Legal Question in Family Law in California

my wife of 15 years and I are both from the UK, but are now both US Citizens,

She has been cheating on me with multiple men for multiple years. One man she has been cheating with since before we were married up until now.

Could infidelity be considered fraud, and grounds for an annulment if my wife was cheating on me with the same guy since before we were even engaged in 1993, right the way through our marriage. She started cheating on me with him before 1993, continued through our marriage in 1996 here in the US, and has continued cheating with him up until now.

Did she just marry me to get her green card and citizenship to eventually bring him over here ?


Asked on 11/18/11, 4:23 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Anthony Roach Law Office of Anthony A. Roach

A judgment of nullity on the ground of �fraud� is proper only in extreme cases where the particular fraud goes to the very essence of the marriage relation. �A marriage may be annulled for fraud only in an extreme case where the particular fraud goes to the very essence of the marriage relation.� (In re Marriage of Ramirez (4th Dist. 2008) 165 Cal.App.4th 751, 757.)

Instead, the particular fraudulent intention must relate to the sexual or procreative aspects of marriage. In the absence of this type of fraud, the longstanding rule is that neither party may question the validity of the marriage upon the ground of express or implied representations of the other with respect to such matters as character, habits, chastity, business or social standing, financial worth or prospects, or matters of a similar nature.

(In re Marriage of Meagher and Maleki (4th Dist. 2005) 131 Cal.App.4th 1, 3.)

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Answered on 11/18/11, 5:56 pm


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