STATES THAT RECOGNIZE COMMON LAW MARRIAGE

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February 17, 2010		2010-R-0103
STATES THAT RECOGNIZE COMMON LAW MARRIAGE

By: Susan Price, Senior Attorney

You asked how many states recognize common law marriage and the basic standards for forming them.

With some differences, 15 states and the District of Columbia recognize some form of common law marriage either by statute or court ruling. Nine of these place restrictions on relationships they will consider as the equivalent of marriage. The most common is refusing to recognize common law relationships formed after a specific date.

The two basic elements couples generally must establish are cohabitation and holding themselves out to the world as a married couple. Evidence sufficient to satisfy the “holding out” prong include the woman adopting her spouse's last name, filing joint state or federal tax returns, or referring to themselves as “husband” and “wife.”

Table 1 below shows the states and any restrictions they place on common law marriage recognition.

Table 1: States That Recognize Common Law Marriage

*State*	*Restrictions*
Alabama	None
Colorado	None
District of Columbia	None
Georgia	Only common law marriages formed before 1/1/1997
Idaho	Only common law marriages formed before 1/1/1996
Iowa	None
Kansas	Partners must be at least age 18
Montana	None
New Hampshire	Common law marriages are recognized only after the death of one partner
Ohio	Only common law marriages formed before 10/10/1991
Oklahoma	Only common law marriages formed before 11/1/1998
Pennsylvania	Only common law marriages formed on or before 1/1/2005
Rhode Island	None
South Carolina	None
Texas	Partners must satisfy 2-prong test and show that they are legally entitled to marry and have registered the marriage at the county courthouse. If no longer together, they must rebut the legal presumption that there was no marriage (unless they file a lawsuit for proof of marriage within two years of the date they separated or ceased living together).
Utah	By administrative order: marriage arises out of a contract between two consenting parties who are legally permitted to enter into a contract or have their marriage solemnized and satisfy the two-prong test above. The determination of marriage formation must occur during the relationship or within one year following its termination.

Source: Common Law Marriages: National Conference of State Legislatures (2008)

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