“Common law marriage is a marriage that does not require legal formalities such as solemnization or recordation; it becomes a legal marriage after the couple meets the requirements that usually include residing together for some specified period of time. . . Today, there are states that do recognize common law marriage as a legal marriage. However, California has not been one of them since 1895.” (LW Greenberg, California Family Law.) California may recognize a common law marriage from another state if the marriage is valid under that state’s laws. Unmarried persons may be afforded protections under the California Supreme Court case of Marvin v. Marvin, “After an unmarried couple ended their cohabitation at the man’s insistence, the woman filed an action against him seeking support and maintenance. In a trial without a jury, the trial court found that defendant had no obligation to pay plaintiff a reasonable sum for maintenance, that plaintiff suffered no damage resulting from her relationship with defendant, including its termination and defendant did not become monetarily liable to plaintiff at all. However, the trial court found it was doubtful that plaintiff could return to the career she had enjoyed before the relationship of the parties commenced and that she was in need of rehabilitation. Accordingly, the trial court entered a judgment ordering defendant to pay plaintiff the sum of $104,000 to be used by her primarily for her economic rehabilitation.” (Marvin v. Marvin, 122 Cal.App.3d 871.)
