SB 35 — Max 4-Yr Age Diff to Marry Under 18 Yrs.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA SESSION 2021 S 21 SENATE BILL 35 Judiciary Committee Substitute Adopted 4/28/21 Short Title:

MaxAmend 4-YrLawful Age Diff to MarryMarry/18 UnderYears 18of Yrs.Age.

Senators Sawyer, Britt, and Foushee (Primary Sponsors).

Rules and Operations of the Senate February 2, 2021 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT TO PROVIDEAMEND ATHE MAXIMUMLAWFUL FOUR-YEAR AGE DIFFERENCETO FORENTER AINTO PERSONMARRIAGE UNDERIN EIGHTEENTHIS STATE TO 18 YEARS OF AGE TOOR MARRY.OLDER.

Capacity Lawful age to marry.

(a) All unmarried persons of 18 years,or older, maylawfullymarry, except as hereinafter forbidden.forbidden.marry.

(a1) Persons over 16 years of age and under 18 years of age may marry, marry a person no more than four years older, and the register of deeds mayissuemay issue a license for the marriage, only after there shall have been filed with the register of deeds a written consent to the marriage, said consent having been signed by the appropriate person as follows:

(b) Persons over 14 years of age and under 16 years of age maymaymarryas marry a person no more than four years older, as provided in G.S.

51-2.1(a)51-2.1 readsand asG.S. rewritten:

"(a)51-2.2 Ifare anrepealed. unmarried female who is more than 14 years of age, but less than 16 years of age, is pregnant or has given birth to a child and the unmarried female and the putative father of the child, either born or unborn, agree to marry, marry and there is no more than a four-year age difference between them, or if an unmarried male who is more than 14 years of age, but less than 16 years of age, is the putative father of a child, either born or unborn, and the unmarried male and the mother of the child agree to marry, marry and there is no more than a four-year age difference between them, the register of deeds is authorized to issue to the parties a license to marry;

andSECTION it3. shall be lawful for them to marryin accordance with the provisions of this Chapter, *S35-v-2* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2021 only after a certified copy of an order issued by a district court authorizing the marriage is filed with the register of deeds.

AG.S. district court judge may issue an order authorizing a marriage under this section only upon finding as fact and concluding as a matter of law that the underage party is capable of assuming the responsibilities of marriage and the marriage will serve the best interest of the underage party.

In51-3 determiningreads whetheras therewritten: marriage will serve the best interest of an underage party, the district court shall consider the following:

(1)"§ The51-3. opinion of the parents of the underage party as to whether the marriage serves the best interest of the underage party.

(2)Want The opinion of anycapacity; person, agency, or institution having legal custody or serving as a guardian of the underage party as to whether the marriage serves the best interest of the underage party.

(3)void Theand opinionvoidable ofmarriages. the guardian ad litem appointed to represent the best interest of the underage party pursuant to G.S.

51-2.1(b)All asmarriages tobetween whetherany two persons nearer of kin than first cousins, or between double first cousins, orbetween amalepersonunder16 yearsofageand anyfemale, orbetween afemale person under 16 years of age and any male, or between persons either of whom has a husband or wife living at the marriagetime servesof such marriage, or between persons either of whom is at the besttime interestphysically impotent, or between persons either of whom is at the underagetime party.incapable of contracting from want of will or understanding, shall be void.

(4)No Themarriage relationshipfollowed betweenby thecohabitation underage party and the parents*S35-v-1* ofGeneral theAssembly underageOf party,North asCarolina wellSession as2021 thebirth relationshipof betweenissue theshall underagebe partydeclared andvoid anyafter personthe havingdeath legalof custodyeither orof servingthe asparties afor guardianany of the underagecauses party.stated in this section except for bigamy.

(5)No Anymarriage evidenceby thatpersons iteither wouldof findwhom usefulmay inbe makingunder its16 determination.years of age, and otherwise competent to marry, shall be declared void when the girl shall be pregnant, or when a child shall have been born to the parties unless such child at the time of the action to annul shall be dead.

ThereA shallmarriage becontracted under a rebuttablerepresentation presumptionand belief that the female partner to the marriage willis notpregnant, servefollowed by the bestseparation interestof the parties within 45 days of the underagemarriage partywhich whenseparation allhas livingbeen parentscontinuous for a period of one year, shall be voidable unless a child shall have been born to the underageparties partywithin oppose10 lunar months of the marriage.date of separation." SECTION 4.

TheG.S. fact that the female is pregnant, or has given birth to a child, alone does not establish that the best interest of the underage party will be served by the marriage." SECTION 3.

51-16 reads as rewritten:

"§ 51-16.

Form of license.

License shall be in the following or some equivalent form:

To anyordained minister of anyreligious denomination, minister authorizedbya church, any magistrate, or any other person authorized to solemnize a marriage under the laws of this State:

A.B.

having applied to me for a license for the marriage of C.D.

(the name of the man to be written in full) of (here state his residence), aged ____ years (race, as the case may be), the son of (here state the father and mother, if known;

state whether they are living or dead, and their residence, if known;

if any of these facts are not known, so state), and E.F.

(write the name of the woman in full) of (here state her residence), aged ____ years (race, as the case may be), the daughter of (here state names and residences of the parents, if known, as is required above with respect to the man).

(If either of the parties is under 18 years of age, the license shall here contain the following:) And the written consent of G.H., father (or mother, etc., as the case may be) to the proposed marriage having been filed with me, and there being no legal impediment to such marriage known to me, you are hereby authorized, at any time within 60 days from the date hereof, to celebrate the proposed marriage at any place within the State.

You are required within 10 days after you shall have celebrated such marriage, to return this license to me at my office with your signature subscribed to the certificate under this license, and with the blanks therein filled according to the facts, under penalty of forfeiting two hundred dollars ($200.00) to the use of any person who shall sue for the same.

Issued this ____ day of ____, ____ ____________________ L.M.

Register of Deeds of ____ County Every register of deeds shall, at the request of an applicant, designate in a marriage license issued the race of the persons proposing to marry by inserting in the blank after the word "race" the words "white," "black," "African-American," "American Indian," "Alaska Native," "Asian Indian," "Chinese," "Filipino," "Japanese," "Korean," "Vietnamese," "Other Asian," "Native Hawaiian," "Guamarian," "Chamorro," "Samoan," "Other Pacific Islander," "Mexican," "Mexican-American," "Chicano," "PuertoRican," "Cuban," "Other Spanish/Hispanic/Latino,"or "other," as the case may be.

The certificate shall be filled out and signed by the minister, officer, or other authorized individual celebrating the marriage, and also be signed by two witnesses present at the marriage, who shall add to their names their place of residence, as follows:

I, N.O., an ordained or authorized minister or other authorized individual of (here state to what religious denomination, or magistrate, as the case maybe), united in matrimony(here name the parties), the parties licensed above, on the ___ day of ______, ___, at the house of P.R., in (here name the town, if any, the township and county), according to law.

________________ N.O.

Witness present at the marriage: