Wolfe v. Wolf

389 N.E.2d 1143 (1979)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

W and H discussed marriage but when W told H that she had been previously married and divorced. This upset H in that he was a Roman Catholic and was forbidden by religion to marry her. Later that year, W told H that her former husband was dead in a car accident. H was then free to marry W as she was considered a widow. W converted to Catholicism and stated under oath that her former husband was dead. W showed a purported copy of the death certificate to H before the marriage. A child was born a year later in 1966. In 1973, the couple separated, and W sued for divorce. H filed a counterclaim for annulment based on fraud in that W's former husband was not dead. At trial, the former husband took the stand, W admitted to her fraud, and when questioned about the death certificate, W took the Fifth Amendment. H testified that he would have never married W if W had not misrepresented the facts to him. The court first ruled for H and then decided to vacate that ruling, and the Appeals court reversed the trial court. This appeal resulted.