Also known as: husbands and wives · spouses · marital relation
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
The legal status of two persons joined by a valid marriage. This status creates mutual rights and obligations including support duties, evidentiary privileges for confidential communications, and special rules for property ownership and succession.
Hilda Hernandez and Harper Hill receive a deed granting land to them and the issue of their marriage. The conveyance satisfies the requirement that the grantees are or may become husband and wife, so the estate is held in the permitted concurrent form under the applicable state rule.
Harriet Hamilton writes a letter to her husband Hector Huerta describing a business transaction. When the government later subpoenas the letter, the court upholds the privilege because the communication occurred during marriage and the government fails to rebut the presumption of confidentiality.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Hiroshi Hasegawa receives a painting from his aunt after marriage. Because the gift is made solely to him and not to both spouses, the painting remains his individual property under the marital property statute.
After Hana Huang dies, her surviving spouse claims his fractional interest in property the couple held as joint tenants with right of survivorship. The value of that interest is included in the augmented estate for elective share purposes.
A trustee sells trust land to the spouse of the trustee's sibling. The transaction triggers the statutory presumption of conflict because it involves a close relative of the trustee's spouse.
One spouse stops providing funds for household expenses. The other spouse petitions the court for support payments based on demonstrated need and the paying spouse's ability, invoking the mutual obligation of support between husband and wife.
Yes. The privilege protects confidential communications made during the marriage even after the spouses divorce. The protection continues because the policy encourages candor within the marital relationship without fear of later disclosure.
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Property received by gift or inheritance from a third party to only one spouse is individual property. The classification turns on whether the transfer was made to both spouses or solely to one.
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The Fifth Amendment requires the federal government to respect valid state marriages on equal terms. A federal rule that excludes same-sex spouses from benefits available to opposite-sex spouses demeans those marriages and violates equal protection unless supported by adequate justification.
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Spouses have a mutual duty of support. A spouse in need may petition for alimony or payments for necessaries, and the amount depends on the requesting spouse's need and the other spouse's ability to pay.
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