[Common-law marriage or common law marriage]
All U.S. jurisdictions recognize common-law marriages where they have been validly contracted in another jurisdiction that still permits the common law contract of a marriage. Only a dozen jurisdictions, however, still permit marriages to be contracted in this way. They are: Alabama (AL), Colorado (CO), the District of Columbia (DC), Iowa (IA), Kansas (KS), Montana (MT), Oklahoma (OK), Rhode Island (RI) and Providence Plantations, South Carolina (SC), Texas (TX), and Utah (UT). Additionally, New Hampshire (NH) recognises common-law marriage solely for probate purposes.