Splawn v. Splawn
Supreme Court of South Carolina
429 S.E.2d 805 (S.C. 1993)
Relevant factsFree
The family court initially ordered equitable distribution of the Splawns' marital property in a divorce proceeding, but Louvenia (defendant) later discovered Nathaniel (plaintiff) had mistakenly never divorced his first wife, making their marriage void for bigamy; despite this discovery, the family court enforced its prior equitable-distribution order, and Louvenia appealed, arguing the court lacked jurisdiction over a void, bigamous marriage.
IssueFree
Whether a family court has subject-matter jurisdiction to equitably distribute the property of a bigamous marriage.