Legal Question in Family Law in Kansas

Re: common law marriage

Kansas law requires three elements for a valid common law marriage:

1) Both parties must have the capacity to marry. (i.e., they must be old enough and not already married, etc.)

2) Both parties must have the intention to be married to each other.

3) The parties must "hold themselves out" to the public as husband and wife. (i.e., they introduce themselves as a married couple, they file joint tax returns, own property in joint names, incur debt jointly, etc.)

If the common law married is valid, it is like any other marriage and the surviving spouse may inherit from the deceased spouse.