Betemariam v. Said

Florida District Court of Appeal, Fourth District · Family Law

Family LawMarriage validityPaternityChild supportPrivate school expensesConflict of lawsreligious ceremonymarriage license

Facts

The parties participated in an Islamic wedding ceremony in Alexandria, Virginia, and received a religious certificate, but they never obtained a marriage license or filed any certificate with a clerk of court. They later moved to Florida, lived together, held property jointly as husband and wife, and raised their children, who attended a private school for about five years. When Betemariam filed for divorce, Said asserted that no legal marriage existed. The trial court agreed, entered a paternity and partition judgment instead, and declined to order payment of private school tuition.

Issue

Whether the parties' unlicensed religious ceremony in Virginia created a valid legal marriage, thereby permitting alimony and equitable distribution, and whether the trial court erred in refusing to require Said to pay the children's private school expenses. Also at issue was whether the private-school-expense claim was properly before the court.

Rule

The validity of a marriage is determined by the law of the place where the marriage occurred. Under Virginia law, every marriage must be under a license and solemnized as provided by statute, so a religious ceremony performed without a marriage license is void ab initio and cannot be validated by the parties' belief alone. A court may order a parent to pay private educational expenses if the parent has the ability to pay, the expenses accord with the family's customary standard of living, and they are in the child's best interest; the issue may also be decided if tried by consent.

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One of 10 multiple-choice questions for this case. Pick an answer to see why.

Nadia Karim and Owen Mercer participated in a religious wedding ceremony in Richmond, Virginia. They never obtained a marriage license, later moved to Miami, and after separating Nadia filed for dissolution seeking alimony.

How should a Florida court most likely rule on whether a valid marriage existed?

Explanation. The majority applied the law of the place of celebration to determine marriage validity. Because the ceremony occurred in Virginia, Virginia law governs. Under the opinion, Virginia makes a marriage license mandatory, not merely directory, so an unlicensed religious ceremony is void ab initio. Later cohabitation or relocation to Florida does not create a valid marriage. (Derived from Betemariam v. Said (n.d.).)