Note: The DearEsq free 'ask a lawyer' site is offered as a free informational service to the public and is not intended as legal advice. Laws vary from state-to-state, and in addition every situation is unique, and relevant facts may not be known. The answer to the question posed below may not apply to in your state or to your situation. For legal advice in your state and your situation you should consult with an attorney in your state who is familiar with the rules and laws in your state.
Can a marriage annulment be obtained on the grounds that one spouse did not disclose until after the wedding that they were an alcoholic? That is the question of a reader who writes “I was married on December 1st 2004, and on the night of December 2nd, 2004, he informed me that he is an alcoholic. I did not know this when I married him, or I would never have married him. He left shortly after that and went back to Florida. I was wondering if this marriage can be annulled on the basis of fraud or something similar.”
The short answer to this question is “probably not.” It is extremely difficult to obtain a legal annulment, and it can be had on only a few very narrow and strict grounds. While fraud is considered one of those grounds in many states, failure to disclose that one is an alcoholic would generally not considered fraud. Indeed, most courts would wonder how long the couple had known each other prior to the marriage for the other party to not be aware of the alcoholism, or, if they had known each other a long time, and the alcoholic spouse was sober, they would wonder what the problem was.
That said, however, this reader should have no trouble at all obtaining a simple divorce.
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