Bigamous marriage: How bigamy affects marriage, divorce and children

Discovering that you may be in a bigamous marriage can be very worrying. It raises questions about your legal status, your finances and your children. This article explains, in plain English, what bigamy is, what it means for your marriage or civil partnership, and what to do if you’ve entered into a bigamous marriage.

Our family law team can advise you on your options and support you through each step.

What is bigamy?

Bigamy is committed when a person who is already married or in a civil partnership knowingly attempts to enter into a further legal marriage or civil partnership.

Bigamy is based on the intention of taking part in a ceremony that is known to be capable of creating a legal marriage or civil partnership. If that ceremony goes ahead while a previous marriage or civil partnership is still legally in place, this would amount to the offence of bigamy.

Bigamy is a criminal offence under section 57 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and carries a maximum sentence of seven years’ imprisonment.

Is a bigamous marriage or civil partnership valid?

If someone goes through a legal ceremony intending to marry or enter into a civil partnership for a second time, without having divorced or dissolved their first marriage or civil partnership, the second relationship is not legally valid.

In law, that second marriage or civil partnership is void because the first one still exists.

What to do if you’ve entered into a bigamous marriage

Annulment or divorce – what do you file at court?

Even though a bigamous marriage or civil partnership is legally void, it must still be brought to an end formally by the court.

Unlike a divorce or dissolution, a bigamous marriage or civil partnership can be annulled straightaway. You do not have to wait for one year of marriage or civil partnership before applying.

To apply for an annulment, you will need to file an application with the court explaining that the marriage or civil partnership is void. Our solicitors can help you prepare this application, make sure the details are correct and guide you through the process.

If you also wish to end your first marriage or civil partnership (which will usually still be valid), you will need to start separate divorce or dissolution proceedings in relation to that relationship.

Money, property and pensions after a void marriage

Where a marriage or civil partnership is void due to bigamy, there is no automatic entitlement to apply for financial orders under the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 or the Civil Partnership Act 2004. These Acts normally allow the court to make orders for:

• property adjustment or transfer
• lump sums
• periodical payments (maintenance)

The fact that there is no automatic right to claim under these Acts does not mean that you cannot reach a financial agreement with your former partner. It simply means that access to these particular claims is not automatic in the case of a void marriage.

If you have an invalid marriage, you may be able to apply instead under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 (TOLATA). A TOLATA claim allows you to ask the court to decide your share in a property that is owned in one person’s name or in joint names, where there is a beneficial interest to be considered.

Where there are children, there may also be scope for an application under Schedule 1 for the benefit of the child. This is only available in particular circumstances, so it is important to seek advice from a solicitor about whether Schedule 1 might be relevant to your situation.

Our solicitors can advise you on the financial provisions that may be available and the most appropriate route for you to take.

Child arrangements where there is a bigamous marriage

If you have children from an invalid marriage or civil partnership, the status of the relationship does not affect child arrangements.

You can still enter into discussions and agreements about where your child will live and how much time they will spend with each parent.

If you are worried about how bigamy might affect your children, contact our family team for tailored advice.

Practical next steps if you suspect bigamy

If you suspect that you have entered into a bigamous marriage or civil partnership, it is important to seek urgent legal advice. A solicitor can:

• help you confirm your legal status
• advise whether annulment, divorce or both are needed
• discuss options for dealing with property, finances and child arrangements

Our family team can talk you through what to do if you’ve entered into a bigamous marriage and support you in taking the next steps.

FAQs about bigamy and bigamous marriage

Can I just divorce a bigamous marriage?

No. A second marriage or civil partnership that is bigamous is invalid, so you must apply for an annulment rather than a divorce or dissolution in relation to that relationship.

If you wish to end your first marriage or civil partnership (which is usually still valid), you will need to start divorce or dissolution proceedings for that relationship separately. Please see our blogs on divorce for more detail.

Is there a time limit to annul a bigamous marriage?

There is no time limit on applying to annul a bigamous marriage or civil partnership. However, once you become aware that your marriage or civil partnership may be bigamous, it is advisable to seek legal advice and take action as soon as possible.

Case example: bigamous marriage, annulment and property

We advised a client who had gone through a marriage ceremony with a new partner. Before this, the client had started divorce proceedings from a former spouse, but a Final Order had never been applied for. This meant the first marriage was still legally in place.

As a result, the later marriage ceremony created a bigamous marriage and was therefore void. The relationship with the new partner broke down after a short period of time. We advised the client that they could apply to annul the bigamous marriage and also acted in obtaining the Final Order in the original divorce.

The client and the new partner entered into a Consent Order to settle any financial ties arising from the relationship. The Consent Order included a clean break, closing off future claims between them.

Because the bigamous marriage was void, there were no automatic financial claims against each other’s wider assets. However, they had bought a home together as joint tenants. This meant that in law their interests in the property were 50/50. Neither party disputed this, so their interests were dealt with on that basis.

Had there been a disagreement about what share each of them should have had in the property, it would have been necessary to bring a claim under the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996, explaining why the legal 50/50 position did not reflect the true beneficial interests.