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Husband needs a divorce from his "first wife" that he forgot to divorce before he married me.
Anonymous9 views4 answers
Husband is incarcerated in NC DPS. We were married in 2011. I recently found a marriage certificate saying that he is still married to another woman from 1996, who now lives in Bowling Greens, KY. What is his options? Prisoner Legal Services no longer handles divorces.
Fred B. Amos IIDUI / DWI AttorneyRaleigh, NCNC licensed ·
I agree with the previous answers and would just add that if your "husband" is not divorced from his first wife, then he is not your husband as your marriage, at least in NC, is void. It is unclear who you intend to be divorced. Clearly this man needs to be divorced from his first wife. If you intend to divorce him as well, that is fine, if not, you will probably need to be remarried after the first divorce is finalized.
You need to find out if there was ever a divorce or anulment ending the 1996 marriage. NCPLS has never been able to represent people in court for divorce proceedings, all they have ever had is do it yourself packets for divorces. In any event, you are going to need to consult with a local family law attorney to figure out if you need a divorce or an anulment. You might see if your local Legal Aid office has a pro se or DIY divorce information packet for you, too.
I agree with Ms. Farber on doing some further digging as to whether there was an actual divorce, because what you actually have said is that you found a "marriage certificate" saying he is "still married". Not sure if you mean a license or certificate, but either way those are documents having to do with the actual marriage and those will always be on the books forever (just like an original deed to a house) because that transaction did happen. What matters is a subsequent divorce decree or judgment. The problem with searching for that though is that one can get a divorce in any county (and there are 100), and if this person now lives in KY, whose to say she didn't file for divorce there if she met the requirements. So the important point here is that by you doing a cursory check through the county you assumed to be relevant, that doesn't mean you have done a full search. And again, if you are looking at the Register of Deeds marriage certificates, you are in the wrong spot anyway. Divorce degrees are filed with the court.
For all these reasons, you should consult an attorney. Consider the NC Bar Association's Lawyer Referral Service for very discounted consult fee of only $50 for a 30 minute consult!
If your husband was till married to Wife #1 when you got married to him in 2011, he has to divorce her before anything can happen with you. If he was still married to her when you got married, your marriage is void under NC law, which means your marriage to him does not exist in North Carolina. There's nothing to change or annul; it's as if it never happened. If you wish to be married, he has to file for divorce and you need to marry him only after the divorce has been granted for the marriage to be valid in NC.
