SSR 62-36. RELATIONSHIP -- CONTINUATION OF VALID MARRIAGE AFTER SUBSEQUENT BIGAMOUS MARRIAGE

H died domiciled in Arkansas in February 1961, and W filed application

for mother's insurance benefits for herself and child's insurance benefits

for their two children on his earnings account. H and W were ceremonially

married in X county, Arkansas, in 1945, but they separated in 1948 and did

not live together as man and wife after that time. The two children of the

marriage, born in 1946 and 1947, continued living with W after the

separation. W went through a ceremonial marriage with another man in 1957.

After H and W separated, W continued to live in X County, Arkansas. H

moved to Y County, Arkansas, and later to Z County, Arkansas, where he

died without marrying again. W established that the above counties are the

only places where either H or W lived after they separated, and a search

of the court records of those places revealed that no divorce was ever

obtained by either H or W.

The two children were awarded child's insurance benefits on H's earnings

account, but for W to become entitled to mother's insurance benefits she

must, aside from other requirements all of which she met, meet the

requirement that she was H's widow. Under section 216(h)(1)(A) of the Act,

as pertinent here, a woman is the widow of a worker if the courts of the

State in which he was domiciled at the time he died (in this case,

Arkansas) would find either (1) that the woman and worker were validly

married at the time he died or (2) that the woman would have the same

status as his widow for purposes of sharing in his intestate personal

property. (A woman who does not meet the requirements of section

216(h)(1)(A) but in good faith went through a marriage ceremony with the

worker may, under certain circumstances not present in W's case, qualify

as his widow under section 216(h)(1)(B).)

rried at the time he died or (2) that the woman would have the same

status as his widow for purposes of sharing in his intestate personal

property. (A woman who does not meet the requirements of section

216(h)(1)(A) but in good faith went through a marriage ceremony with the

worker may, under certain circumstances not present in W's case, qualify

as his widow under section 216(h)(1)(B).)

The Arkansas courts could find that H and W were validly married at the

time of H's death, notwithstanding W's subsequent marriage, if the first

marriage was not terminated before H's death. However, under Arkansas law

there is a strong presumption that a subsequent marriage is valid, and the

party who questions its validity has the burden of proving its invalidity.

See Missouri Pacific Railway Co. v. Harris, 196 Ark. 974, 120

S.W.2d 695. Since W claims to be H's widow, she is in effect attacking the

validity of her subsequent marriage. Therefore, in order for W to qualify

as H's widow, she must prove the invalidity of her subsequent marriage by

clear and decisive evidence.

W was able to show each place where she and H had lived from the time of

their separation until H's death and that neither of them had obtained a

divorce in any of those places. Such evidence is sufficient to overcome

the presumption of the validity of W's subsequent marriage under Arkansas

law, and, therefore, establishes that she was still married to H at the

time of his death.

Accordingly, it is held that W is entitled to the mother's

insurance benefits for which she applied.