Is there common law marriage in New York State?
The answer is no, but: New York has been very liberal in finding an out-of-state common law marriage even when there have been minimum contacts with the common law state and when an examination of the common law state’s law might show that the particular state would not have found a common law marriage because the contacts with that state were minimal. The states that recognize common law marriages are: Alabama; Colorado; Iowa; Kansas; Montana; New Hampshire (for inheritance purposes only); Oklahoma; Pennsylvania; Rhode Island; South Carolina; Texas; and Utah. Common law marriages are also recognized in the District f Columbia. There are no uniform requirements to establish a common law marriage. Each state has its own requirements to form a common law marriage.
