NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY

1967 SESSION

 

 

CHAPTER 957

HOUSE BILL 542

 

 

AN ACT AMENDING THE STATUTES RELATING TO MARRIAGE RECORDS IN NORTH CAROLINA.

 

The General Assembly of North Carolina do enact:

 

Section 1.  G.S. 51-2 is hereby rewritten to read as follows:

"§ 51-2.  Capacity to Marry. (a) All unmarried persons of 18 years, or older, may lawfully marry, except as hereinafter forbidden. In addition, persons over 16 years of age and under 18 years of age may marry, and the register of deeds may issue a license for such marriage, only after there shall have been filed with the register of deeds a written consent to such marriage, said consent having been signed by the appropriate person as follows:

"(1)      By the father if the male or female child applying to marry resides with his or her father, but not with his or her mother;

"(2)      By the mother if the male or female child applying to marry resides with his or her mother, but not with his or her father;

"(3)      By either the mother or father, without preference, if the male or female child applying to marry resides with his or her mother and father;

"(4)      By a person, agency, or institution having legal custody, standing in loco parentis, or serving as guardian of such male or female child applying to marry.

"(b)      When an unmarried female who is more than 12 years old, but less than 18 years old, is pregnant or has given birth to a child and such unmarried female and the putative father of the child, either born or unborn, shall agree to marry, and consent in writing to such marriage, as set out in subsection (a), subdivisions (1), (2), (3) or (4) above, or by the director of public welfare of the county of residence of either party, is given on the part of the female, the register of deeds is authorized to issue to said parties a license to marry, and it shall be lawful for them to marry in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

"(c)       When a license to marry is procured by or on behalf of any person under 18 years of age by fraud or misrepresentation, a parent or person standing in loco parentis to such person under 18 years of age shall be a proper party plaintiff in an action to annul said marriage."

Sec. 2.  G.S. 51-8 is hereby rewritten to read as follows:

"§ 51-8.  License Issued by Register of Deeds. Every register of deeds shall, upon proper application, issue a license for the marriage of any two persons if it appears that such persons are authorized to be married in accordance with the laws of this State. In making a determination as to whether or not the parties are authorized to be married under the laws of this State, the register of deeds may require the applicants for the license to marry to present certified copies of birth certificates or birth registration cards provided for in G.S. 130-73, or such other evidence as the register of deeds deems necessary to such determination. The register of deeds may administer an oath to any person presenting evidence relating to whether or not parties applying for a marriage license are eligible to be married pursuant to the laws of this State."

Sec. 3.  G.S. 51-14 is hereby repealed.

Sec. 4.  G.S. 51-15 is hereby amended by striking out the words "for the marriage of persons under the age of eighteen years" appearing in the first and second lines thereof.

Sec. 5.  G.S. 51-7 is hereby amended by striking out the word "thirty" in the fourth line thereof, and substituting therefor the word "ten".

Sec. 6.  G.S. 51-6 is hereby amended by adding a sentence at the end thereof to read as follows: "There must be at least two witnesses to the marriage ceremony."

Sec. 7.  G.S. 51-16 is hereby amended by deleting the words "one or more" appearing in line 30 thereof, and substituting in lieu thereof the word "two".

Sec. 8.  G.S. 51-18 is hereby amended by deleting the words "all or at least two of the" appearing in the 17th and 18th lines thereof, and substituting in lieu thereof the word "two".

Sec. 9.  G.S. 51-6 is hereby amended by adding a new paragraph at the end thereof to read as follows:

"Whenever a man and woman have been lawfully married in accordance with the laws of the state in which the marriage ceremony took place, and said marriage was performed by a Justice of the Peace or some other civil official duly authorized to perform such ceremony, and the parties thereafter wish to confirm their marriage vows before an ordained minister or minister authorized by his church, nothing herein shall be deemed to prohibit such confirmation ceremony; provided, however, that such confirmation ceremony shall not be deemed in law to be a marriage ceremony, such confirmation ceremony shall in no way affect the validity or invalidity of the prior marriage ceremony performed by a civil official, no license for such confirmation ceremony shall be issued by a register of deeds, and no record of such confirmation ceremony may be kept by a register of deeds."

Sec. 10.  G.S. 51-21 is hereby amended by changing the period at the end of subsection (4) (fifth paragraph) thereof to a semicolon and by adding the following: "provided, however, that if the evidence offered under this paragraph is insufficient to convince the register of deeds that the marriage ceremony took place, or any of the pertinent facts relating thereto, the applicants may bring a special proceeding before the clerk of superior court of the county in which the purported marriage ceremony took place. The said clerk of the superior court is authorized to hear the evidence and make findings as to whether or not the purported ceremony took place and as to any pertinent facts relating thereto. If the clerk finds that the marriage did take place as alleged, he is to certify such findings to the register of deeds who is to then issue a delayed marriage certificate in accordance with the provisions of this Section."

Sec. 11.  G.S. 51-9 is hereby amended by (1) rewriting the second sentence thereof so that it will read as follows: "Such certificate shall be accompanied by a report from a laboratory approved by the State Board of Health for making such test showing that a serologic test for syphilis currently approved by the United States Public Health Service was made, such test to have been made within 30 days of the time application for license is made."; and (2) by changing the word "serological" in line 11 of said Section to the word "serologic".

Sec. 12.  G.S. 51-10 (b)(1) is hereby amended by changing the word "marriageable" in line 3 thereof to the word "marital".

Sec. 13.  G.S. 51-11 is hereby amended by deleting the third paragraph thereof.

Sec. 14.  All laws and clauses of laws in conflict with this Act are hereby repealed.

Sec. 15.  This Act shall be in full force and affect upon ratification.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 27th day of June, 1967.