Va. Code » Title 20. Domestic Relations » Chapter 2. Marriage Generally
Virginia Code

Va. Code Ann. § 20-31.1 (2026)

When marriage legitimates children; issue of marriages prohibited by law, etc., legitimate

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If a person, having had a child, shall afterwards intermarry with the mother or father, such child if recognized by both of them, as their own child, jointly or separately, before or after marriage, shall be deemed legitimate.

The issue of marriages prohibited by law, deemed null or void or dissolved by a court shall nevertheless be legitimate.

1978, c. 647.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 6 cases, 1988–2016 · leading case: Richard S. Levick v. Deborah MacDougall, 782 S.E.2d 182 (Va. Ct. App. 2016).
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Richard S. Levick v. Deborah MacDougall, 782 S.E.2d 182 (Va. Ct. App. 2016). · cites it 2× “We acknowledge Code § 20-31.1, which provides, in relevant part, that "[t]he issue of marriages prohibited by law, deemed null or void or dissolved by a court shall nevertheless be legitimate.”
In re Hukma Kulmiye, 77 Va. Cir. 67 (Fairfax Cir. Ct. 2008). · cites it 3× “See Va. Code § 20-31.1. The effective date of the marriage cannot be made retroactive to the date of the religious ceremony in 2004, as requested.”
Murphy v. Holland, 377 S.E.2d 363 (Va. 1989). · cites it 2× “non-ceremonial) but created by an agreement to marry, followed by cohabitation.” Black’s Law Dictionary 251 (5th ed.”
Mato v. Mato, 12 Va. Cir. 153 (Spotsylvania Cir. Ct. 1988). · cites it 2× “Virginia Code § 20-31.1. As innocent third parties to the invalid marital relationship, and as wards of the courts of equity, their care and custody should be addressed within the context of the marital dissolution.”
Deborah MacDougall v. Richard S. Levick, No. 1981144 (Va. Ct. App. Feb. 23, 2016). · cites it 2× “11 We acknowledge Code § 20-31.1, which provides, in relevant part, that “[t]he issue of marriages prohibited by law, deemed null or void or dissolved by a court shall nevertheless be legitimate.”
Codynah v. Mullen, 60 Va. Cir. 446 (Va. Cir. Ct. 2003). · cites it 2× “Virginia Code § 20-31.1. These statutes are liberally construed for remedial purposes.”
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