What to do if my first wife never divorced me and i remarried?
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What to do if my first wife never divorced me and i remarried?
I got married to a woman 16 years ago but she abandoned me. Later I thought that she had gotten the divorce. Then, 4 years ago, I remarried and everything went through fine and great. However, now she and I are no longer together going on almost a year and a half. I just found out that my first wife never divorced me. I am now newly engaged and want to get married. What do I do?
Asked on August 29, 2016 under Family Law, Texas
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 8 years ago | Contributor
You have to divorce her: until you do, you cannot legally marry anyone else, and any "marriage" you have while still married to another person is legally void. This will be more than somewhat complex to untangle, in terms of paperwork and procedures: hire a family or divorce law attorney to help you.
In the meantime, you may wish to double check life insurance, any will, POAs, etc. to make sure you are still not giving benefits or power to a woman who abandoned you.
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