# Who doesn't have the legal right to marry? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 7, 2004, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950 "2004-03-07T06:12:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/1 "2004-03-07T06:12:16Z")
Other than same-sex, underage, mentally incompetent, closely related, or already-married, are there any people who cannot legally marry? AFAIK, murders, rapists, child molesters and terrorists can marry, right? I’m not talking about religious prohibitions, just legal ones. ---
**Author:** ![zoogirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b9bd4f/32.png) [@zoogirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoogirl)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/2 "2004-03-07T06:23:21Z")
I think that while you certainly can get married in the military, you do have to get special permission etc. Same goes for prisoners. I knew someone who did marry a first cousin, but they had to wait until she’d gone through menopause. That was during the Fifties. ---
**Author:** ![Billdo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/billdo/32/315_2.png) [@Billdo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billdo)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/3 "2004-03-07T07:12:16Z")
In the U.S., marriage is a matter of state law, so each state has different laws as to who may marry. For instance, New York Domestic Relations Law [Article 2](http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?cl=29&a=3) sets out which marriages are considered void and voidable in New York. (In his recent [opinion](http://www.oag.state.ny.us/press/2004/mar/mar03a_04.html), N.Y. Attorney General Eliot Spitzer concluded that these provisions permit New York to recognize same sex marriages from other jurisdictions, but that the marriage licensing provisions of the Domestic Relations Law prohibit same sex marriges from taking place in New York.) In _Loving v. Virginia_, [388 U.S. 1 (1967)](http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=388&invol=1), the U.S. Supreme Court held that “Marriage is one of the ‘basic civil rights of man,’ fundamental to our very existence and survival.” In _Loving_, the Court found that the fundamental right to marry was protected by the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment, and struck down Virgina’s laws prohibiting interracial marriage as violating the U.S. Constitution. Because Marriage is considered a fundamental right, murders, rapists, child molesters and terrorists cannot be prohibited from marrying. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/4 "2004-03-07T07:18:02Z")
> [@Billdo](#): > > In the U.S., marriage is a matter of state law… Almost, but [not quite](http://www.legallawhelp.com/legal_law_channels/family_marriage_divorce_law/marriage.html). ---
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/5 "2004-03-07T07:51:08Z")
> [@zoogirl](#): > > I think that while you certainly can get married in the military, you do have to get special permission etc. Same goes for prisoners. Who told you that? I am in the US Army, got married this past summer, and didn’t, nor would I have thought about, asking for permission to marry. We do not screen marriages for soldiers, although the marriage must be declared to the command as soon as you’re married so pay and allowances, plus benefits and such are bestowed in a timely manner. Perhaps you are referring to the marriages of certain soldiers who married Iraqi women this summer, and are being punished for it: that is because they got married in a combat zone, where going anywhere outside of the immediate area of operations requires authorization…and they did not get permission to leave the area to get married…there are also some implications to getting married to someone outside the US as far as citizenship and other rights are concerned. Jman ---
**Author:** ![zoogirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b9bd4f/32.png) [@zoogirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoogirl)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/6 "2004-03-07T08:08:17Z")
Top of my head, “everyone knows it” kind of thing. It may well be very out-dated. I’m probably thiking of Second World War stories/accounts or possibly MASH :rolleyes: It might be a Canadian Army thing too. That’ll teach me to search before I post! :o ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 8:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/7 "2004-03-07T08:49:54Z")
There was a thread about requiring permission to marry for servicemen here recently. The OP thought it bizarre that a friend had to ask permission from his superior to get married. Apparently permission was denied. Other military posters confirmed this. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 8:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/8 "2004-03-07T08:52:13Z")
[Here](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=240722&highlight=marriage+married+permission) it is. ---
**Author:** ![Shade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2bfe46/32.png) [@Shade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shade)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/9 "2004-03-07T10:57:19Z")
(I assume you’re asking what two (different) people may not be able to marry, excluding marrying non- or multiple- people.) How about people who are in the country illegally? Non-citizens who are forbidden to marry by their home country? I’m guessing they can but I thought it worth asking. ---
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/10 "2004-03-07T13:03:36Z")
> [@1920s Style Death Ray](#): > > [Here](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=240722&highlight=marriage+married+permission) it is. Wow…sounds like it’s an old Navy thing…questionable as to its enforcement level. All I can say is that in the Army, I have never heard of any soldier of any sort requesting permission to marry, nor any requirement to do so. Now, I may just be a LT, but I figure it would have come up sometime in my 2+ years of service or 4 years of training prior to commissioning. Maybe not…I don’t have a ton of experience here, but it’s crazy. For my part, I would never deny my soldiers the right to marry, but I might advise them on the financial issues if I knew them to be a problem. Jman ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/11 "2004-03-07T17:15:42Z")
I believe transsexuals have been forbidden to marry in some (if not all) jurisdictions. ---
**Author:** ![Nichol\_storm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Nichol\_storm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nichol_storm)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/12 "2004-03-07T18:24:23Z")
> [@zoogirl](#): > > I knew someone who did marry a first cousin, but they had to wait until she’d gone through menopause. That was during the Fifties. That seems strange – some states do ban first cousin marriages, but all you’d have to do is go to a neighboring state that doesn’t and marry your cousin there. No menopause clause or anything. Maybe the laws were different in the 50’s. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/13 "2004-03-07T19:12:53Z")
> [@Scarlett67](#): > > I believe transsexuals have been forbidden to marry in some (if not all) jurisdictions. Actually, transexuals can marry in every U.S. jurisdiction, AFAIK. The issue is that in some, they can only marry opposite their original gender. In other words, transexuals may _only_ partake in same-sex marriages. I think Texas and Mississippi are the two states whose courts have issued rulings on this. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/14 "2004-03-07T19:36:31Z")
> [@Nichol\_storm](#): > > That seems strange – some states do ban first cousin marriages, but all you’d have to do is go to a neighboring state that doesn’t and marry your cousin there. No menopause clause or anything. Maybe the laws were different in the 50’s. Many (most? all?) states have laws which declare void marriages entered into by the parties in other states to avoid legal restrictions in their home states. > [@R.N.A.T.B.](#): > > I think Texas and Mississippi are the two states whose courts have issued rulings on this. Kansas, not Mississippi. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/15 "2004-03-07T20:48:34Z")
> [@Otto](#): > > Many (most? all?) states have laws which declare void marriages entered into by the parties in other states to avoid legal restrictions in their home states. But only if it was specifically such a case (of evading jurisdiction) and for some specific restrictions. For instance there’s apparently no objection to Nevada-type quickie marriages, which evade residency requirements. ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2004, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/16 "2004-03-07T22:41:44Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Other than… closely related Brief fact of note: in some states, it is in fact legal to marry sibling to sibling, if the woman is past menopause or one member of the marriage is infertile. I believe that Arizona is one such state. It’s interesting to note that some people claim to oppose same-sex marriage on the grounds that the institution of marriage is designed around providing supportive families for children, yet you never hear about such people opposing weird laws like these. ---
**Author:** ![zoogirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b9bd4f/32.png) [@zoogirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoogirl)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2004, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/17 "2004-03-09T06:09:45Z")
> [@Nichol\_storm](#): > > That seems strange – some states do ban first cousin marriages, but all you’d have to do is go to a neighboring state that doesn’t and marry your cousin there. No menopause clause or anything. Maybe the laws were different in the 50’s. This would have been in British Columbia, Canada. At least I’m pretty sure. That’s where they were living when they adopted their kids, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![eyetalian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@eyetalian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eyetalian)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2004, 8:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/18 "2004-03-09T08:42:56Z")
NO ONE unless marry says yes ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2004, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/19 "2004-03-09T15:01:00Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > But only if it was specifically such a case (of evading jurisdiction) and for some specific restrictions. For instance there’s apparently no objection to Nevada-type quickie marriages, which evade residency requirements. I’m not aware of any states which have residency requirements to marry. They all have residency requirements for divorce (Nevada’s are I think still the shortest at six weeks) but not for marriage. The states generally want to make it easy for “certain people” to get married. ---
**Author:** ![KellyM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/57b2e6/32.png) [@KellyM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KellyM)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2004, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-doesnt-have-the-legal-right-to-marry/232950/20 "2004-03-10T11:42:51Z")
> [@Really Not All That Bright](#): > > Actually, transexuals can marry in every U.S. jurisdiction, AFAIK. > > The issue is that in some, they can only marry opposite their original gender. In other words, transexuals may only partake in same-sex marriages. I think Texas and Mississippi are the two states whose courts have issued rulings on this. Transsexuals have the right to marry, but exercising that right is often difficult (requiring lawsuits in several states), and the marriage is subject to arbitrary dissolution by third parties if anybody involves does anything out of the ordinary, like die (_Gardiner v. Gardiner_), get killed by a incompetent doctor (_Littleton v. Prange_), or move to another state. You may end up in the situation where you’re married in Texas, but not in California. Or vice versa. So, while it’s possible to sue for the right to get married, enforcing the incidents of marriage afterwards will be difficult at best. This pretty much means that, effectively, transsexuals can’t get married. Remember, the legal gender of a transsexual is whichever gender would be legally most inconvenient to that particular transsexual at that particular instant, and may vary from time to time.