My marriage license was never turned in by the officiant, am I married?

Yes, under most circumstances, even if you had a technical defect in your Marriage License you are legally married under California family law.

The typical process for filing a Marriage License and Certificate looks like this:

1.     The Parties apply for a license,

2.     The wedding ceremony occurs,

3.     The officiant sends the license back to the County Clerk,

4.     The officiant then signs the registration, turning the Marriage License into a Marriage Certificate,

5.     The County records this document with the County Recorder’s Office.

6.     The County Clerk sends all original confidential marriage certificates retained, or originals of reproduced confidential marriage certificates filed after January 1, 1982, to the State Registrar of Vital Statistics (Family Code § 511).

If you have a wedding ceremony in California and you have applied for a marriage license, you are most likely married under California family law even if you fail to send in that license to the County. This is because there is at least one family law case that holds that registration of a marriage certificate is not essential to the validity of a marriage. In 2011, an Appellate Court found that parties who, after marriage ceremony in 1991, submitted marriage certificate for registration that was twice rejected for technical defects and was not resubmitted, and who were married in new ceremony about 10 years later, had been married for 17 years at time of dissolution of their marriage in 2008. In re Marriage of Cantarella (2011) 191 C.A. 4th 916, 923.

There is also a California Health and Safety Code section (§103450) that specifically allows for a party to bring an action requesting an order judicially establishing the fact of, and time and place of, the marriage. The definition of a party includes: “[a] member of a law enforcement agency or a representative of another governmental agency, as provided by law, who is conducting official business.” Health and Safety Code 103526(c)(2)(C).

What does that mean? Well, being married under California law requires you to file taxes with the State and Federal government as married. IRS Publication 17, page 20 states: “State law governs whether you are married or legally separated under a divorce or separate maintenance decree.” 

It also means that you will have to use California's dissolution rules in the family code if you decide to formally and legally separate. 

Contact me at amanda@gordonfamilylaw.com for more information.

How can I fix my defective marriage license?

Did you fail to turn in your marriage license? 
The California Family Code provides the following guidance on defects in Confidential Marriage Licenses (Family Code 360 and 510):
 
510.  (a) If a confidential marriage license is lost, damaged, or destroyed after the performance of the marriage, but before it is returned to the county clerk, or deemed unacceptable for registration by the county clerk, the person solemnizing the marriage, in order to comply with Section 506, shall obtain a duplicate marriage license by filing an affidavit setting forth the facts with the county clerk of the county in which the license was issued.  
 
(b) The duplicate license may not be issued later than one year after issuance of the original license and shall be returned by the person solemnizing the marriage to the county clerk within one year of the issuance date shown on the original marriage license.    (c) The county clerk may charge a fee to cover the actual costs of issuing a duplicate marriage license.    (d) If a marriage license is lost, damaged, or destroyed before a marriage ceremony takes place, the applicants shall purchase a new marriage license and the old license shall be voided.

 Before one year of the issue date of the marriage license you can file and affidavit for a duplicate of the marriage license under Family Code 360 and 510, and if it has been more than one year, you can use the declaration of marriage form (VS 116) FC Section 425. You can also use the Court order delayed certificate of marriage form (VS 122).  

Contact me at amanda@gordonfamilylaw.com for more information.

Marriage, Divorce, and Taxes: Why December 31st 2015 is different than January 1st 2016

Getting married in 2015? Or considering finalizing your divorce in 2015? Your status makes a difference for your taxes.

The most important thing to remember is that your marital status on the last day of the year (December 31, 2015) determines your marital status for the entire year for the purposes of income tax filing.

Married in 2015?
First, let’s go over some of the IRS rules and benefits for all of those couples getting married this year.  
If you get married at any point in 2015, you are now required to file taxes either as married filing separately (MFS) or married filing jointly (MFJ) for any income you earn in 2015. What this means is that when you go to file taxes next April, you no longer have the option of filing as a single person.
For most couples filing a tax return as married filing jointly provides a beneficial tax outcome. Married couples filing a joint return can claim two personal exemptions instead of one and can use a standard deduction of $12,400 verses the single taxpayer deduction of $6,200. You can also choose to itemize your deductions for benefits like mortgage interest payments.
Another benefit of getting married this year is that spouses can give each other unlimited gifts without the gift tax limits.
All being said, the change in status is not necessarily a win for many professionals as the marriage penalty can start to impact your tax rate. You can determine if you are going to be impacted by the marriage penalty.  

Divorced in 2015
Under the IRS rules, your marital status on the last day of the year or December 31, 2015 determines your marital status for the entire year.
In California, the Court will not issue an official decree of divorce before 6 months from the date of filing and serving of the Petition for dissolution (California Family Code 2339). This means you need to start the process (file) before July 1st.
It is important to remember that most of the biggest taxable events are not necessarily part of the divorce process itself, but actually occur in the years that follow as a result of the divorce settlement, like the sale of a home, capital gains, and who will be able to claim the children as dependents. These won’t really be affected by whether you get divorced in 2015 or 2016.
Here are some common tax credits and exemptions that could impact your decision to file before June 30th, 2015, though:
 

Children
If you have children, one important tax issue to determine who will take the deductions for a dependent child. This is because the tax implications are important. For each dependent a parent can deduct $3,900 from their federal taxable income.  In order to qualify, the child must live with the parent claiming the exemption more than half of the year and be under the age of 19 at the end of the year. Often parents will alternate who gets to claim the exemption from year to year.

If you are able to get a final divorce decree by December 31, 2015 and file as single another benefit may be that one spouse can claim Head of Household. In order to qualify for this status, you and your ex must have lived apart for the last six months and the claiming parent also has to pay more than half of household costs. In this case, the other spouse files his/her return as single.

Mortgages
Another tax benefit to be aware of is the payment of mortgages.  The person who stays in the marital home may be able to take advantage of one of the most popular tax credits which is the mortgage interest deduction. The mortgage interest deduction is the part of your monthly payment that covers the interest you pay on the mortgage.

Property Taxes
The last issue to be aware of is property taxes. If both parties have made any estimated property tax payments this year, then you have two options. First, one party can claim all of the payments or second the payments can be divided between the parties pursuant to an agreement. These payments should be reflected on your tax return.
Tax issues can be complicated, especially when you are changing your filing status from married to single. Consult with a family law attorney and tax professional to make sure you are aware of the risks and benefits associated with changing your tax status.

Legal Guide to Elopement

Feeling romantic and spontaneous after the recent Supreme Court decision on gay marriage? Itching to tie the knot with someone special? You are not alone. The Supreme Court of the United States recently proclaimed in Obergefell v. Hodges that,

[m]arriage is sacred to those who live by their religions and offers unique fulfillment to those who find meaning in the secular realm…. Rising from the most basic human needs, marriage is essential to our most profound hopes and aspirations.

But don’t move too fast. Here are five important legal issues to keep in mind if you are considering eloping with your sweetie to the nearest chapel:

1. You Need A Marriage License

Each state has different standards for obtaining a marriage license. For example, in California, both parties must appear in person and bring valid picture identification to the County Clerk’s Office to apply for a marriage license.

In some states, like Louisiana, there may even be a waiting period of up to three days before and after receiving your marriage license.

You may have heard that you need a blood test to get married. This is mostly myth. However, until recently, some states, like Mississippi, required a blood test to obtain a marriage license. However, today you can get married in most states that used to require a blood test by simply waiving the blood test requirement through informed consent.

2. Prepare for the Costs

The cost of a marriage license varies state by state and can be reduced by your own level of your preparation.

For example, Georgia has a program where all fees associated with your marriage license can be waived so long as you show proof of completion of an approved premarital counseling course. Generally, fees for marriage licenses are around $100 to $200 with the fee for the license and any subsequent copies. But buyer beware: as cheap as getting married may be, divorce is still very expensive and filing fees for divorces are rising to $450 in some counties in California.

3. You will need an Officiant

The person who marries you is called the marriage officiant, and this person can be a clergyperson or otherwise authorized individual. Remember how Joey married Monica and Chandler in Friends? Depending on your state, many different types of individuals are authorized to perform weddings, including ship captains and Medicine Men or even shamans.

In California, anyone who officiates a wedding is required by law to complete the marriage license and return it to the County Recorder’s office within 10 days of the event for registration. Each state will have its own requirements so be sure to check with your state and county on who can officiate your wedding.

4. Elopement means alone, right? Wrong.

Nope, some states require that you must also have at least one witness present at your ceremony. These requirements are varied as other states required at least two witnesses, and some states, like Florida, do not require any witnesses. It is best to check with your local county to be sure about the witness requirement.

5. Make sure you do your homework.

Depending on your state you may have to read information about marriage and make a sworn affidavit before obtaining a marriage license. For example, in Florida all newlyweds must certify that they have read the Family Law Handbook created by the Family Law Section of the Florida Bar.

While many states do not require this step, as a family lawyer, I recommend that everyone consider aprenuptial agreement or at least understand what your state’s property laws entail upon dissolution before taking the plunge. Elopement and prenups are a bit antithetical as California requires that (1) Both parties must be represented by separate independent attorneys, (2) disclose fully their finances (including any assets and debts), and (3) the final form of the agreement must be in the hands of each party at least seven days prior to signing the document. The prenup requirements can put a damper in the honeymoon planning, but as a family lawyer, I’d rather be safe than sorry.

Enjoy the summer wedding season and plan accordingly!

Can I deduct spousal support from my taxes if we are only separated and not divorced?

Yes, experienced Bay Area California family law attorneys will tell clients that spousal support is tax deductible to the payor even if you are still married.  

The IRS rules about spousal support or alimony state that alimony is deductible to the payor and income to the payee. IRS Rule 26 US Code Section 71 states that if you have a written Agreement, the payor spouse can deduct spousal support so long as the payments are in cash or check, you do not live in the same house as your ex-spouse, the Agreement is in writing, the Agreement states that payments will not continue after the death of the payee, and the payments are not marked as "NOT ALIMONY". 

Even if you are still legally married, if you no longer live in the same house and are making spousal support payments to your ex-spouse you can claim a deduction if you file taxes as Married Filing Separately.  If you file taxes as Married Filing Jointly, you cannot deduct spousal support.  IRS 71(e).

Many couples find it helpful to create a separation agreement - allowing for the dust to settle before divorce. Taking advantage of tax rules around spousal support deductions can reduce your liability at the end of the year and create more cash flow during a difficult time.  Contact a family law attorney or tax specialist to learn more about these rules.

Contact amanda@gordonfamilylaw.com if you are considering a temporary support order.