S.C

Brand new claimant applied for handicapped widow's insurance coverage benefits to the worker's money list, but the Secretary refused her application because claimant didn't meet with the 9-month cycle-of-relationships criteria into the 42 You. 416(c). So it denial is kept by the area legal. Brand new claimant next appealed towards You.S. Judge regarding Is attractive to your Earliest Circuit. The fresh new legal away from appeals listed one Puerto Rico does not admit common-laws marriages hence the prerequisites getting setting up a legitimate marriage when you look at the Puerto Rico are set onward in the Post 69 of Municipal Password, 30 L.P.R.A great. § 231. New legal discovered that, in this case, the needs of Blog post 69 had been clearly maybe not satisfied nine weeks prior to the worker's death. The fresh new court then unearthed that the new claimant's constitutional "equal safety" attack into the nine-day period-of-wedding requirements are invalid less than Weinberger v. Salfi, 422 U.S. 749, 95 S.Ct. 2457, 45 L.Ed.2d 522 (1975), and you may Mathews v. de- Castro, 429 U.S. 181, 97 S.Ct. 431, 50 L.Ed.2d 389 (1976). The claimant including argued that, as she is this new worker's concubine, she had the right significantly less than Puerto Rican laws so you're able to inherit regarding the fresh new worker's property as the his widow, and you may she would be deemed become the newest widow of your worker significantly less than 42 You. 416(h)(1)(A). This new courtroom of appeals unearthed that, around Puerto Rican law, an excellent concubine of an employee has actually a straight to a share of the property received during the period of concubinage however, does not have a directly to inherit a beneficial widow's display of your own dead worker's intestate private possessions. Thus, brand new claimant couldn't getting considered are the widow out of the fresh new employee significantly less than 42 U. 416(h)(1)(A) by the application of legislation away from Puerto Rico on intestate succession. Within the maintaining the district court's choice affirming the brand new Secretary's denial out-of which claim having widow's pros, new courtroom of is attractive stored that the claimant wasn't named in order to benefits since disabled widow of one's personnel.

She contended one, once the she while the staff got cohabited having two decades earlier in the day to the big date of their ceremonial matrimony, its cohabitation got switched the dating on the a legal matrimony better up until the 9-day period

Appellant Esther Ayuso Morales wanted Social Shelter handicap benefits dependent their unique status given that "widow" of one's covered worker Honorio Montanez Figueroa. Lower than 42 U. § 416(c) to qualify since an excellent "widow" a lady have to have come partnered for at least 9 weeks during the time of their own partner's dying. Appellant's relationships taken place into the nine-day months. Experts was refuted.

On notice, she urges you to she's still qualified given that she cohabited having their unique husband for 2 decades just before its relationship. She contributes you to definitely, in any event, less than 42 You. § 416(h)(1)(A) an applicant try a good widow in the event that she'd, "within the laws and regulations . . . [away from Puerto Rico] determining the new devolution off intestate private property, have a similar status . . . since a wife . . . [or] widow. . . ." Pick basically, Rombauer, Relationship Condition and you may Qualification having Federal Legal Income Advantages: An ancient Questionnaire, 52 Tidy.L.Rev. 227, 257 ainsi que. seq. (1977). She says the concubinage law away from Puerto Rico offers their particular particularly standing.

We can't undertake appellant's very first disagreement. We realize one to some typically common law jurisdictions admit non-ceremonial otherwise "common-law marriages." These types of marriage ceremonies are designed of the agree of activities since the virtually any bargain. F.W. Kuchlar, Legislation from Involvement and you will Matrimony step one-5 (2d ed. 1978); get a hold of O.Age. Koegel, Common-law ent in the united states (1922). However, common law marriage ceremonies are not approved within the Puerto Rico. The fresh new requisites of a valid marriage in the Puerto Rico are ready forward inside Blog post 69 of your Municipal Password, 30 L.P.R.Good. § 231. Incorporated of those requisites 's the "[a]uthorization and event out-of a good matrimonial deal with regards to the forms and you can solemnities recommended for legal reasons." From the absence of such versions and you can solemnities, there is no wedding. Rivera v. District Judge from San Juan, 58 P.R.R. 352, 354 (1941); Vazquez Bote, Notas sobre el matrimonio en derecho puertoriqueno, 49-56 Rev quanto tempo atГ© Г  data da proposta. P.Roentgen. 491, 493-94, 510-12 (1973-75). Age. Lalaguana Dominguez, Estudios de- derecho matrimonial 244-forty-five (1962).