Title: Burnett v. Burnett

State: kansas

Issuer: Kansas Supreme Court

Document:

192 Kan. 247 (1963)
387 P.2d 195
WILLIAM BURKE BURNETT, Appellee,
v.
NOEMA BURNETT, Appellant.
No. 43,361

Supreme Court of Kansas.
Opinion filed December 7, 1963.
*248 Walter F. McGinnis, of El Dorado, argued the cause, and Allyn M. McGinnis, of El Dorado, and Frank E. Daily, Jr., of Coldwater, were with him on the briefs for the appellant.
Harold S. Herd, of Coldwater, argued the cause and was on the briefs for the appellee.
The opinion of the court was delivered by
PARKER, C.J.:
This is an appeal from a judgment annulling a marriage, settling property rights, and allowing attorney fees.
The salient facts, which are not in dispute, will be summarized.
The defendant, Noema Burnett, was divorced from her former husband in Sedgwick County, Kansas, October 14, 1958. On October 26, 1958, the plaintiff, William Burke Burnett, and defendant went through a marriage ceremony in Miami, Oklahoma. Both were residents, and have remained residents, of the State of Kansas. The parties lived together at Wichita until December 1, 1958, when they moved to Colorado. They returned to Kansas April 1, 1959, where they lived on the farm of plaintiff's father. Sometime thereafter the father died and plaintiff inherited a one-half interest in the farm which consisted of some 3,000 acres. The parties continued to live together on the farm until December, 1961.
On October 7, 1961, the plaintiff filed his petition for divorce. At this point the record is somewhat confusing. It appears the defendant was supposed to leave the farm on December 1, 1961, but instead the plaintiff left sometime in December. The parties lived together for two days, December 9 and 10, 1961, at a motel in Dodge City. The plaintiff could not remember whether he stayed on the farm with defendant thereafter.
On December 30, 1961, defendant filed her answer to the petition alleging condonment. Later, and on February 21, 1962, plaintiff filed his first amended petition in which he alleged that defendant was incapable of entering into the Oklahoma marriage because her Kansas divorce had not become final.
Thereafter, on a date not disclosed by the record, defendant filed her answer to the amended petition in which she alleged:
*249 On February 9, 1962, defendant filed an amended answer in which she prayed for a divorce on the grounds of extreme cruelty and gross neglect of duty. On March 20, 1962, defendant filed a cross-petition in which she prayed for a divorce, alimony and a division of property. Plaintiff replied with a general denial. The above quoted allegation was carried in all of defendant's pleadings.
The case proceeded to trial and at the conclusion thereof a colloquy occurred between court and counsel in which the court indicated that it would determine the issue on the invalidity of the Oklahoma marriage. The defendant then requested permission to amend her cross-petition to include an allegation of common-law marriage. Thereupon the court stated:
Subsequently the trial court rendered judgment annulling the Oklahoma marriage and adjusted the property rights of the parties as on an annulment decree. Thereupon defendant perfected the instant appeal.
In this court the appellant specifies as error, among other matters: (1) The judgment of the trial court that the Oklahoma marriage was void; (2) the refusal of the trial court to decree a valid common-law marriage of the parties, and (3) the refusal of the trial court to allow defendant to amend her pleadings so as to allege a common-law marriage, the facts constituting such marriage having been pleaded and proved.
We pass the first question which would require a review and construction of the marriage and divorce laws of Oklahoma.
The marriage status of the parties can be determined under the well-established law of this state. Appellant alleged in her cross-petition:
The foregoing allegation, although not concluding that a common-law marriage existed, did plead the facts which constitute a common-law marriage.
The fact that the parties lived together as man and wife long after the six months' waiting period following appellant's Kansas divorce, and the divorce had become final, is not disputed.
The appellee testified:
We need not detail all of the evidence which established the common-law marital status. It was admitted. Neither need we review the well-established rules governing the facts and circumstances which establish a common-law marriage. Those interested in the elementary principles are referred to Renfrow v. Renfrow, 60 Kan. 277, 56 Pac. 534.
This court has held in numerous cases that where the parties continue to live together as husband and wife after the marriage restrictions are removed they become husband and wife in fact under the common law.
In Smith v. Smith, 161 Kan. 1, 165 P.2d 593, we held:
This court announced the applicable rule in Knollenberg v. Meyer, 151 Kan. 768, 100 P.2d 746, where it is held and said:
And in the opinion said:
In Freeman v. Fowler Packing Co., 135 Kan. 378, 11 P.2d 276, we said:
In a proceeding to annul a marriage, the trial court has the responsibility of seeing that the marital status is not disturbed unless clearly sanctioned by law. The marriage relationship is a matter of public concern. Proceedings to dissolve marriages are not favored under the law. Annulment proceedings are equitable in nature and equitable principles should prevail. In an annulment proceeding it is the present marital statuts that is to be considered, not whether a prior marriage between the parties was void.
When appellant's pleadings alleged facts constituting a common-law marriage, and the undisputed evidence supported the allegations, the trial court was without authority to annul the Oklahoma marriage and dispose of the property of the parties as in an annulment proceeding. The decree annulling the Oklahoma marriage accomplished nothing. The parties were still husband and wife under the common law.
An annulled marriage strips the parties of all legal rights which follow the dissolution of a valid marriage. The woman loses all right to alimony and is deprived of all interest in the man's property. (Johnson County National Bank & Trust Co. v. Bach, 189 Kan. 291, 369 P.2d 231.)
What has been heretofore stated and held requires a reversal of the judgment with directions to the trial court to decree a valid marriage of the parties under the common law and to proceed with the determination of their marital rights under the law pertaining to divorce and alimony, and it is so ordered.
In conclusion it should be pointed out the court has not overlooked appellant's request that her attorneys be awarded a reasonable fee for legal services performed on her behalf in the preparation and presentation of the instant appeal. Our ruling on such request has been deferred for further consideration and will be made by separate order.