You have been going about your business for years as a single person. You’ve lived a separate life. You’ve dated. Your friends think you are single. You, however, know that this is false. You know that many years ago you got married. Maybe it was for love, maybe not, but whatever the reason you got married. Maybe you wanted to get divorced but could not afford to. Maybe you could not because the State of Texas would not recognize the marriage and thus would not divorce you. So you just went about your separate lives. I know several people that have this exact same scenario. What could possibly be the consequences?
I know that no one wants to think about what will happen when they are gone. I also know that most people that do think about this go see an attorney to prepare their wills. These people probably do not think much about how this marriage that they do not even acknowledge can affect things. However, that marriage affects everything in the event that you pass away. If that marriage is still valid at the time of your passing, then your spouse is entitled to certain benefits such as being the beneficiary on your life insurance, 401k, pension plan, etc. If you designated someone else, your spouse gets first rights to it. Your spouse is also entitled to all community property acquired during the marriage. For example, if you purchased a house it does not matter if you purchased it in your name only, your spouse is still entitled to that house upon your passing.
Now, an argument can be made if the house was purchased during the time of separation, but it is can be a costly argument, that the house was your separate property. However, even at that, your spouse is entitled to 1/2 of that house still and your Will can dispose of the other 1/2 of your interest. Further, your spouse is entitled to all of your personal property that was separate property.
There are some different rules if you have children, therefore, the above example is only if it is just two married people. So if you are seeing an attorney about preparing your estate planning documents and you are in a situation described above, you also need to consult with a family law attorney if the above situation is not what you desire.