Full Faith and Credit Clause (TECUS)

The “Full Faith a Credit Clause” of the U.S. Constitution Treaty requires all States to recognize the validity of official Acts of other States. Thus, a marriage validly contracted in New Mexico, including Common Law marriages, is valid in Hawaiʻi, even though the Common Law marriage could not have been legally contracted in Hawaiʻi, because New Mexico law is the basis of its validity. However, by the same principle, a marriage that was not lawfully contracted in New Mexico would not be valid in Hawaiʻi even if it could have been lawfully contracted there.