# Non traditional families, and the law. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 15, 2011, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-traditional-families-and-the-law/596361 "2011-09-15T03:00:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![lawbuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/13edae/32.png) [@lawbuff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lawbuff)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2012, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-traditional-families-and-the-law/596361/41 "2012-01-09T18:20:41Z")
> [@UDS](#): > > I’m not sure that that’s quite correct. Ohio had common law marrriage until 1991, but in that year the law changed so that you could only get married by license. But the law did not operate to invalidate existing marriages, so if you married by common law in Ohio prior to 1991 I would expect to find that you continue to be married until you divorce, or one of you dies. I did some research on that one years ago for a person, as I live in Ohio also. You not only had to be entered into the common law marriage before late 1991, BUT it had to ALSO be recognized as such. If I am not mistaken the Ohio Supreme court case I read was that the couple had to be known as man and wife, etc., for either 5 or 7 years, forget the exact time. So if a couple only were known as man and wife 3 years before late 1991, they were still not common law married. ---
**Author:** ![lawbuff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/13edae/32.png) [@lawbuff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lawbuff)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2012, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-traditional-families-and-the-law/596361/42 "2012-01-09T18:25:40Z")
> [@Triskadecamus](#): > > So, my question, is this polygamy, in a legal sense? Is it illegal in states less sexually repressive than Virginia? I don’t have evidence that it is so, but I have always assumed this is a married couple, and a guy and his three wives sharing a house. Maybe a guy and his two wives, and one of his wives girlfriend, though. Most states refer to it as BIGAMY, but Polygamy is still against federal law. Some states still criminalize adultery, as a back up. Without reading any case law on it and defining what is considered polygamy, I would say living with more than I woman and having sex with all, even though no or just 1 marriage is legally recognized, is bigamy yes. The case law will define it no doubt, state to state. I never read any on that subject. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2012, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-traditional-families-and-the-law/596361/43 "2012-01-09T19:06:41Z")
Group sex with zombies? Hope nothing falls off. If there is no marriage, no claimed marriages, nobody representing themselves as married, just playing musical-beds hide-the-sausage each night,where’s the crime? The only violation is that some locationshave bylaws that limit the number of unrelated persons living in a house. (Which brings up a related question, what if he has children with two of them? Does that still qualify as “unrelated”?) ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2012, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-traditional-families-and-the-law/596361/44 "2012-01-09T19:13:55Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Funny the OP should mention Virgina. Its longtime tourist slogan, of course, is “Virginia is for lovers.” … But in Pennsylvania they have Intercourse. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-traditional-families-and-the-law/596361.md?page=2)