People get married for a variety of reasons, but the important thing is it is their decision. The majority of marriages are between two adults who understand what becoming a spouse means. When a marriage involves a minor, they are at risk for not fully understanding the consequences of marriage.
The Maryland Measure to Protect Teenagers From Marriage
In most states, minors generally cannot be married except under very specific circumstances. However, Maryland law has a loophole, and minors who are 16 and 17 years old can be married if they receive parental consent. Additionally, a 15-year-old can marry if there is a pregnancy or birth of a child and they have parental consent.
For a sixth time, a proposed bill seeks to raise the legal age to be married. The new law would require those minors to wait until they turn 17 to be married, and a 17-year-old could marry a person no more than four years older than them.
This law aims to prevent young girls from being pressured into marrying significantly older men. The bill would also require the 17 year-olds to undergo a judicial review to detect coercive and abusive relationships. The teenagers would be appointed an attorney and would eventually receive emancipation from their parents.
Under the law, a 15-year-old can marry but have no rights as an adult, including seeking a divorce. The new law would emancipate the teenager so they are viewed as an adult and could escape a bad situation.
Similar bills have been proposed and denied in the past. However, 26 states have passed bills providing similar protections to minors. Most states passed laws that raised the age limit to be married while providing an exception for emancipated minors, and four states have a complete ban on marriage for those under 18.
The Validity of Minor Marriages
For the law to recognize a marriage, both sides must be willing participants. As such, each party must have full mental capacity when deciding to become married. While there are several ways to lack mental capacity, minors often lack capacity due to pressure to marry.
While the outcome may be the minor getting married, how they arrived at this decision is important. Should a minor be pressured or threatened into marriage, they may lack the mental capacity to consent to the marriage. The pressure or mental duress can come from their partner or their parents. Parents who consent to a marriage may also be pressuring their child into the marriage.
“Marriage is a significant commitment, so there are multiple factors a court should consider when dealing with the potential marriage of a minor.” said Attorney Tammy Begun of Capital Family Law Group. “If a minor is being pressured into a marriage for any reason, this is good cause for a court to deny the marriage in the best interest of the minor.”
When a Minor Tries to Get Divorced
Until a minor becomes an adult or receives emancipation from their parents, they have no rights as an adult. Thus, when a minor marries with their parents’ consent, they are not viewed as an adult. Unfortunately, under the law, a minor who is married cannot file for a divorce. Instead, the minor must wait for emancipation or become an adult to file for a divorce.