Chaney

*63 After three years of dating and cohabitation, appellant Leanne Netterstrom and respondent Michael Chaney applied for a confidential marriage license and exchanged vows at a solemnization ceremony. After the ceremony, the officiant gave *861 the signed license to the parties, who promised to file it with the county. For personal and financial reasons, the parties did not return the license to the county. Four years later, Chaney petitioned for dissolution of marriage. Netterstrom moved to quash on the ground that she and Chaney are not married. The trial court denied the motion to quash.

Rule 1: "[A] marriage shall be licensed, solemnized and authenticated, and the authenticated marriage license shall be returned to the county recorder of the county where the marriage license was issued .... Noncompliance with this part by a nonparty to the marriage does not invalidate the marriage." 1

Rule 2: "The person solemnizing the marriage shall return the marriage license ... to the county recorder ... within 10 days after the ceremony." 2

The law requires an officiant to return the license to the county; however, noncompliance by a nonparty does not necessarily invalidate an…