Weird legal question, and nice legs :)

[PBarry]

In California...I filed for divorce..hubby refused to sign papers because he believes we are not legally married. He has filed for Paternity/Cutodial rights and joint custody. When we were married in Bermuda, my divorce from 1st marriage was not completed for 3 more months due to a misfiling. We planned to get married again at the county courthouse, but never did. I changed my name, and we bought property, cars, the works, and had a child. When we split, I filed for the divorce. My question..Does my marriage certificate have any validity? Do I still need to file for divorce or does the whole "marriage" just go away? What about my name change? And if I don't get divorced, can it come back to haunt me and my nice legs at a future date? Oh the tangled web! Please help.

 

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

My response:

Due to it's invalidity, you still need to file for an annulment. Otherwise, the paperwork for your marriage is still on the books, and you'll need a court to invalidate those papers.

So, it's off to see the Wizard - - and to pay those court fees.

IAAL

 

[PBarry]

Thanks for the info. one more question...Is there a form for annulment in CA? I have been told by a Paralegal service that it would just be a dissolution or divorce. Should I file for divorce?

 

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Thanks for the info. one more question...Is there a form for annulment in CA? I have been told by a Paralegal service that it would just be a dissolution or divorce. Should I file for divorce?

My response:

I don't know what the hell a paralegal is telling you. In fact, a paralegal shouldn't be telling you ANYTHING !

It's VERY illegal for a paralegal to be dispensing legal advice, and INCORRECT advice at that ! I would report this "paralegal" to the State Bar of California. A paralegal is only supposed to be your "scribner", not your "attorney". A paralegal merely writes what you want, whether it's right or wrong. If it's wrong, it's not the paralegal's fault - - it's yours. That's because a paralegal is only supposed to be doing what you asked, and writing what you say - - not dispensing legal advice or answering your questions. Right or wrong, it's NOT the paralegal's job to tell you the law or to give you advice as to what's right or wrong. A paralegal is NOT a substitute for an Attorney ! !

Dissolution and nullity are based on contrary assumptions. A dissolution action seeks an end to a valid marriage due to causes which arose during the marriage. A nullity proceeding is brought because facts existed at the time of the marriage that precluded a valid marriage from ever taking place.

You would use the same Summons and Petition as you would in a divorce. The only difference is in the boxes you check on the form Petition.

IAAL

[Edited by I AM ALWAYS LIABLE on 07-17-2001 at 03:08 PM]