General Information

To seek a declaration of nullity petitioners may contact any priest or deacon of the diocese for guidance. Additionally, we have 35 lay men and women who are trained and authorized to assist you. Click on the name of the lay advocate you wish to contact.

Lafayette Parish

Acadia Parish

Evangeline Parish

Iberia Parish

St. Landry Parish

St. Martin Parish

Vermilion Parish

As someone inquiring about a Declaration of Nullity for a previous marriage (annulment), you no doubt have questions about the process. We hope the information below will address some of your questions. The priest, deacon, or lay minister assisting with your case will be able to provide additional guidance. You should also feel free to contact our office directly.

WHAT IS AN ANNULMENT?
An annulment, or Declaration of Nullity, is a judgement by the Catholic Church that the marriage in question was invalid or not legally binding. Even though there was a wedding ceremony, some obstacle stood in the way at the time consent was exchanged, which according to the divine law or Church law, prevented a valid union from coming into being.

THE EFFECT ON CHILDREN
The annulment process has no legal effect on the status your children. Children born in a valid civil marriage are always considered legitimate. Their status is not affected in any way by this process (Canon 1137). Furthermore, the Catholic Church recognizes the inherent dignity of all human life regardless of the circumstances of one’s birth.

CIVIL OR COURT EFFECTS
Stated again, the Declaration of Nullity process is strictly limited to one’s participation within the spiritual life of the Catholic Church. The process has no implications on divorce or custody issues, child support or any other concern you faced in the process of obtaining your divorce.

CONFIDENTALITY
All matters in the Tribunal process are strictly confidential and never shared with third parties outside of the process.

HOW DOES THE ANNULMENT PROCESS WORK?
The process is divided into stages. The Introduction Stage begins when a petitioner approaches the Tribunal in order to initiate an investigation into the validity of their marriage. The former spouse (respondent) must be informed of the process and invited to participate. The Instruction Stage focuses on the collecting and presentation of evidence about the alleged ground or grounds of nullity. After all the evidence is gathered, the parties have the opportunity to review and to respond to it. The Judgment Stage results in the decision of the judge(s) about the invalidity of the marriage; the judgment is expressed in the definitive sentence. The Appeal Stage offers the opportunity to appeal the decision of the judge(s).  (See the document on the stages of the marriage nullity process for a fuller explanation.

HOW LONG DOES THE PROCESS TAKE?
Each case is unique and the length of the process depends on a number of factors such as how long it takes to get witnesses, documents and other information that may be required for the case. Please remember, do not set a wedding date until the process is fully complete.

WHAT IS MY ROLE?
Your primary role will be to complete the formal petition and to identify witnesses who can answer questions regarding yourself and your former spouse before the wedding and during the marriage. You should also make every attempt to obtain contact information for your former spouse. Your case sponsor or procurator will give you additional instructions. You will be contacted by the Tribunal when your participation is required in the case.

WHAT ARE MY RIGHTS?
You have a number of rights in the process that are always respected. Your former spouse has rights that must be regarded as well. Below are listed just a few.

     Confidentiality
     You have the right of confidentiality in the process. No one outside the Tribunal process
     will see this case.

     Right to Be Informed
     You have the right to be informed of the status of your case at any time. You will be assigned a
     to a notary in the Tribunal when your case is filed and this person can advise the status of your
     case.

     Right to Be Heard
     You have the right to present your viewpoint and have it heard by the Tribunal.

     Right to Appeal
     You have the right to appeal any decision that is rendered by the Tribunal. Your case sponsor or
     procurator can provide more information on this should it be desired.

WHAT EXPENSES ARE INVOLVED?
There are no fees charged for processing a Declaration of Nullity (annulment) case. The Tribunal costs are now fully covered by the generosity of the annual Bishop’s Services Appeal.
 

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When preparing to petition the tribunal for a declaration of nullity you may encounter unfamiliar terms. The information contained in the resource is meant to assist you in preparing your petition as well as to better understand the correspondence you will receive from the Tribunal during the process.

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Acts of the Case: The evidence in a case. The term may also refer to the procedures used in the case or to both the evidence and the procedures.

Advocate: A legal representative who assists the party by giving legal advice. The advocate is appointed by the party in a mandate, which allows the advocate to function in an official capacity.

Affirmative Decision: An affirmative decision by the judge or judges that the invalidity of the marriage has been proven on the ground or grounds in the case.  

Assessor: A tribunal official who evaluates evidence in a case for the judge or the bishop.

Auditor: A tribunal official who conducts a judicial interview.

College of Judges: Panel of three or five judges who decide the case in an ordinary process. These include the presiding judge (who must be a cleric), the ponens, and the associate judge(s). The ponens directs the process and commits the decision of the college to a written sentence. A lay person who is licensed in canon law (indicated by “JCL” after the person’s name) may serve as a collegiate judge.

Competence: The necessary jurisdictional authority to process a marriage nullity case.

Court of First Instance: For the Diocese of Lafayette, the court of first instance is the Diocesan Tribunal of Lafayette.

Court of Second Instance or Court of Appeal: The tribunal that treats an appeal of a decision by the Diocesan Tribunal of Lafayette. For the Diocese of Lafayette, the court of appeal is normally the Metropolitan Tribunal of New Orleans but may also be the Apostolic Tribunal of the Roman Rota.

Defender of the Bond: The tribunal official who must review the case and present any reasonable arguments or observations that protect the bond of marriage and the integrity of the legal process. A cleric or lay person who is licensed in canon law (indicated by “JCL” after the person’s name) may serve as defender of the bond.

Definitive Sentence: A legal document containing the judge’s or judges’ arguments and the judgment regarding whether the marriage is invalid. The sentence may be appealed. 

Documentary Process: A method of determining the nullity of marriage that relies on documents as evidence.

Ecclesiastical: Something that has to do with the church. For example, the tribunal is an ecclesiastical court – that is, a church court.

Expert (peritus): A professional with special competence assigned to review the case, interview the parties, and formulate a report to clarify certain matters for the judge.

Grounds: Reasons for invalidity of marriage on which the case is heard and judged.  

Illicit: Describes an act that is unlawful or contrary to Church law but still valid. An act that Church law permits is called licit. A similar term, liceity, means lawful or permitted.

Instruction: The evidence-gathering stage of the marriage nullity process.

Joinder of the Issues: The determination of the ground or grounds of nullity that will be used in the marriage nullity process. Also known as the Formulation of the Doubt.

Judgment: The stage of the marriage nullity process when the judge or judges reach a decision about whether the marriage is invalid and issue the definitive sentence.

Judicial Vicar: A priest appointed by the diocesan bishop with the power to judge. He is the administrator of the tribunal.

Mandate: Document by which a petitioner or a respondent appoints a procurator or advocate to assist in the presentation of a case.

Moral Certainty (or Moral Certitude): The standard required for the judge or college of judges to give an affirmative decision in response to the doubt that the marriage is invalid. Moral certainty is the exclusion of reasonable doubt. It is less than absolute certainty but more than probability.
Negative decision: A negative decision by the judge or judges means that the invalidity of the marriage has not been proven on the ground or grounds in the case.

Notary: A tribunal official who authenticates documents as well as manages correspondence and contacts.

Petition (libellus): A legal challenge of the validity of a marriage that seeks a declaration of nullity or invalidity. It is submitted to a tribunal according to the requirements of canon law.

Petitioner: The party who petitions a tribunal. Either party to a marriage that is irreparably broken may petition.

Procurator: A legal representative who performs procedural acts on behalf of a party and who handles judicial business for a party. The procurator is appointed by the party in a mandate, which allows the procurator to function in an official capacity.

Prohibition (vetitum): A restriction attached to an affirmative sentence by a tribunal that prevents a future licit Catholic marriage until certain conditions are fulfilled.

Promoter of Justice: A tribunal official who is bound by office to provide for the public good. The promoter of justice sometimes petitions for a declaration of nullity of a marriage in certain situations.

Publication: When the tribunal makes the evidence or the sentence available to the parties for their review.

Respondent: The other spouse in the challenged marriage. The respondent is the party who responds to the petition, but this party may also petition for the nullity of the marriage as a co-petitioner.

Sole Judge: Tribunal official who acts as the only judge in the case. A sole judge must be a cleric.

Tribunal: The ecclesiastical court in a diocese.

Valid / invalid (null): These descriptions apply to actions intended to have some effects in the Church, such as a celebration that creates a marriage. Valid acts have effects that the Church recognizes. Invalid acts do not.

Witnesses: Persons proposed by either party who can testify knowledgeably and truthfully about the parties and their marriage.

 

(1) Impediments

• Impediments which are defined by ecclesiastical (church) law only affect Catholics and may be dispensed, but impediments which are defined by divine law bind everyone (Catholics and non-Catholics) and cannot be dispensed.
• The two most commonly encountered impediments are the impediment of a prior bond of marriage (canon 1085), which is also known as ligamen, and the impediment of disparity of worship, which is the prohibition of a Catholic from marrying someone who has never been baptized (c. 1086).
• The impediment of disparity of worship is an impediment of ecclesiastical law and may be dispensed. 
• The impediment of a prior bond of marriage or ligamen is an impediment of divine law and cannot be dispensed.
• Any person – whether Catholic or non-Catholic, baptized or unbaptized – with a prior bond of marriage is not free to marry again in the Catholic Church unless and until either a declaration of nullity or a dissolution of the bond is issued if the previous spouse is still alive.
• If it can be proven that an impediment existed at the time of the marriage and that the impediment had not ceased (if an impediment of divine law) or was not dispensed (if an impediment of ecclesiastical law), the marriage may be declared invalid.
• For the full list of impediments, refer to canons 1083-1094.

(2) Lack or Defect of Form

• If one or both parties have been baptized Catholic or received into the Catholic Church, and the parties marry before a civil or a non-Catholic officiant without a dispensation from canonical form, there is a lack of canonical form, and the marriage is invalid (even if one or both parties are no longer practicing the Catholic faith).
• A defect of form refers to a situation where form is generally followed but a major element is missing, e.g., there was only one witness at the celebration of marriage.
• If there was a defect of form in the celebration of the marriage, the marriage is invalid.
• Only the Holy See can grant a dispensation from canonical form for a marriage between two Catholics, except in danger of death.

(3) Defects of Consent

• The petitioner submits a petition (libellus). What had been legally settled – which, in this case, is the marriage – is now called into question.
• The judicial vicar must decide whether to accept or reject the petition. The questions considered are whether the tribunal has competence or jurisdiction, and whether the petition proposes an acceptable reason or ground of nullity.
• A tribunal can accept a case only if it has competence or jurisdiction. A tribunal is competent if it is the tribunal of the place in which the marriage was celebrated; if it is the tribunal of the place in which either or both parties reside; or if it is the tribunal of the place in which most of the proofs must be collected. If a tribunal determines that it is not competent or lacks jurisdiction, the petition must be rejected.
• If the judicial vicar accepts the case, the parties and the defender of the bond are cited. Important note about the citation of the respondent: If the respondent is not cited by the tribunal, the definitive sentence could be declared irremediably null, and the entire process could be considered null and void. In other words, an affirmative sentence would not stand, and the entire process would have to be repeated. Therefore, the tribunal must inform the respondent that the marriage nullity process is happening. The petitioner must provide the tribunal with the current address of the respondent or with proof of a diligent search.
• The introduction stage concludes with the joinder of the issues, also known as the formulation of the doubt. The judicial vicar determines the ground or grounds of nullity by which the validity of the marriage is being challenged by the petitioner. At the same time, the court is constituted. The names of those who will serve as judge(s) and defender of the bond are communicated to the parties. Finally, after the defender of the bond has been heard, the judicial vicar determines whether the process used will be the ordinary process or the briefer process before the bishop. (Please note that the following information is about the ordinary process.)

• Canon law presumes that marriages are valid until proven otherwise (canon 1060). The burden of proving that the marriage is invalid rests upon the petitioner (canon 1526). Therefore, the petitioner has the responsibility to provide names of witnesses to the tribunal and to participate in interviews conducted by the auditor and the expert witness.
• Witnesses are cited for testimony.
• Judicial interviews of the parties and the witnesses are conducted by a judge or an auditor.
• If required by the ground proposed, an expert witness, e.g., a psychologist, is appointed, interviews the parties, and submits a report.
• After all of the evidence has been gathered, the acts are published, which means that the parties have the opportunity to review the evidence that is not yet known to them.
• One or both parties may choose not to review the evidence, but, out of justice, both parties are given the opportunity to know what has been presented as evidence.
• The parties have the opportunity to react to the evidence. They may offer rebuttals or corrections. They may choose to add new evidence, which is made available for the review of the other party through a second publication or review of the acts.
• After the parties have been given the opportunity to review the evidence that is not yet known to them, the case is concluded, thereby ending the evidence-gathering stage of the process.
• After the conclusion of the case, the advocate (if one has taken part in the case) and the defender of the bond are asked to submit legal briefs.
• The defender of the bond must review the case and present any reasonable arguments or observations that protect the bond of marriage and the integrity of the legal process. 

• The judge or college of judges study the acts of case and come to a decision.
• Moral certainty is the standard required by canon law for the judge or college of judges to give an affirmative decision in response to the doubt that the marriage is invalid. Moral certainty is the exclusion of reasonable doubt. It is less than absolute certainty but more than probability.
• If the judge or college of judges reach moral certitude that the marriage is invalid on one or more of the grounds, an affirmative decision is given. If the judge or college of judges cannot reach moral certitude that the marriage is invalid on at least one of the grounds, a negative decision is given.
• If the case is decided by a college of three judges, two out of three judges must vote for an affirmative decision.
• The sentence is then published – that is, made know – to the parties with a time-limited opportunity to appeal the decision.
• If the decision is not appealed by the parties, the defender of the bond, or the promoter of justice (if one has taken part in the case) within the time allowed, the decision is finalized. The parties are informed that they are free to marry in the Catholic Church.

• The decision may be appealed by the parties or their procurators.
• The decision may also be appealed by the defender of the bond (if it is an affirmative decision) or the promoter of justice (if one has taken part in the case).
• If an appeal is lodged, the court of first instance, which is the Diocesan Tribunal of Lafayette, sends the acts of the case to the court of second instance or appeal court, which is usually the Metropolitan Tribunal of New Orleans but may also be the Apostolic Tribunal of the Roman Rota. 
• If the appeal court upholds a negative decision in first instance, a new petition on a different ground may be introduced to the Diocesan Tribunal of Lafayette.
• If the appeal court overturns a negative decision, the affirmative decision is finalized unless the decision is appealed to the Apostolic Tribunal of the Roman Rota. If the appeal court confirms an affirmative decision, the affirmative decision is finalized and no further appeal is possible. In both situations, the parties are informed that they are free to marry in the Catholic Church.

• The best practice in every case is for the parties to review the sentence with their procurators or advocates. Review of the sentence will usually indicate to the procurator or advocate whether a negative decision should be appealed.
• In most cases, a petitioner should be encouraged to appeal a negative decision in first instance rather than introduce a new case under a different ground.

• A party initiates an appeal simply by stating the desire to do so in writing to the tribunal of first instance. The tribunal of first instance will send a copy of the acts of the case to the court of second instance (the appeal court).
• After the court of appeal receives the acts of the case from the court of first instance, the appeal process is handled by the appeal court.
• A procurator may appeal on behalf of his or her client. However, the procurator should consult with the client and should not appeal if the client is opposed to an appeal.