An annulment is a lawsuit to have a court declare a marriage was invalid and the parties were never in fact married. The grounds for an annulment vary from state to state but typically include:

• the person seeking the annulment (the petitioner) was under age (18 years, for example) and did not have parental consent or a court order;

• the person seeking the annulment (the petitioner) was under the influence of drugs or alcohol and did not have the capacity to consent to the marriage;

• either party, for physical or mental reasons, was permanently impotent at the time of the marriage and the other party was not aware of the impotency;

• the other party used fraud, duress, or force to induce the petitioner to enter into the marriage;

• at the time of the marriage the petitioner did not have the mental capacity to consent to marriage or to understand the nature of the marriage ceremony because of a mental disease or defect;

• the other party was divorced from a third party within the 30-day period preceding the date of the marriage ceremony, and at the time of the marriage ceremony the petitioner did not know, and a reasonably prudent person would not have known, of the divorce; and

• the marriage ceremony took place before any waiting period (72 hours, for example) following issuance of the marriage license.

An annulment on any ground is often available only if the parties did not live together (cohabit) after the party seeking the annulment was no longer under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or learned of the facts that are the basis for the annulment sought. A marriage subject to annulment is often said to be a nullity, void, or void ab initio (void from the beginning).

The grounds for an annulment are usually found in a state’s statutes—often in the family code.

In Massachusetts, an annulment is a legal procedure that declares a marriage null and void as if it never happened. The grounds for annulment in Massachusetts include lack of consent due to age (if a party is under 18 and did not have parental consent or a court order), lack of capacity to consent due to intoxication or mental incapacity, impotency that was not disclosed before the marriage, fraud, duress, or force used to obtain the marriage, and a previous undissolved marriage of one party unknown to the other at the time of marriage. Additionally, if a marriage license was obtained and the ceremony took place before the expiration of any mandatory waiting period, this could also be a ground for annulment. It is important to note that cohabitation after the discovery of the grounds for annulment may affect the ability to seek an annulment. The specific grounds and procedures for annulment are detailed in the Massachusetts General Laws under the family law statutes. Individuals seeking an annulment are advised to consult with an attorney to understand their rights and the legal implications of filing for an annulment.