null & void

Hi, I'm Gwen...I would like to seek legal advise.
I have a bf na recently nagtapat lang sakin na 2 x syang kinasal. The first one was secret marriage, isa lang ang witness nung girl. This was done when my bf was 20 yrs. old. The girl was 18 yrs. old. They did not end up together. After the secret marriage, they did not live-in together. They broke up. After a few yrs, naunang nagasawa yung girl. Yung bf ko waited for a few more yrs. Pero nagpakasal din sa iba....Bale second marriage na nya yun. Pero 6 yrs. na silang hiwalay nung 2nd marriage... I want to know if null & void both marriages? What procedure should be done para maging clear ang status ng bf ko because he wants to marry me?

nope, these are not null and void. they are validly subsisting.

if you marry him, you may be held liable for the crime of bigamy along with him.

to confirm what he said, go to NSO and acquire a Certificate of No Marriage (CENOMAR). his previous marriages will pop up if true.

Yes, I confirm that he has records of both marriages from NSO. I cannot understand why this became possible. But I really need help. He wants to fix our relationship and move further. Please give us step by step procedure on how to cancel the first and second marriage...Thanks for your help

First step, consult or engage the service of a lawyer. The next steps will follow later.

@attyLL

"nope, these are not null and void. they are validly subsisting.

if you marry him, you may be held liable for the crime of bigamy along with him."


Atty., ibig nyong sabihin valid yung dalawang marriages. Paano mangyayari yun samantalang valid naman ang first marriage, di ba dapat void yung second marriage dahil hindi pa napawalang-bisa yung first marriage nung pumasok siya sa pangalawa?

At saka, paano magiging liable sa Bigamy si Gwen eh hindi naman siya yung dalawang beses nagpakasal. Di ba yung boyfriend ni Gwen and dalawang beses nagpakasal? Kung pakakasalan ni Gwen yung boyfriend niya, paano siya magkakasala ng Bigamy eh first time pa lang naman siya magpapakasal?

@taxidriver

You're so smart for a taxi driver. Good point, indeed.

Then i am also too smart for claw-wielding-cigar-puffing-hairy mutant?

No question, the second marriage is null and void purely because it is a second or subsequent marriage. With all due respect to attyLLL, I think what means to say when he said that the second marriage is NOT null and void but in fact validly subsisting is that the second marriage is validly subsisting in the sense that, although void ab initio, it may still produce legal consequences and among these legal consequences is incurring criminal liability for bigamy. Accordingly, as soon as the second marriage was celebrated, the crime of bigamy had already been consummated. True, the second marriage is null and void being bigamous but still there must be a judicial declaration to that effect.

In a nutshell, the second marriage is null and void as it is bigamous but also validly subsisting for purposes of making the spouse contracting the subsequent marriage liable for bigamy. To hold otherwise would render the State’s penal laws on bigamy completely nugatory, and allow individuals to deliberately ensure that each marital contract be flawed in some manner, and to thus escape the consequences of contracting multiple marriages, while beguiling throngs of hapless women with the promise of futurity and commitment.

I don't think Gwen will be liable for bigamy if she marries her boyfriend. But then, what is the point of entering into a marriage when you knew before hand that it is null and void? Well, people do get crazy sometimes.

thanks wolverine, but let me clarify further. what i meant was the marriages are considered valid until there is a court order declaring them void.

i stand corrected, gwen will not be liable for bigamy. instead she will be liable for:

Art. 350. Marriage contracted against provisions of laws. — The penalty of prision correccional in its medium and maximum periods shall be imposed upon any person who, without being included in the provisions of the next proceeding article, shall have not been complied with or that the marriage is in disregard of a legal impediment.

Dear All,

Thanks for your comments on the case I am inquiring. I have some additional questions to ask:

1) The second wife is aware of the first marriage pero pumayag syang magpakasal sa bf ko. If that is the scenario, will there still be a case to be filed sa bf ko?

2) Paano naman po yung separation of properties? Me binabayarang hulugan na car yung bf ko. Me possibility ba na sa asawa mapunta yung car kapag na-annul yung case kasi wala pa naman pre-nuptial agreement during their time? Sya po ang nagbabayad ng car pero yung car nakapangalan sa wife, co-maker lang sya. Does he need to transfer the car's property name to another person para di sya maging part ng conjugal property? Malaki ba ang chances that the ownership of the car will go thru the wife because nakapangalan sa kanya yung car?

3) Normally ano po yung time frame ng annulment (estimate)? Sa case ng 2 marriages - San po mas mapapadali mapawalang bisa ang kasal? Will it be the first or second marriage? Will the second marriage be easier to annul kasi in the first place, the marriage that is more valid is the first one, although existing din yung isa at kylangan pa din na ma-annul....

4) Roughly, how much will annulment costs? My bf doesn't have that much budget but more or less he wants to know para naman di sya maloko when he approaches a legal counsel...

I do appreciate all the assistance you're giving....Thanks again in advance....

1) yes, regardless of knowledge of the second wife, your bf is still liable for bigamy.

2) which wife is this? all their properties are presumed to be owned by them both. if there is a judicial decree separating their properties, then all they own will be put together then cut in half. the car will represent part of what goes to who gets it.

3) you have to nullify both

4) first, there has to be a ground that exists to nullify a marriage. the second one is easy due to bigamy. the first one, it depends on what their marital history is. i would first look at the marriage license.

you are the perfect example of love is blind. i am forced to admire that. good luck.

AttyLLL,

Thanks for your reply on my previous post.

Regarding no. 2, I am referring to the properties of the second wife. Nabili ng bf ko yung car during the time of the second wife. Di pa sya nageexist nung time nung first wife. In this case, yung conjugal property, does it apply to only the first wife? At possible na yung car eh mapaghatian dun sa first wife hindi nung second wife? Does my bf need to change ownership of the car before he files the annulment on both marriages para di ma-include as conjugal property yung car?

Yung first marriage, I think the ground to nullify it is because parang fixer type sya. Nagpirmahan lang sila pero no formal wedding by a priest or mayor. And it was a childhood sweetheart. They did not even live-in together after the marriage. Yung second marriage, yun po ang dumaan sa Catholic wedding...But you told me it's already bigamy and the most valid wedding is the first one, but it still has to be nullified....

Please advise your comments...

because the 2nd marriage is void (but still requires a judicial decree that it is), there is a complete separation of property. however, the presumption is that the vehicle is the wife's because it is under her name. the husband will have to prove that he paid for it.

as for the first marriage, does their marriage contract appear in the nso? is there a marriage license recorded in the civil registrar? if so on either, then a judicial decree is still necessary to declare it void.

please atty. i also need legal advice. wish u can help me..i & my x bf got secret mariage when we were age of 18 that was year of 2002 then in same year he had an affair, the lady got pregnant and i set him free, no communication at all. then now year of 2010 i found out from my cenomar that our secret marriage was filed. then i tried to find my x to ask help he told me dont get cenomar in the city which we got married, so now ill try to get somewhere but not in the same city coz last 2008 he got his cenomar there was no record that he was married. im confused! im getting married with my fiancee this year but how i can marry if my cenomar is not single. then i heard from him that he is now with other lady aggain with 2 kids. atty u think our marriage is valid even just a secret or if ever i can ask null and void it. pls dont ignore i need help=( thanks in advance..

@ahm - Please do not Hi-jack other persons post. be patience because most the lawyers in this site are busy. Thank you.

Hi AttyLLL,

Once again thanks for replying on my posts...
My bf told me that both marriage contracts exists
upon checking w/ NSO. However, for the first
marriage, the marriage license cannot be verified
with the Civil Registry kasi po lumubog na yung
place na pinagkasalan nung first marriage. It is
somewhere in Pampanga. If this is the case, paano
po ang dapat gawin ng bf ko to check if the license
still exists? Hindi nya rin matandaan if he ever
signed a marriage license. Ang sure lang nya is
yung marriage contract ang nasignan nya coz it was
actually a secret marriage...Also, ang sabi nya
sa akin, in both marriage contracts, he used a
different signature for his name. Does this help
in any way?

Meantime, this is a very stupid question from
a person na sobrang nagmamahal. Ano po bang
consequence kapag nadeclared null & void na yung
1st marriage? Will that automatically result to
the 2nd marriage being valid na po?

Again, I appreciate the time you and some of the
previous lawyers have been extending to me...
I've learned a lot so far....

Thanks a lot and God bless...

the record at the nso is evidence of a valid marriage. i'm afraid you will have to find some way to prove that there was never any valid marriage license and with the disappearance of the records, i have no idea how to do that. perhaps some other ground? maybe the solemnizing officer kept a copy.

in my opinion, once the first marriage is declared invalid, this will not result in the second marriage immediately becoming valid because there was still, at least on its face, an existing marriage at the time it was celebrated. this will be the basis for dissolving the second marriage.

i know of a very similar case and how it was resolved.

The guy married a girl at 20 and she was 18. Secret marraige sa Cavite and not sa Pampanga. They did not live together and broke up. Tatlo ang witness ng girl. The girl is now married to a US guy or guy sa US.

After a few years, he marries again and is now separated for 6 years. The only difference is that she broke up with him kasi married na pala siya but the guy keeps on telling people that the girl knew before hand na kasal na sila.

Tell your BF not to worry about bigamy charges, chances are bothe wives have moved on and want real marriages too. The sooner they can break-off with his marriage, the better for them too. Better to void the second marraige first as the first marriage is the basis to remove it. Once second case is void, have the first marraige annuled.

I can update you on the status of the case I mentioned above, just pm me or send me mail at pattyreyes96 at yahooo also, for the case you mentioned, is your BF with the last name starting with S and middle name with S din? If so, he has a kid with one of the wives which will complicate things a bit but I have the info to help you void the first 2 previous marraiges. just contact me. If that is not the same person, I still have info to help you as I know what the people I mentioned above did.