Predatory Marriages

• Published date: 19 April 2023
• Subject Matter: Family and Matrimonial, Family Law, Wills/ Intestacy/ Estate Planning
• Law Firm: Lanyon Bowdler
• Author: Claire Vale

'Predatory marriage' is a non-legal term commonly used to describe those marriages which take place where one of the parties to the marriage did not validly consent to it, whether because of duress, mistake, unsoundness of mind or otherwise.

Both parties to a marriage need to have the necessary mental capacity to marry. A predatory marriage can be used to describe a marriage where one of the parties did not have the necessary mental capacity to consent to it, owing to unsoundness of mind which may have a variety of causes, including a mental illness, or a disease such as Alzheimer's. The 'predator' may have deliberately taken advantage of their victim with a view to financial gain.

Two main legal problems can arise in the context of predatory marriages. The first is that marriage revokes a will (section 18 of the Wills Act 1837). This means that any pre-marriage will made by the victim, perhaps benefitting their children and family, is revoked and can lead to an intestacy, resulting in the predator automatically inheriting all, or a substantial part, of the victim's estate. It can also mean that the predator will be put in control of the victim's funeral, including their burial/cremation arrangements. Funeral wishes that may have been included in the victim's will, or expressed verbally to family members, can be overridden by the predator.

The second problem is that, although a predatory marriage can be annulled, any annulment is prospective rather than retrospective. This is because the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 states that a predatory marriage is voidable, rather than void. A marriage which is voidable under the 1973 Act always revokes an earlier will of a party to the marriage, whether or not the marriage is...