Divorce, Dissolution or Annulment

Do you know the difference between the legal terms "divorce, dissolution or annulment?

A "divorce" is the legal separation and termination of the marital relationship by the judgment of a court, which may be granted only upon a finding by the court that certain "grounds" for divorce exists. A divorce puts an end to the marital relationship.

A "dissolution" of marriage is a form of no fault termination of the marriage relationship where both parties have agreed upon all of the terms of the termination (such as division of marital property, spousal support, parental rights and responsibilities, child support, etc.) and are requesting that the court end the marriage and approve an agreement between the parties. The basic advantages of a dissolution is that it is not adversarial in nature and the parties have agreed upon every aspect of the termination; there is no plaintiff or defendant; it is not a "divorce"; and the court does not have to make any of the decisions it would have to make in a contested divorce. It is also usually accomplished faster than a divorce action.

An "annulment" is a court decree determining that the marriage is legally invalid because of some defect that existed at the time the marriage was entered into. An annulment decree declares that a marital status never existed, unlike a divorce decree that terminates a marriage. The grounds for an annulment may include an underage marriage, bigamy (i.e. one of the parties has another living spouse), mental incompetence of one of the parties, fraud, duress and non-consummation of the marriage (including impotency).