What does, "essentials of the marriage," mean?

Question

Most state's annulment laws consider a valid justification "fraud involving the essentials of the marriage." Can anyone tell me what this means exactly? I thought it might be related to impotence, but serveral states (e.g., IL, WI, and VA) also have a seperate item for that.

JTM,

What you say makes sense, but all of those reasons for an annulment are listed elsewhere in the statutes. Why have a term of art that means the same thing as the rest of the statute?

Answer 1

it means they were competent at the time of marrige, that it was consumated, that there was no fraud in the procurment of the marriage, that parties were free to marry (of age and not married at the time), that the marriage was free and voluntary, that all the legalites of the marriage took place (marriage license, licensed person did the marriage, requisite number of witnesses)

Answer 2

The essentials of marriage in most states are: the capacity to marry, state of mind and the procedural aspects; vows in fronts of witness and administered by someone authorized to marry people.

Annulments are proper when something happens prior to the marriage that affects either of these two things. Fraud for example is a basis for an annulment if someone has misrepresented their or there was a fraud regarding something that had the other person known they would not have married them.

Answer 3

Essential requisites of marriage are the following:
1. Consent of the parties
2. Age - 18 year old and above
3. Capacity to marry

Other requisites:
4. Authority of the solemnizing person
5. Marriage license
6. Ceremony

All of the above requirements must be present during the solemnity in order to make the marriage valid.

Answer 4

make sure she's as pretty as her sister
and cooks as good as her mother