State of Texas Common Law Marriage

Hello everyone, I have a question about Common Law Marriages. Long Story Short. My father divorced my mother and secretly married her best friend. Interestingly, he did not have an “official” marriage license, but did it through the Common-Law Marriage Declaration which is legal in the state of Texas. My father passed away and I’m stuck dealing with the greedy “wife”. Anyways, my question is this: Are common-law declarations in the US legal in Taiwan? I heard common-law marriages are not valid in Taiwan.

Thanks in advance.
–Jeff

They’re “not valid” in the sense that Taiwan doesn’t use common law, but that shouldn’t stop a marriage that occurred in the US from being recognized in Taiwan.

If in doubt, find a lawyer who’s familiar with the Act Governing the Choice of Law in Civil Matters Involving Foreign Elements

1 Like

As long as no impediments to the marriage exist under ROC law, then the marriage should be recognized so long as it can be documented sufficiently to the satisfaction of ROC authorities. What matters is the substance, i.e. is the foreign marriage recognized in its home jurisdiction, mot whether the form by which the marriage was entered into is the same as it would have been in Taiwan. Impediments would be statutory impediments under ROC law or anything that goes against public order. Since your late father was already divorced and his new wife is likely not his sister, I cannot see any issues here.

1 Like