The Catholic Church teaches that the covenant of marriage is a lifelong and exclusive partnership of a man and a woman. Marriage is a holy vocation or calling that by its very nature promotes the good of both spouses and is open to the procreation and education of children. Christ has raised marriage between two baptized persons to the level of a sacrament. Marriage comes into being by the free and unimpeded act of giving marital consent by both spouses. Church law presumes all marriages valid and thus indissoluble as long as both parties remain alive and were free to marry at the time consent was expressed in a lawful manner. While the state permits divorce as a means to end a legally contracted marriage, the Catholic Church holds that the marriage vows, by their very nature, cannot be dissolved by any civil power. Thus the marriage bond remains in place until it can be established that valid marital consent was not exchanged.
Some individuals whose marital status in the Catholic Church needs to be clarified may not be of the Catholic tradition. The Catholic Church presumes the validity of all marriages celebrated according to the practices of all faith traditions, Christian and non-Christian, or celebrated civilly. Thus, those of another faith tradition or no faith tradition at all who have been previously married must submit a petition for a declaration of invalidity to a Catholic Church tribunal and receive an affirmative decision if they wish to marry a Catholic in a Catholic church. The Church esteems the marriages of non-Catholics and Catholics equally. The validity of every marriage is presumed until the contrary has been established.
Marriage is more than the mere exchange of words or promises. In consenting to marry, two persons must have the basic knowledge, intention, and capability of forming a permanent and exclusive partnership of the whole of life. An annulment is a judgment by a Church Tribunal that one of the essential elements for a valid marriage was not present at the time of consent. An annulment is a declaration that a valid marriage bond never existed from the beginning. A divorce, by contrast, is a dissolution of the bond of marriage irrespective of whether or not the marriage was valid.
An ecclesiastical declaration of nullity does not affect the legitimacy of children provided at least one of the parties entered the union in good faith (c. 1137).
An ecclesiastical declaration of nullity has no civil effects whatsoever.
Initiating the Petition for a Declaration of Invalidity
A petitioner must approach a parish priest, deacon, pastoral minister or tribunal aide to begin the process. The parish minister serves and assists the petitioner in preparing the initial statement to the tribunal that includes information regarding biographical data of both individuals, a history of the relationship, and an explanation of the difficulties experienced. The petitioner is asked to include the names and addresses of several witnesses – individuals who are familiar with the difficulties present in the courtship and marriage. The testimony of credible witnesses is essential in resolving the issue of an alleged invalid marriage.
Submitting a Petition
It is required that you first contact a priest, deacon, or tribunal aide (lay ecclesial minister) of your local parish. Due to the amount of preparation involved in filing the petition, this person can assist you in preparing the proper papers and submitting correct and complete documents.
Required Documents
Before submitting the petition to the tribunal, you must include the following documents. A petition without these will not be accepted:
1. A copy of your baptismal record dated within six (6) months from date of submission of application. This is available through your parish of baptism. When calling to request, please be sure to request that notations of sacraments are included.
2. If applicable, Catholic Church marriage certificate from parish where wedding occurred.
3. A copy of the record of your civil marriage and a copy of your application for the marriage license. Both of these documents can be obtained from the county clerk's office or court house where you applied for the marriage license.
4. An original or court notarized copy of your ENTIRE final divorce decree.
5. If applicable, include decisions of previous marriages which have been examined by a tribunal and/or death certificates of prior spouse(s).
The Rights of Both Parties
Any person (petitioner) may submit a petition of invalidity of his or her marriage to a Catholic Church tribunal. The petition must contain the reason(s) why the validity of the marriage is being challenged. The other party (respondent) has a right to be notified of the petition and has a right to address the allegations made by the petitioner. Each of the parties has a right to call witnesses. The tribunal contacts the respondent as well as the witnesses submitted by each party. If a decision given by the tribunal is opposed by either or both parties, both the petitioner and the respondent have the right to appeal the decision to the regular appellate tribunal or to the Roman Rota.
Grounds of Invalidity
The validity of a marriage may be challenged if an individual questions whether a quality essential to marriage was absent from consent at the time of the wedding ceremony. Behavior during the courtship and, to a lesser extent, during the time of cohabitation may give some indication that grounds of invalidity exist. Some forms of behavior such as physical abuse, alcohol and drug abuse, deviant sexual behavior, criminal activity, grave irresponsibility, mental illness, and persistent infidelity may indicate that valid marital consent was not exchanged by one or both parties. Beliefs about marriage contrary to Catholic doctrine may also indicate invalid consent. An intention to exclude children, contrary views about the permanence of marriage and fidelity may also indicate that consent was not exchanged validly. Any infringement of a person’s free choice to marry, fraud, error regarding the identity of the spouse, or extreme internal or external pressure to marry may also indicate that consent was not exchanged validly.