Jorge and Lilia got married. Lilia sponsored Jorge's application for a U.S. green card. Two weeks after she signed his final sponsorship papers Jorge told Lilia that he wanted a divorce. At the same time Lilia discovered that throughout their relationship Jorge had been having a torrid affair with Lilia's sister Blanca.
Jorge filed for divorce; Lilia filed her response, along with a request for an annulment based on Jorge's fraudulent representation that he would be faithful. At a bifurcated trial on the status of the marriage, Jorge testified that he became a permanent resident in 2002, and asserted that he had no relationship with Blanca. Lilia presented evidence of phone messages and and overheard conversation to support her claim that her marriage to Jorge should be annulled on the ground of fraud. When the trial concluded, the court found that Jorge had committed fraud by marrying Lilia while he was having a sexual relationship with Blanca that he did not intend to terminate. The court reasoned that “this kind of fraud goes to the heart of the marital relationship”; thus, the marriage was void under Fam C §2210(d) [marriage voidable where consent of either party was obtained by fraud] on the ground of fraud. The court also found that Lilia was a putative spouse for purposes of dividing the marital property.
Poor Jorge. He dropped his pants too many times, and got his bottom spanked very hard. Losing on the property and looking at deportation. Click here to read the entire case summary as prepared by CFLR.
Please be sure to visit www.hardinglaw.com, the website for the law firm of Harding & Associates, for more information on California family law.
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