Is it bigamy in Florida to marry someone before your divorce is final?

Subject

Bigamy

Plain-English summary

Congressman Alcee Hastings wrote the AG on behalf of a constituent, Mr. Isaie Jean-Louis, asking for a legal opinion on the validity of a marriage performed in Haiti. The records suggested the constituent had married on January 6, 2013, while his divorce from a prior spouse did not become final until January 8, 2013, two days later.

The AG explained it could not give the opinion requested. By statute (section 16.01(3)), the Florida Attorney General provides legal opinions only to government officials, on questions of state law relating to their official duties, and the office has no authority to opine on the validity of foreign marriages. So it declined the specific question.

As a courtesy, the AG offered general comments on Florida's bigamy laws. Under section 826.01, a person who marries another while having a living husband or wife commits third-degree felony bigamy, unless one of the statutory exceptions applies. Section 826.02 lists those exceptions, including a reasonable belief that the prior spouse is dead, that the prior spouse deserted and was absent three years, that the earlier marriage has been dissolved, that an invalid court judgment purported to end the prior marriage and the person did not know it was invalid, or a reasonable belief that the person was legally eligible to remarry. Section 826.03 separately makes it a third-degree felony to knowingly marry someone you know to be another person's spouse. The AG stressed it had no way of knowing whether any exception applied to the constituent's situation; it simply laid out the law and enclosed a copy of Chapter 826.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2014. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Is marrying before a divorce is final a crime in Florida?
The AG explained that under section 826.01, marrying while you still have a living spouse is third-degree felony bigamy, unless a statutory exception applies. A divorce that is not yet final means the prior marriage still exists.

What are the exceptions to bigamy?
Section 826.02 lists them: a reasonable belief the prior spouse is dead; the prior spouse deserted and stayed absent three years; the prior marriage was dissolved; reliance on an invalid judgment ending the prior marriage without knowing it was invalid; or a reasonable belief of legal eligibility to remarry.

Did the AG decide whether the Haitian marriage was valid?
No. The AG said it has no authority to opine on the validity of foreign marriages and can only advise government officials on questions of state law tied to their duties, so it declined the specific question and gave only general comments on Florida bigamy law.

Is there a separate crime for marrying someone else's spouse?
Yes. Section 826.03 makes it a third-degree felony to knowingly marry a person you know to be the husband or wife of another.

Background and statutory framework

The opinion is shaped first by the limits on the AG's role. Section 16.01(3) confines the office to advising government officials on state-law questions connected to their official duties, which is why it could not address a constituent's foreign marriage validity. Within those limits, the AG summarized Florida's bigamy statutes in Chapter 826.

Section 826.01 defines bigamy as marrying another while having a living spouse and makes it a third-degree felony punishable under the general penalty statutes (s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084), except as provided in section 826.02. Section 826.02 sets out the exceptions tied to good-faith belief or the dissolution of the prior marriage. Section 826.03 adds the companion offense of knowingly marrying a person known to be married to someone else. The AG presented these as a statement of Florida's public policy against bigamy, not as a ruling on the constituent's facts.

Citations

• Section 826.01, Florida Statutes
• Section 826.02, Florida Statutes
• section 826.03, Florida Statutes
• section 16.01(3), Florida Statutes
• Chapter 826, Florida Statutes

Source

• Landing page: https://www.myfloridalegal.com/ag-opinions/bigamy
• Original PDF: https://www.myfloridalegal.com/print/pdf/node/8095

Original opinion text

The Honorable Alcee L. Hastings

2701 West Oakland Park Boulevard

Suite 200

Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 33311

Dear Congressman Hastings:

Thank you for your correspondence of May 15, 2014, requesting that this office provide a legal opinion on the validity of the marriage in Haiti of your constituent, Mr. Isaie Jean-Louis. Attorney General Bondi has asked me to respond to your letter.

After reviewing the information you have submitted, it does not appear that this is a matter upon which this office may comment. The Florida Attorney General is statutorily limited to providing legal opinions to governmental officials on questions of state law relating to their official duties. See section 16.01(3), Florida Statutes, and Department of Legal Affairs Statement Concerning Attorney General Opinions (available at www.myfloridalegal.com). This office has no authority to comment on the validity of foreign marriages.

However, in an effort to assist you, I offer the following informal comments relating to the laws of Florida relating to bigamy. It appears from the material that you have forwarded to this office that Mr. Jean-Louis submitted "evidence establishing that [he] and the beneficiary married on January 6, 2013 in Haiti and that the petitioner's divorce was final on January 8, 2013." Thus, I understand the issue to be whether it is legal in Florida for persons to marry while married to another and prior to a divorce being secured. It is not.

Section 826.01, Florida Statutes, states:

"Bigamy; punishment.–Whoever, having a husband or wife living, marries another person shall, except in the cases mentioned in s. 826.02, be guilty of a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084."

Section 826.02, Florida Statutes, provides certain exceptions to the provisions cited above:

"Exceptions.–The provisions of s. 826.01 shall not extend to any person:

(1) Who reasonably believes that the prior spouse is dead.

(2) Whose prior spouse has voluntarily deserted him or her and remained absent for the space of 3 years continuously, the party marrying again not knowing the other to be living within that time.

(3) Whose bonds of matrimony have been dissolved.

(4) Who violates its provisions because a domestic or foreign court has entered an invalid judgment purporting to terminate or annul the prior marriage and the defendant does not know that judgment to be invalid.

(5) Who reasonably believes that he or she is legally eligible to remarry."

This office is obviously unaware of whether any of these exceptions may apply in Mr. Jean-Louis's case.

Finally, section 826.03, Florida Statutes, makes it a crime to knowingly marry the husband or wife or another:

"Knowingly marrying husband or wife of another.–Whoever knowingly marries the husband or wife of another person, knowing him or her to be the spouse of another person, shall be guilty of a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084."

Thus, bigamy is a third degree felony in Florida and against the public policy of this state.

I trust that these informal comments will be helpful to you in advising your constituent, Mr. Isaie Jean-Louis. I am enclosing a copy of Chapter 826, Florida Statutes, for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Gerry Hammond

Senior Assistant Attorney General

GH/tsh

Enclosure