SAGE Reference - The Social History of the American Family: An Encyclopedia

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Common Law Marriage

By: Jacki Fitzpatrick & Erin Kostina-Ritchey
In: The Social History of the American Family: An Encyclopedia
Edited by: Marilyn J. Coleman & Lawrence H. Ganong
Subject:American Studies, Family Studies (general)
Keywords:common-law marriage; immigration; legitimacy; marriage; marriage law; parenting; verification

Common law marriage (CLM) has existed in various forms since the Roman Empire, and is not a phenomenon unique to the United States. For centuries, CLMs have been an option for couples who lived in communities that did not have easy ...

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  Fitzpatrick, J., & Kostina-Ritchey, E. (2014). Common law marriage. In M. J. Coleman, & L. H. Ganong (Eds.), The social history of the American family: An encyclopedia (Vol. 1, pp. 265-266). SAGE Publications, Inc., https://www.doi.org/10.4135/9781452286143.n119
  
  Fitzpatrick, Jacki, and Erin Kostina-Ritchey. "Common Law Marriage." In The Social History of the American Family: An Encyclopedia, edited by Coleman, Marilyn J., and Lawrence H. Ganong, 265-66. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2014. http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781452286143.n119.
  
  Fitzpatrick, J. and Kostina-Ritchey, E. 2014. Common Law Marriage. In: Marilyn J. Coleman and Lawrence H. Ganong Editors, 2014. The Social History of the American Family: An Encyclopedia, Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc. pp. 265-266 Available at: <http://www.doi.org/10.4135/9781452286143.n119> [Accessed 16 Apr 2021].
  
  Fitzpatrick, Jacki and Erin Kostina-Ritchey. "Common Law Marriage." The Social History of the American Family: An Encyclopedia. Edited by Marilyn J. Coleman and Lawrence H. Ganong. Vol. 1. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2014, pp. 265-66. SAGE Knowledge. 16 Apr 2021, doi: http://www.doi.org/10.4135/9781452286143.n119.
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