Social network exposes wife’s infidelity

by Atty. Emmanuel Samonte Tipon

An intending immigrant had “defriended” ( shut off) her U.S. citizen husband from having access to her social network after a quarrel. Later her conversations with her boyfriend were picked up by their common friends who forwarded them to the husband, asking what was going on. The husband, a follower of Ronald Reagan who is fond of quoting a Russian proverb “trust but verify” sent investigators to check on his wife. Lo and behold, they found the wife with a man at a hotel and sent pictures to the husband.

What should the cuckolded husband do? It depends on how he feels about the situation. If he is angry, he can communicate by fax, letter, email, and telephone with immigration authorities (USCIS and the Customs and Border Patrol at the airport where the wife intends to arrive) and the U.S. Consulate abroad that he is withdrawing his I-130 petition for his wife. Sometimes, the authorities write back to the petitioner to verify if he is really withdrawing the petition, since it is possible that somebody not the husband faked the letter. At other times, the authorities do not bother to check with the person withdrawing the petition. There is at least one instance where a petitioner was waiting and waiting for his wife’s visa to be issued but when he could not wait anymore, followed up with immigration authorities but was told that he had withdrawn the petition. I never withdrew it, he shot back. The officials sent him a copy of the letter. He denied writing it and claimed that the signature was not his.

If the husband is very angry, he can file for divorce – another expense. That will probably give the wife an opportunity to marry her paramour, if he is an American, and he petitions for her. But wait, since the Philippines does not recognize divorce, will that divorce be valid with respect to the Philippine wife?  That is another matter that we will discuss in another article. Of course the wife can always file for annulment on the ground of psychological incapacity – it used to cost P50,000 about 10 years ago, now it is about P250,000. Why so much? As a Filipino lawyer told me, “I do not think you will feel comfortable practicing law if you were to come back. You might not be able to stomach the corruption.”

If the husband is very, very angry, he can block the wife from being petitioned by her paramour (assuming that she can obtain a valid termination of their marriage). He can tell the immigration and consular authorities that although he acted in good faith in marrying his wife, the wife committed marriage fraud when she married him. No subsequent petition shall be approved if the alien is determined to have entered into a marriage, or attempted or conspired to enter into a marriage, for the purpose of evading the immigration laws. Immigration and Nationality Act § 204(c).

He should tell the authorities that the wife did not” intend to establish a life together” with him. The quoted words is the magic phrase to show that the marriage is not genuine. See Lutwak v. U.S., 344 U.S. 604; Bark v. INS 511 F.2d 1200. The husband should back up his charge. The conduct of the parties during the marriage is very relevant. Lack of joint documents, like joint bank account, joint tax returns, etc. are highly relevant and material. Read my article “How to establish that your marriage is genuine.” Then just prove the opposite.

Of course, the husband can always forgive his wife for her infidelity. Many Americans do. Most Filipinos don’t. They cannot stand the shame. Remember the case of an Ilocano congressman whose wife ran off with a Roman Catholic priest? __________________________________________________________________

(Atty. Tipon has a Master of Laws degree from Yale Law School and a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of the Philippines. He specializes in immigration law and criminal defense. Office: 800 Bethel St., Suite 402, Honolulu, HI 96813. Tel. (808) 225-2645. E-Mail: filamlaw@yahoo.com. Websites: www.MilitaryandCriminalLaw.com, and www.ImmigrationServicesUSA.com. He is from Laoag City and Magsingal, Ilocos Sur. He served as an Immigration Officer. He is co-author of “Immigration Law Service, 1st ed.,” an 8-volume practice guide for immigration officers and lawyers. Listen to the most witty, interesting, and informative radio program in Hawaii on KNDI at 1270, AM dial every Thursday at 7:30 a.m., rebroadcast at  www.iluko.com. This article is a general overview of the subject matter discussed and is not intended as legal advice. No warranty is made by the writer or publisher as to its completeness or correctness at the time of publication.)