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→Invalid marriages
There is a common-law presumption that a marriage should not be declared invalid merely because the marriage didn't meet the required formalities, and the court will try to uphold invalid marriages when it can. Section 16 of the provincial ''Marriage Act'' provides, for example, that irregularities in a marriage license won't invalidate a marriage entered into in good faith; section 11 similarly provides that a marriage conducted by an unauthorized person won't be declared invalid if the marriage is unchallenged.
==Criminal marriages==
In a few circumstances, marriage may wind up getting you charged with an offence under the ''[http://canlii.ca/t/7vf2 Criminal Code]''. Section 290 of the ''Code'' makes it an offence to commit ''bigamy''. That section says that:
<blockquote><tt>(1) Every one commits bigamy who</tt></blockquote>
<blockquote><blockquote><tt>(a) in Canada,</tt></blockquote></blockquote>
<blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(i) being married, goes through a form of marriage with another person,</tt></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote>
<blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(ii) knowing that another person is married, goes through a form of marriage with that person, or</tt></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote>
<blockquote><blockquote><blockquote><tt>(iii) on the same day or simultaneously, goes through a form of marriage with more than one person; or</tt></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote>
<blockquote><blockquote><tt>(b) being a Canadian citizen resident in Canada leaves Canada with intent to do anything mentioned in subparagraphs (a)(i) to (iii) and, pursuant thereto, does outside Canada anything mentioned in those subparagraphs in circumstances mentioned therein.</tt></blockquote></blockquote>
==The rights and responsibilities of married spouses==