Annulment vs. Divorce
While most people understand the nature of divorce, confusion abounds over the concept of an annulment. Whereas divorce declares a marriage terminated as of the date of a divorce decree, an annulment declares that the marriage was invalid from its very beginning. Essentially, when a judge grants an annulment, it is a finding that a valid marriage never existed. (There is also a difference between an annulment granted by a religious institution and a civil annulment, but this article only concerns the latter). In Missouri, there is a strong presumption all marriages are valid, which makes it tougher to [...]