Background
The petitioner, Sara Corcoran, sought survivor annuity benefits under the Federal Employees Retirement System for her late husband, Anthony Schinella. To qualify, she needed to prove they were married for at least nine months before his death in June two thousand twenty. The couple dated in two thousand eighteen, exchanged gifts, and cohabitated, but did not hold a civil marriage ceremony until May two thousand twenty. The Office of Personnel Management denied the claim, finding the marriage duration insufficient and rejecting a common law marriage argument in the District of Columbia. The Merit Systems Protection Board affirmed the denial, concluding the petitioner failed to present preponderant evidence of a common law marriage.
The court’s reasoning
The court applied the standard of review under Section seven thousand seven hundred three of Title five of the United States Code, affirming unless the decision was arbitrary, capricious, or unsupported by substantial evidence. Under District of Columbia law, a common law marriage requires cohabitation as husband and wife following an express mutual agreement in words of the present tense. The court found the Administrative Judge’s determination that the couple lacked such an agreement was supported by substantial evidence, including tax returns filed as single and testimony indicating the couple viewed themselves as engaged rather than married prior to the civil ceremony.
What it means going forward
The ruling reinforces the strict evidentiary requirements for establishing common law marriage in the District of Columbia for federal benefit purposes, particularly the necessity of an express mutual agreement in words of the present tense.