kowal’s sub-blog. I think your spam filters are not working correctly.Report
If someone could take a look, I believe several of my comments to Tim Kowal’s current post titled “Human life is not too controversial” are being mislabeled spam. Any help that can be provided would be appreciated. It is an uncomfortable feeling standing outside the gates silenced.Report