BETTY J. WRIGHT, APPELLANT,
v.
ROGERS WRIGHT, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
Betty Wright challenged the trial court's dissolution of her marriage to Rogers Wright, asserting the marriage was bigamous and void because her husband had a prior undissolved marriage to Marion Frances Smith. The court reversed the trial court's ruling that Wright was estopped as a matter of law from raising the bigamy defense, holding that she was entitled to a full evidentiary hearing on the issue.
The trial court has subject matter jurisdiction over the parties' relationship and may grant either a divorce or annulment. Betty Wright is not estopped as a matter of law based solely on her knowledge of the prior marriage; instead, she is entitled to a full evidentiary hearing where she may establish that her marriage is presumptively void, and the husband may then offer proof that estoppel should apply.
[1] A trial court has subject matter jurisdiction over a marital relationship, even if the marriage is void or voidable.
[2] A party to a dissolution proceeding may be estopped from asserting that the marriage is bigamous and void.
Previewing 2 of 5 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“although a 'marriage' is accomplished under circumstances which make it a nullity, it is to the best interest of society that a judicial determination of the invalidity be obtained”
Establishes the foundational principle that courts have jurisdiction and duty to determine the validity of marriages, even when circumstances suggest nullity.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceBetty and Rogers Wright were married in 1979. In 1998, Betty filed for dissolution of marriage. At the final hearing, before the judgment was signed, …
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Void Marriage cases and more on FLexlaw
PATTERSON, Chief Judge.
The question presented in this case is whether Betty J. Wright (the -wife) is es-topped, as a matter of law, from litigating that her marriage to Rogers Wright (the husband) was bigamous and void. We reverse and remand for an evidentiary hearing.
The parties were married in 1979. In 1998, the wife commenced a dissolution of marriage action. At the final hearing, the trial court announced that it would dissolve the marriage and, as part of the judgment, the wife would pay alimony to the husband. At that juncture, before the final judgment was signed, the wife filed a motion to abate and for relief from judgment. The thrust of the motion was that the court lacked subject matter jurisdiction to dissolve a bigamous marriage. A copy of a marriage certificate between Rogers Wright and a Marion Frances Smith dated July 24, 1961, was attached to the motion. The motion alleged that the husband was legally married to Smith and, therefore, the Wright marriage was void.
It is undisputed that the wife became aware of the Wright Smith marriage during her marriage to the husband, but apparently accepted his explanation that the prior marriage was invalid. On these facts, without a full evidentiary hearing, the trial court ruled that the wife was estopped from asserting the issue of a void marriage as a matter of law. We determine first that the court had subject matter jurisdiction over the parties’ relationship and, second, that the wife is entitled to a full evidentiary hearing on the issue.
On the matter of jurisdiction, in Burger v. Burger, 166 So. 2d 433, 435 (Fla.1964), our supreme court stated, “We have consistently held that although a ‘mar riage’ is accomplished under circumstances which make it a nullity, it is to the best interest of society that a judicial determination of the invalidity be obtained.” At the time of the Burger proceeding, then section 65.04, Florida Statutes (1961), provided:
65.04 Grounds for divorce. — No divorce shall be granted unless one of the following facts shall appear:
(9) That either party had a husband or wife living at the time of the marriage sought to be annulled.
The court explained that the legislature had the power to delineate a divorce from what would otherwise be considered an annulment. The underlying principle, however, is that the court has jurisdiction over the parties’ relationship and may act upon it accordingly. Since that time, section 65.04 was transferred to chapter 61 and then later repealed.1 In Gilvary v. Gilvary, 648 So. 2d 317, 318 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995), the court explained the current state of the law regarding annulment:
A trial court’s jurisdiction over an annulment proceeding stems not from any statutory provision, but from its equitable chancery jurisdiction. See generally, 25A Fla. Jur.2d Family Law § 512 (1992) (“[I]t is clear that the circuit courts, as courts of chancery, have jurisdiction to declai’e the nullity of a void marriage or to decree that a voidable marriage is annulled.”).
The trial court therefore has jurisdiction over the relationship between the husband and the wife, with either divorce or annulment being the ultimate remedy.
A party to a dissolution proceeding may be estopped from asserting that the marriage is bigamous and void. See Lambert v. Lambert, 524 So. 2d 686 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988); Keller v. Keller, 521 So. 2d 273 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988). Whether an estoppel defense applies depends upon the facts of the case. The record of this case, as it now stands, does not support a determination that the wife is estopped as a matter of law based solely on her knowledge of the Wright Smith relationship. She must be afforded a full evidentiary hearing, where she must be given the opportunity to establish that her marriage to the husband is presumptively void. At that time, she may request the court to annul the marriage. Thereafter, the husband may offer proof that the wife should be estopped from asserting her position.
Reversed and remanded.
ALTENBERND and CASANUEVA, JJ., concur. . Section 65.04, Florida Statutes, was renumbered as section 61.041 by chapter 67-254, section 16, at 606, Laws of Florida, and repealed by chapter 71-241, section 22, at 1330, Laws of Florida.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Brown v. Daucia T. Cowell, 19 So. 3d 1171 (Fla. 1st DCA 2009)…ether such satisfied those provisions’ requirements. Also, the circuit court did not lack subject matter jurisdiction. A circuit court’s jurisdiction over a petition for annulment arises from its “equitable chancery jurisdiction,” Wright v. Wright, 778 So. 2d 352, 354 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001), and is not predicated upon the citizenship or residency of the respondent. REVERSED and REMANDED for further proceedings. BARFIELD, KAHN, and VAN NORTWICK, JJ„ concur.…
-
Betz v. Betz, 790 So. 2d 1128 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001)…, 663 So. 2d 1049, 1052 (Fla.1995) (emphasizing that judge must review the entire record if exceptions are filed to the master’s recommendation). The trial court had jurisdiction to rule on the Husband’s petition for annulment. See Wright v. Wright, 778 So. 2d 352 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001); Gilvary v. Gilvary, 648 So. 2d 317 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995) (both discussing a trial court’s jurisdiction over an annulment proceeding). Accordingly, we reverse and remand for the trial court to consider the Husband’s objections to th…
-
Baxter v. Baxter (Fla. 1st DCA 2024)
Authorities Cited
- Keller v. Keller, 521 So. 2d 273 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988)
- Lisolette Burger v. Burger, 166 So. 2d 433 (Fla. 1964)
- Lambert v. Lambert, 524 So. 2d 686 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988)
- Gilvary v. Gilvary, 648 So. 2d 317 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995)