NC Wedding Laws -- Help!

HouaBudgetSavvy

North Carolina Wedding Laws

 a. In the presence of an ordained minister of any religious denomination, a minister authorized by a church, or a magistrate; and b. With the consequent declaration by the minister or magistrate that the persons are husband and wife; or (2) In accordance with any mode of solemnization recognized by any religious denomination, or federally or State recognized Indian Nation or Tribe.

To perform a marriage in North Carolina you need to be ordained and may be required to provide proof of ordination such as an ordination credential, wallet credential, or a letter of good standing from the church.

This is found from the following site...NC wedding laws

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I called my local county (Catawba) to seek if it would be ok to have a friend get ordained online as a minister and perform the wedding ceremony.  She stated that it will be determined by his/her title and if they will be recognized as a member of the church to perform the wedding.

So -- this would mean that I get a friend  according to the statement abot that I can have him or her be ordained by this site ULC then they will be a recognized member who can then perform the ceremony for us?

Does anyone know? I know it has been discussed over and over but I'm still not clear about it?

Thanks!!!

birdcagebride

I read in the post below that the ULC isn't a recognized church by the state of NC and would not be a valid marriage unless you went to the courthouse and technically got married there as well.

You can have anyone perform the ceremony for you, as long as you legally get married at the courthouse or magistrate's office.

alliegator8

It is a real grey area.  I have had tons of friends do exactly what you are doing and didn't have any problems.  They are happily married and recongnized by the state.

This all comes from a group of people who suit the state years ago over this type of wedding.  The state supreme court ruled in their favor making all marriages that were certified by a person ordained through groups like the ULC no longer valid.  There is nothing saying that group won't file suit again with the same results.  So you run the risk of your marriage being deemed invalid down the road. 

It is really dumb.  I think if you really want to do it, go for it.  Just be prepared for issues that may come up down the road.

brokenhallelujah

It seems to vary by county here in NC. It depends on your Register of Deeds. I had an e-ordained minister marry me here in Wilmington (New Hanover County) and had no problems. He signed and turned in the marriage license the day after my wedding & I got the certificate by Monday - no questions.

I had called the Register of Deeds here asking the exact same question. She told me that it isn't up to her to interperet the law. I felt that my friend fell within the requirements of the law, so I went ahead with it and didn't have any problems.

But it seems like in other counties when you ask the Register of Deeds they tell you flat out that they will not recognize someone ordained by ULC.

I have no idea how they know where they were ordained because (at least for my officiant) he didn't have to provide any kind of proof of his ordination to the county. And I was the first person he had ever married in NC. So...

Beth0882

I don't think the Register of Deeds would have any idea where the minister was ordained so they wouldn't refus e to validate the certificate if it was a ULC ordained minister.   I think that if anything came up in the future, like somehow someone challenged the marriage and tried to argue it was void, that is when it would matter.  I am sure most people live married happily ever after even if married by a ULC ordained minister and its never an issue.

Honestly, I can't think of a scenario where it would come up, unless maybe during a divorce or estate settlement someone tried to argue the marriage wasn't valid toget around inheritance laws or property settlement?

CJ4578

I think divorce is most likely where it would matter- after all, I assume you can't be divorced if you haven't been legally married (Beth, you would probably know better than I) and therefore the whole equitable division of assets would be trickier. But, then again, if you'd been cohabitating for more than 7 years you'd be common-law married anyway...

However, if you're a worrier like me it might be best to just go ahead and get a JoP to perform the ceremony with your friend/the person you want to marry you. As long as the JoP does the I Dos and signs the marriage certificate for you, you should be totally concrete. A friend of mine did this for a different reason- she wanted her grandfather to perform her wedding ceremony, but he was not up to it. He did the introduction, and stood by while another minister did the crucial bits. So, special person was still included.

Beth0882

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_north-carolina_nc-wedding-laws?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:115Discussion:624a16a5-a042-45e3-bd04-0d0ae75e5fd8Post:9b086539-c4f7-4450-a6e4-d3014df3ec67">Re: NC Wedding Laws -- Help!</a>:
[QUOTE]I  But, then again, if you'd been cohabitating for more than 7 years you'd be common-law married anyway...Posted by CJ4578[/QUOTE]

Minor unrelated point: I'm fairly certain NC doesn't recognize common law marriage! SC does, but NC never has :)

CJ4578

Whoops! Good point. So... best to be safe then!

alliegator8

NC doesn't recognize common law?  What is wrong with this state?  It seems like they are the only ones who don't recognize anything!  I didn't even know that there were any states that didn't recongize common law.  crazy!

brokenhallelujah

And you can legally marry your first cousin here, I believe. Just old laws that have never been changed/taken off the books. It is a little weird.

laudanum1

Yes, better safe than sorry. In a nutshell, by choosing to get officially married by a person ordained in a fashion that is not recognized by the state of NC, you risk the future validity of your marriage & a possible misdemeanor & fine for the person performing the ceremony.

There will be absolutely no issues with using an online ordained to get married. No ROD is going to question you about who signed your marriage license. Issues would only arise if you have troubles in the future & somone decides to challenge the marriage (someone even being a pissed off relative has an issue with you or DH). It's all about what's most important to you - having your friend or loved one perform your ceremony & sign the license or having a solid legal marriage that the state can never challenge.

In regards to common-law marriages, only a handful of states recognize them (14 states, the last time I checked).

It was more practical back in the day, when you lived in the middle of nowhere, had no motorized transportation, & the nearest county seat was more than a day's horse ride away. Nowadays, there are fewer & fewer states that recognize common law because, honestly, does a person really need to be married if can't be bothered with paying $50 & filing the one page of paperwork? =P

pirategal03

My aunt/uncle considered challenging the validity of their dad's second marriage after he died without a will and their [evil] stepmom got everything (land that had been in the family for generations included).  Better safe than sorry. 

jacobrooks

It does not vary from county to county, NC does not recognize online ordained ministers...period. I was going to go this route but found this out and didn't want to take the chance, so I contacted a magistrate from my local court house and he agreed to do my wedding ceremony at my venue! CHeck out your local magistrates.