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Common law marriage, also known as informal marriage or marriage by habit or repute, refers to a legal relationship that has many of the same benefits of conventional marriage. Many people erroneously charge that common law marriage is not as beneficial in the legal arena as conventional marriage, but the truth is that it is. Common law marriage has all of the legal aspects of a regular marriage and has the same framework of structures, the only difference is in the semantics.

There are some differences that are worth looking at in terms of common law marriages that go beyond semantics, however. For one, there is no actualized public record of a common law marriage, therefore, there is no marriage license. For this reason, common law marriages are not licensed by governments, but they are recognized. The marriage license does not necessarily serve as any sort of legal binding document to enable benefits. The benefits arrive strictly based on the overall status of the relationship. Common law marriages are also not necessarily delivered with a ceremony or “solemnized” so there is no need for witnesses in a common law marriage.

For these reasons, there is no such thing as common law divorce. A relationship merely ends, much like a dating relationship ends. The requirements for common law marriage are, however, much the same as they are for conventional marriage. This may differ from state to state, but essentially common law partners must agree to consent of union, be of legal age or have parents’ permission, and demonstrate a clear living pattern. There is, of course, much debate as to whether or not common law marriage should be referred to as a marriage. The real legal difference between that of a marriage and that of a common law marriage is simply that there is no licensing and no solemnized ceremony to bind the couple under legal implications. In a marriage, couples wanting to divorce must file legal documents. In a common law relationship, this is not necessary.

There are many differences in the aspects of common law marriages in terms of some legal distinctions such as marriage records, and the law changes from state to state. Some states, for example, require certain forms of marriage records to allow legal benefits. Common law marriages cannot possible have those marriage records because the common law marriage is not identified through marriage records. This represents some problems for common law couples in getting the full benefits that they are entitled to and the basis for the problems is strictly in terms of the words used to describe the unions.

In terms of common law marriage, the distinction certainly seems to be entirely dependent on where the common law relationship exists. It is likely that the relationship and the benefits that the couple is entitled to could change drastically from state to state. It is also likely that as people move from state to state, they would encounter different reasons to not marry as the benefits may be significantly better for common law couples than they are for conventional marriages. As with most legal matters, there are many aspects that can be difficult to understand. Common law marriage, in its strictest overall legal sense, isn’t all that different from a conventional marriage.