Post-mortem marriage
The post-mortem marriage (French: mariage posthume ) allows posthumous marriage in French law only after the death of one of the two spouses. It represents an exception to the principle that the couple must declare that they want to enter into marriage with each other in person and when they are present at the same time (Art. 146 Civil Code, cf. § 1311 BGB on German marriage law ).
Legal history
Post-mortem marriage was introduced in France during the First World War . There was a similar possibility with the funeral marriage under German law during the Second World War .
Current legal situation
In France, post-mortem marriage was initially only intended for wartime. It was also made possible for peacetime in 1959. After the dam burst of Malpasset on 2 December 1959 which had claimed more than 420 deaths, postmortem marriage was public pressure from President de Gaulle in the civil code was added. The reason for this change in the law was the case of Ms. Irene Jodard, whose fiancé André Capra had died in the dam breach. Irene was expecting a child from André and would have wanted to marry him 15 days after the accident.
The post-mortem marriage initially had neither the property nor the inheritance consequences of a marriage, but it was intended to spare the child mother and the nasciturus the legal and social stigma of an illegitimate birth. Today it primarily serves the surviving partner's emotional need for closeness and solidarity with the deceased as well as the redemption of the vows of marriage even after death.
Requirements and procedures
Post-mortem marriage is only permitted in exceptional circumstances, such as sudden accidental death, after specific preparations for an early marriage had already been made. In addition, there must be good reasons for entering into the marriage postmortem as an exception. A pregnancy is no longer enough for this today.
A dispensation must be applied for from the French President , who, through the State Chancellery, entrusts the locally competent regional court to investigate the facts. There must have already been serious intentions to marry before the death, such as ordering a list . The circumstances of death must be proven by public documents, as well as the deceased's willingness to marry by submitting the documents required for a regular marriage, such as a certificate of the pre-marital medical examination ( certificats prénuptiaux ) which is customary in France and must not be older than three months. Any objections by third parties, in particular family members, to the marriage must be taken into account (Art. 172 ff. Civil Code).
The President makes a decision on a case-by-case basis after considering all circumstances. Around 50 applications are submitted each year.
Legal consequences
The date of marriage is dated back before the date of death. The living spouse is considered to be widowed in terms of family status, since the marriage ends with death (Art. 227 Civil Code). Today he is entitled to a widow's pension entitlement under marriage and social security law. Children together are considered to be born in wedlock (Art. 331 Civil Code). Until a change in the law in 2001, post-mortem marriage also had the same inheritance consequences as a regular marriage.
In France, the continuation of post-mortem marriage is controversial from a legal point of view, since children born out of wedlock are no longer legally disadvantaged and paternity can be legally established even without marriage. Many critics portray a post-mortem marriage as an outdated "sham marriage".
literature
- Macherey: The post-mortem marriage in France. Univ.-Diss., Cologne 1969
- Günther Beitzke : French post-mortem marriage and legitimation . IPRax 1991, 227-230
Web links
- Code civil (French) Titre V: Du mariage, Articles 144–227
Individual evidence
- ^ Paul Heinrich Neuhaus: Marriage and Childhood in a Comparative Legal Perspective . JCBMohr (Paul Siebeck), Tübingen 1979, ISBN 316641522X , p. 19 f. Retrieved August 26, 2015.
- ^ Rechtslexikon.net: Subsequent (post-mortem) marriage.
- ↑ Martin Rath: Postmortem Legal Issues - Gespensterehen Legal Tribune Online , August 24, 2014.
- ↑ Man marries dead bride ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. RP online, July 26, 2008.
- ↑ Loi nº 59-1583 on December 31, 1959 art. 23, JO 8 January 1959.
- ↑ Isabelle Corpart: Le marriage posthume d 'une personne decedee des suites d'un accident de la circulation ( Memento of the original of January 25, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (French)
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↑ P. Guiho: Réflexions sur le mariage posthume. Mélanges L. Faletti, Annales Fac. dr. Lyon 1971, 321;
M. Biégelmann-Massari: Quand le Code civil interdit le mariage et marie les défunts. Droit et Société 1994, n ° 26, 155;
La jurisprudence des dispenses civiles au mariage depuis 1960: un apport sur le sens de l'institution matrimoniale. Droit et Société 1997, n ° 35.
