An applicant for a declaration of nullity in relation to an arranged marriage which ended soon after the event, has failed in Court.

A 33 yr old man, who had set out to please his ailing mother with the marriage, discovered two days after the event, that his 30 yr old bride was conducting a relationship with a co-worker and asserted that he felt used by the woman for solely the immigration advantage the marriage would provide.

In the only happy part of the Court report, it appears that upon revealing the true nature of his new bride’s conduct, the man’s mother immediately approved the cessation of the relationship and made known to her son that she supported him, remarking “…you cannot ruin your life”.

In a restatement of well settled law, Judge Foster, sitting in Parramatta, determined that a valid ceremony had occurred and that there had been no “fraud” in obtaining either party’s consent to the marriage. He found that there was no element of fear, terror or compulsion arising from concerns about physical or mental harms. Proceeding in orther to please one’s mother, in other words, does not count as an invalidating factor.

To read the full text of the Judgment, click here.