A covenant marriage is an arrangement where marrying spouses agree that their marriage will last for the rest of their lives. However, it does provide for a divorce in a limited number of situations. Those limited situations include: 1) one spouse committing adultery, 2) a spouse committing physical or sexual abuse of the other spouse or a child, 3) a spouse committing a felony, 4) a spouse using illegal substances, and 5) both spouses living separately for one or two years. The spouses will receive pre-marital counseling before their wedding and marital counseling when they are considering a divorce.
Covenant marriages are recognized in only three states: Arizona, Arkansas, and Louisiana; and they are usually entered into for religious reasons.
[Last updated in June of 2021 by the Wex Definitions Team]