Gayle v. Thompson

OPINION OF THE COURT

Richard A. Dollinger, J.

With the changes in New York’s laws to provide for a no-*299fault divorce, the concept of a civil annulment may seem an anachronism until a party seeks judicial approval, upon a spouse’s default, to erase a marriage because the wife alleges she never resided or had sexual relations with her husband. As with other provisions of New York’s Domestic Relations Law, the matter is a bit more complicated than just having an abandoned wife say so.

The wife in this matter filed an action for annulment of her 31-year marriage. In her complaint, and later in an…