DIVORCE HEADQUARTERS NEWSLETTER       Issue #7,     January 2001 Food for Thought What the caterpillar thinks is the end of the world.... the butterfly knows is only the beginning. Keep an Eye out for this.... CBS "Eye on America" with Dan Rather will be airing a feature on January 22nd on collaborative family law. As you may know, collaborative law is an alternative to contested and often expensive divorce proceedings. We are proud to announce that Maury D. Beaulier will be featured in that CBS production and we hope that you tune in. Maury D. Beaulier is the founder of The Beaulier Law Office and frequent contributor to Divorce Headquarters (his article on Annulments is featured in this newsletter). He has developed a large and active family law practice dedicated to providing each family law client with detailed information about every element of their case. In this Issue: Do-It-Yourself Divorce Annulments     by Maury D. Beaulier, Esquire Always Remember the Children Divorce Humor 1. Do-It-Yourself Divorce According to an article in the January 22, 2001 issue of the New York Times "The typical pro se litigant is a middle-aged woman with a high- school diploma and at least some college education, said Kate Sampson, who surveys self-represented cases for the American Judicature Society. Most often, Ms. Sampson said, these people appear in court to argue domestic cases like divorce or child custody, though she added that there were a growing number of pro se cases in probate law and civil rights as well." The article went on to say "Most courts in the city and across the country do not keep statistics on pro se litigation, though court watchers say there is plenty of anecdotal evidence that they are on an upswing. The increase has been attributed to the abundance of court programs on television and to the popularity of the do-it-yourself movement as a whole. But the most prevalent reason still is not being able to afford hundreds to thousands of dollars in lawyers' fees." Are you thinking about doing your own divorce? Be sure to check out http://www.divorcehq.com/doown.html http://www.divorcehq.com/doown.html The following is an excerpt from an article submitted by one of our professional members. For the full text of all articles visit http://Divorcehq.com/articles.html 2. ANNULMENTS               by Maury D. Beaulier, Esquire In our modern world, an annulment tends to be more a creature of religion than of law. Annulments are rarely granted and when they are, very specific circumstances must exist. Often people believe that they may annul a marriage simply because it was of a very short duration. That is not the case. To annul a marriage, a person must demonstrate that the marriage is void because it is prohibited by the laws of the State or is voidable because the intent to enter into a civil contract was not present at the time that the parties married. What is an Annulment? Marriage is a civil contract between a man and a woman. As a result, the contract is legally binding so long as the requisite elements of the contract were present when the parties married. If the elements of the contract were not present, the marriage may be annulled. That means, the marriage is treated as if it never existed. For all purposes, it is considered null and void. What is the effect of an Annulment? In some states, an annulment may result in the harsh result of extinguishing interests in property acquired during the purported marriage. In such states, each party would be entitled to the property in their own name. This is not true under Minnesota law. In fact, Minnesota recognizes the concept of a "putative spouse." Any person who has cohabited with another under a good faith belief that the person was legally married acquires the same rights conferred by the divorce statute including property rights and the right to spousal maintenance. These rights terminate when a person discovers that they may not be legally married. It is important to remember that in the case of Bigamy (more than one spouse), the second putative spouse's rights do not supercede the rights acquired of the legal spouse the first spouse). However, the Court may apportion property, maintenance, and support rights among the claimants as appropriate "in the circumstances and in the interests of justice." What is the basis for an Annulment? An annulment may be granted when a marriage is automatically void under the law for public policy reasons or voidable by one party when certain requisite elements of the marriage contract were not present at the time of the marriage. Void Marriages. A marriage is automatically void and is automatically annulled when it is prohibited by law. Under Minnesota's statutes a lawful marriage may be contracted when the following requisites are met: only between persons of the opposite sex; and only when a license has been obtained as provided by law; and when the marriage is contracted in the presence of two witnesses; and solemnized by one authorized, or whom one or both of the parties in good faith believe to be authorized, by law to marry them. Any marriage occurring after April 26, 1941, without these elements is considered null and void. Additionally, Minnesota Statutes specifically prohibits a nullifies the following marriage without any decree of dissolution or other legal proceedings : Bigamy. Interfamily Marriage. Marriage between Close Relatives. Same Sex Marriage. Voidable marriages. A voidable marriage is one where an annulment is not automatic and must be sought by one of the parties. Generally, an annulment may be sought by one of the parties to a marriage if the intent to enter into the civil contract of marriage was not present at the time of the marriage, either due to mental illness, intoxication, duress or fraud. Minnesota Statutes set out the following circumstances under which a marriage may be annulled by Petition: Lack of Mental Capacity. Lack of Physical Capacity to have Intercourse. A Party was Under the Age of Consent. A marriage by an underage party may become legally binding and incapable of annulment if the cohabitation of the parties as husband and wife continues voluntarily after the person reached the age of consent. Similarly, a marriage involving an insane person may not be annulled if the person with the mental disability is restored to capacity and the parties continued to freely cohabitate as husband and wife. For full the version of Mr. Beaulier's article including Who may annul a marriage and when may an Action for Annulment be Brought and In What Types of Cases have Annulments been Granted go to: http://www.divorcehq.com/articles/annulments.html ABOUT THE AUTHOR Maury D. Beaulier is the founder of The Beaulier Law Office which has developed a large and active family law practice dedicated to providing each family law client with detailed information about every element of their case. He can be contacted by phone at (952)746-2153 or or Visit Web Site 3. ALWAYS REMEMBER THE CHILDREN We the children of the divorcing parents, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish these Bill Of Rights for all children. The right not to be asked to "choose sides" or be put in a situation where I would have to take sides between my parents. The right to be treated as a person and not as a pawn, possession or a negotiating chip. The right to freely and privately communicate with both parents. Children's feelings and rights are too often neglected in a divorce. This section deals with the basic rights of all children of divorcing parents. Check out http://www.divorcehq.com/billrights.html http://www.divorcehq.com/billrights.html 4. HUMOR "A good marriage would be between a blind wife and a deaf husband. " ...Michel de Montaigne