Wilkins v. Zelichowski
New Jersey Supreme Court
26 N.J. 370, 140 A.2d 65 (1958)
- Written by Mary Phelan D'Isa, JD
Facts
An underage New Jersey couple fled to Indiana to marry and returned to New Jersey to live as a married couple. Within a year, the couple had a child. Within two years, the wife filed for an annulment under New Jersey law. The marriage was valid under Indiana law, but it was invalid under New Jersey law. There was also a question of whether the New Jersey court had jurisdiction to annul the allegedly invalid marriage. Despite finding that an annulment would be in the best interest of the child, the trial court found that it had jurisdiction but refused to grant the annulment based on the wife’s young age when she married. The trial court favored comity to Indiana law that would find that the marriage was valid under Indiana law at the time the parties married. The wife appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Jacobs, J.)
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