My friend married a man who signed the license with the name and social security number of his deceased brother. He told her (after the fact) that he was trying to avoid a tax problem, Now she wonders what she needs to do if anything to correct the situation. They lived together about six years after the "marriage" and are now separated. Any advice?

CaptainForest

Talk with a divorce attorney.

poseidon

Hello dlginlove,

This is obviously a strange situation.

In my opinion it is very doubtful that the marriage is legal because the man literally stole the ID of his deceased brother.

Added to this he will probably find himself in serious trouble when this is discovered. One of the charges he is likely to find himself facing is fraud, because he assumed this ID in order to attempt to defraud the Government of the tax due.

Unfortunately, the woman he went through the marriage ceremony with could find herself in trouble if she does not report what has happened to the proper authorities, because she now knows what has happened and therefore is likely to be classed as an accessory.

My advice is that she should obtain legal advice immediately. This advice should be confidential because of client confidentiality.

If she lives in the UK she could contact her nearest Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB). They are a free and highly confidential body and I am sure that any information given to them is also highly confidential and is not shared with outside bodies.

I am afraid I don't understand why your friend did not realize this had happened when they first got 'married' or how long she has been aware of this situation.

I would certainly like to know what the outcome of this.

Poseidon

dlginlove

"am afraid I don't understand why your friend did not realize this had happened when they first got 'married' or how long she has been aware of this situation."


It is my understanding that she did realize this immediately and was quite upset. It certainly didn't help their relationship. I believe she didn't think she did anything wrong, he did. Thank-you both for the information.
I will pass it on to her.

fredg

Hi,
As another said, please tell your friend to talk with a Lawyer! If they are seperated, the Lawyer will know what to do, legally. Such as, filing a Seperation Agreement (if needed in their State), and what to do after that.
It seems to me that anyone who would use a dead person's identity to get married, for whatever reason, is not the type of person to marry. After finding out, your friend made a good decision to seperate. Best of luck.

ScottGem

I doubt if they have ever been legally married since the license is a forged instrument. So she needs to consult an attorney to determine her rights and liabilities.

dlginlove

Fortunately, my friend was smart enough file taxes as unmarried and never held any properties, cars, business, etc. jointly with him. She even contacted the IRS on his behalf to work out a settlement. She just told me these things today. Her quandary is that she doesn't know if she needs to seek legal counsel. She really doesn't want to get him in trouble with the law.

Also, she doesn't have the money to get a lawyer right now.

Fr_Chuck

He committed fraud on the marriage licence, at least in the US, they were never legally married. She needs an attorney, she has many rights to sue him for various things, including the fraud

dlginlove

Thanks Fr. Chuck. She won't be suing him as he hasn't got a dime. She'll be glad to know she was never married.