mrhnau said:here is an interesting question... every knows of common law marriages, right? I lived w/ a guy for 3 years. was my roomate. how would something like that be considered? are common law marriages all that common these days? I honestly don't know. do they get any legal considerations? Is there any confusion w/ someone being a roomate. How would same sex marriages change things?
Honest question, I don't know the answers... just asking.
MrH
well only about 15 states even recognise common law marriage and i think about 5 of those states stoped recognising them from particular dates. But it doesn't just happen by living with a person, you have to actual live as a couple, call each other husband or wife, check the married box on forms and file joint tax returns etc. Something to remember about common law marriages is when you are in one you are then subject to divorce. Same sex common law marriages are not recognised at the moment.
Same sex marriages would change things because all states recognise marriage. If you are married by common law in a state that allows this and then move to another state, that new state technically has to recognise that marriage. So technically if one state allows a same sex marriage, then when they move to other states those states will have to recognise that marriage.
Common law marriages are pretty uncommon by all accounts and only started in my native land because some people lived in places in which there was no one to marry them officially.