Is there any state where it is legal to get married at age 14?

Answer 1

In the United States, you must be 18 (19 in Nebraska, 21 in Mississippi) to get married without parental permission. In most states you can get married at 16 with parental permission. Younger than 16 is typically going to require a court order, which the judges really don't like to grant or a doctor's certificate showing that they are pregnant or already have a child. (In California to get married at 14 requires parental consent, a counseling session and appearance before a judge!)

There are actually quite a few states where it is possible, but in most of those states parental consent isn't enough. You would need to: obtain a court order, a written consent from a family court judge, a waiver from a superior court justice or approval from a District Court. It's not easy to do so and is usually only permitted under special circumstances.

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9 states allow marriage at age 14 under certain circumstances - none of them without the consent of the parents and/or a judge.

States that permit marriage at age 14 with parental and/or judicial consent:

• California: No minimum age with parental consent AND approval of a superior court judge
• Massachusetts: Consent can be just judicial, but is normally both parental AND judicial. In the absence of any statutory minimum age, one opinion is that the traditional minimum common law marriageable age of 12 for girls and 14 for boys may still be in effect. Without parental and judicial consent, the minimum age is 18.
• New Hampshire: 13 for females, 14 for males in cases of "special cause" with parental consent AND court permission.
• New York: 14 with parental AND judicial consent.
• North Carolina: No minimum in case of pregnancy or birth of child with parental consent.
• Pennsylvania: 14 in case of pregnancy AND with the approval of a Judge of the Orphans Court.
• Texas: Judicial consent is required for age 15 and under; there is no minimum age to get married with judicial consent.
• Washington: The minimum age of 17 may be waived by superior court judge.
• West Virginia: No minimum with both parental ANDjudicial consent

So only North Carolina only requires parental consent - and even then only in cases where the girl is already pregnant or has had the baby. 3 states apparently allow it with just judicial consent - but common sense dictates that it would normally also require parental consent to get the judicial consent.

There are very few countries in the world where marriage is legal at 14 even with parental consent - although it still takes place in areas like Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan where it it technically against the law.

None of this would necessarily protect an older prospective spouse from charges of statutory rape.