ANNULMENT

a legal action or lawsuit which may result in treating the marriage as if it never took place.

The court's judgment that a so-called "marriage" was never legally valid or invalid after the marriage.

The court’s judgment that a so-called "marriage" was never legally valid or became invalid after the marriage. Where a marriage was never legally consummated, for instance if one party was already married, the marriage is said to be "void," or a "nullity," i.e., it never existed. In contrast, a "voidable" marriage is valid unless, or until, annulled. Grounds for annulling a "voidable" marriage include serious fraud or a party’s legal incompetence at the time of marriage. Most annulments are obtained for religious reasons through a religious tribunal.