J. J. CATER FURNITURE CO., AND GREAT AMERICAN INDEMNITY COMPANY
v.
IDA ANNIE BANKS, A WIDOW CARRIE D. GIBSON, MINOR CHILDREN OF IDA ANNIE BANKS, AND FLORIDA INDUSTRIAL COMMISSION
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James B. Banks died while employed by J. J. Cater Furniture Company. His widow and children claimed workmen's compensation benefits, but the employer and insurance company controverted the claims on the ground that Banks was already married at the time of his alleged marriage to the claimant widow. The Florida Supreme Court affirmed the award of compensation, holding that the burden of proving the invalidity of a second marriage rests on the party contesting it, and the employer failed to meet that burden.
The court held that the burden of proving the invalidity of a second marriage rests upon the party seeking to impeach it, not upon the party defending its validity. A strong presumption of validity operates in favor of the second marriage, and even if a party was previously married with a living spouse, the presumption is that the prior marriage had been dissolved by divorce or terminated by death before the second marriage. The employer failed to meet its burden of proving the invalidity of Banks's marriage to the claimant widow.
“The rule is settled in this jurisdiction that when one disputes the validity of a second or subsequent marriage, he has the burden of showing its invalidity.”
Establishes the fundamental rule of law that the burden of proof rests on the party challenging the validity of a second marriage.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceJames B. Banks died while working for J. J. Cater Furniture Company, and his death arose out of and in the course of his employment. His widow, Ida An…
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James B. Banks came to his death while working for J. J. Cater Furniture Company. It was conceded that his death arose out of and in course of his employment, within the provisions of the Florida Workmen's Compensation Law F. S. 1941, Sec. 440.01 et seq. The dispute between the parties is as to claimants’ rights to receive compensation. The claims were controverted on the ground that at the time of his alleged marriage to claimant, Banks then and there had a living wife from whom he had never been divorced.
The deputy commissioner, after a hearing on the merits, entered an award for claimants. The Florida Industrial Commission reviewed the record and affirmed the award. The circuit court on appeal likewise entered an order affirming the award. The case is here on appeal.
*378The rule is settled in this jurisdiction that when one disputes the validity of a second or subsequent marriage, he has the burden of showing its invalidity. Roberts, et al., v. Roberts, 124 Fla. 116, 167 So. 808. This is so for the reason that a strong presumption of validity operates in favor of the second marriage.
It is not enough to show that a party to a marriage contract has previously been married and that the former spouse is still living; or if dead, that he, or she, was alive at the time of the second marriage. Even in such cases, the presumption is that the prior marriage had been dissolved by divorce, or terminated by death, prior to the second marriage, and that the parties to the latter marriage were therefore competent and lawfully qualified to enter into the marriage contract at the time they did so.
The burden of overcoming these presumptions by proof rests upon the persons seeking to impeach the last marriage, even though he may be thereby required to prove a negative. Sloss-Sheffield Steel & Iron Co. v. Alexander, et al., 241 Ala. 476, 3 So. (2nd) 46.
A careful review of the evidence must lead to the conclusion that judged by these standards appellant has wholly failed to meet this burden.
All assignments of error having been carefully considered, and the Court finding no error in the judgment of the circuit court, the judgment is hereby affirmed.
It is so ordered.
BUFORD, C. J., BROWN and THOMAS, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
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In re Est. of Carl Sylvester Yohn, 238 So. 2d 290 (Fla. 1970)…sonable probability that Carl Yohn actually secured a divorce. The burden of overcoming the presumption of validity of the second marriage was upon the first wife, even though she was required to prove a negative. J. J. Cater Furniture Co. v. Banks, 152 Fla. 377, 11 So. 2d 776 (1943). It is elementary that the theories or reasons assigned by the lower court as its basis for the order or judgment appealed from, although sometimes helpful, are not in any way controlling on appeal and the Appellate Court will…
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Blanch Teel v. Nolen Brown Motors, Inc., 93 So. 2d 874 (Fla. 1957)…. This is so for the reason that the testimony was legally insufficient to overcome the presumption in favor of the validity of the second marriage. See Roberts v. Roberts, 124 Fla. 116, 167 So. 808; J. J. Cater Furniture Co. v. Banks, 152 Fla. 377, 11 So. 2d 776; Hillyer & Lovan v. Florida Industrial Commission, 155 Fla. 144, 19 So. 2d 838; Johnson v. Johnson, Fla.1951, 51 So. 2d 421. The prayer of the petition is granted and that portion of the order under review which determined that the first wife was t…
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King v. Keller, 117 So. 2d 726 (Fla. 1960)…sented substantial, competent evidence sufficient to overcome the presumption of the validity of decedent’s marriage to petitioner. It is undisputed that a presumption of validity attaches to one’s last marriage. Cater Furniture Co. v. Banks, 1943, 152 Fla. 377, 11 So. 2d 776. In Teel v. Nolen Brown Motors, Inc., Fla.1957, 93 So. 2d 874 and in Johnson v. Johnson, Fla.1951, 51 So. 2d 421 this presumption is referred to as “one of the strongest known to the law.” Petitioner’s argument is that the instant ca…1 / 2
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- Roberts v. Roberts, 124 Fla. 116 (Fla. 1936)