Court Opinion

ID: 9544980
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 17:04:13.371985+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T15:13:49.925291
License: Public Domain

BURNETT, Judge,
specially concurring.
I join in the result and in the court’s conclusion that cohabitation and a “holding out” of marriage are among the elements that must be proved to establish the existence of a disputed “common-law” marriage. I hesitate to embrace the entire analysis leading to that conclusion because the prior Idaho and California decisions, cited with approval by the court, leave some doubt concerning the nature and effect of the “presumption” of a valid marriage.
Occasional references in those cases, and in today’s decision, to “overcoming” the presumption suggest that the presumption is evidentiary in nature. However, in my view, the presumption is not evidence itself; it is not a substitute for evidence; nor does it assist a party who asserts existence of a marriage in making a prima facie case. Rather, the presumption is an expression of public policy favoring marriages, which enhances the weight accorded to a prima facie case. The presumption shifts the burden of persuasion to the party denying the marriage — once a prima facie case has been made — and requires that the quantum of evidence disproving a marriage meet an elevated standard which has been variously termed “clear and convincing,” “clear and positive,” or “cogent and satisfactory.” Today’s opinion, where it discusses the parties’ respective burdens of proof in this case, is consistent with my view of how the presumption operates.
The result reached by the court is consonant with sound public policy. Marriage confers important benefits, and imposes substantial burdens, which are legally enforceable. The compulsion of the law, and the finite resources of our courts, should not be invoked upon the disputed assertion of a secret marriage, unsolemnized and unaccompanied by any conduct indicative of a marital relationship. It is not too much to ask that persons who seek to enforce marital burdens and benefits demonstrate compliance with the relatively lenient requirements of Idaho law for establishment of a marriage.