Blog
Category - Wedding Legals
To be married legally in Australia,
you must do everything the Marriage Act requires and
do it of your own free will, both before and during
the ceremony. I make sure everything is done
properly and legally, so as not to create any
problems for you down the track. But I"m also
committed to is also important to read between
the lines, and to carefully examine all the things
that people think are legal requirements, but
aren't.
See also
Tutorials
About Getting Married
(Bite-size how-to posts about the legal
aspects of getting married.
Particularly useful when completing your
Notice of Intended Marriage)
What's a Legals Only Wedding?
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
(28/01/2020)
You might be wondering what those
Legals Only
weddings you've seen advertised are. Simply put,
Legals
Only is marriage celebrant speak/shorthand for the
bare minimum ceremony as required by the Marriage Act.
But that's not the whole story ...
More ...
How to have a Non-Legal Wedding Ceremony
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
(14/05/2020)
Getting married and having a wedding can be a two-step
process.. ...
More
...
10 Things we "Know" about Getting Married that Ain't
So (26/07/2016)
Categories:
Wedding Legals |
Wedding Planning
As Artemus Ward said 'It ain't so much the things we
don't know that get us in trouble. It's the things we
know that ain't so.' In wedding land there are a lot of
common beliefs that just aren't true ...
More ...
7 Surprising Facts about Getting Married in
Australia
Categories: | Wedding Legals |Wedding Planning |
(16/09/2019)
Getting married in Australia is easier than many people
imagine - here are some little known facts that confirm
that. ...
More
...
About
Witnesses
out
Being a Witless Witness is not an option!
(08/10/2024)
Categories: | Wedding Legals |
When you are one of the legal witnesses to a marriage,
you have to have your wits about you throughout the
ceremony because you could be called on to testify in
court
. More ...
Witnesses and Disability
Categories: | Wedding Legals |
(04/03/2024)
You need two witnesses to a legal marriage.
Despite how common ableist assumptions are about this
role, a witness having a disability is not an automatic
disqualification
More...
Avoid pre-wedding dramas with a Witness Lottery
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding Legals |
Wedding Planning |
(02/10/2019)
Because being witness is an honour, not choosing someone
who expected to be chosen can cause hurt feelings and a
ongoing drama, including broken friendships and family
rifts. Sidestep problems by having a witness lottery
....
More ...
Witnesses and Weddings
Categories: Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
(05/12/2018)
In
Australia, no matter whether you marry in
church, the registry office, or by a civil
celebrant, and no matter whether you have the
big white wedding with a large wedding party, or
choose just to elope, the one thing that every
wedding must have is two witnesses...
More ...
About
Giving Notice
out
Giving Notice of Your Intended Marriage when You
Live at Opposite Ends of the Country (or the Earth)
Categories: |
Wedding Legals |
(24/02/2020)
Giving Notice of your Intended Marriage when you are not
together in the same state or country is not as
difficult as it might seem at first. ...
More
...
No Licence Needed
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
Wedding Planning |
(21/02/2020)
Getting married in Australia is super simple. You don't
need a marriage licence, and your venue doesn't have to
have a licence to host wedding ceremonies ...
More ...
What is a month?
Categories: |
Wedding Legals |
(25/01/2020)
What is a month? is an all-important question because
you can't legally be married less than a full calendar
month from the day you give Notice (on the Notice of
Intended Marriage) ...
More ...
About
Certificates and Signing
out
Your Marriage Certificate(s)
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
(06/02/2020)
Every couple marrying in Australia will be presented
with a certificate on the day. That certificate is proof
that you are married, but it isn't proof that your
marriage has been registered. So you need a second (and
different) certificate as well ...
More ...
Can Guests Sign Your Marriage Certificate?
Categories: Celebrant |
Wedding Legals |
(25/11/2019)
Your Presentation Certificate is a legal document,
therefore only your two legal witnesses may sign it,
along with you and your celebrant. But there are other
lovely options for guests to sign
More ...
The curious reasons why Marriage Documents are
signed with black ink
Categories: Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
(04/08/2019)
Have you ever wondered why your marriage certificate
must be signed in black ink? Or, indeed, why the Notice
of Intended Marriage should be filled in using black ink
(if you're filling it in by hand)? It has a lot to do
with archival requirements - but also with status!
More ...
Signing the Register and the Certificates (updated
16/12/2017)
Categories:
Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding Legals |
Everything you need to know about signing the Marriage
Register and Marriage Certificates...
More...
About
Legal requirements for the Ceremony
out
AI, Copyright, and you, the Celebrant
(30/03/2024) (Previously published article)
Categories: | for Celebrants |
Wedding Legals |
A discussion of the risks and realities of using AI
tools such as ChatGPT to write celebrant blogs,
ceremonies, and materials
More ...
Weddings and Weaponry in Queensland
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony
|
Wedding Legals |
(03/11/2021)
Carrying a knife (sgian dubh) is part of the traditional
male Scottish Highland Dress. But in many
places, including Queensland, carrying a knife in a
public place can land you in trouble with the law. Read
on to find out about the rules and what you can do to
get round them ....
More...
Could a Tandem Wedding be Your Thing?
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony
|
Wedding Legals |
Wedding
Planning |
(10/10/2021)
A tandem wedding ceremony is one that is officiated by
two people, working in concert, but only one of whom is
authorised to solemnise legal marriages ...
More...
About Changing
your Name
out
Legal Name Change or Change of Name by Marriage -
the Facts and the Pitfalls
Categories: |
Wedding Legals |
(24/10/2021)
Changing your name after you are married. You don't have
to do it. But if you decide to change your name you have
the choice of doing it *by marriage* or through a *legal
change of name* so how do you choose? ...
More
...
About
Consent
out
The Importance of Consent: Why no-one can force you
to marry, to kiss in your wedding, or to have sex
afterwards
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
(02/03/2020)
Celebrants in Australia have to be on the lookout for
any indication that you might not be freely and
willingly agreeing to marry, and if we are at all
concerned, to pull the plug on the wedding. You can't be
forced to marry, to kiss during the wedding, or to
have sex after marriage ...
More ...
Booze, Pills, and your Wedding
Categories: Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
(08/07/2019)
Being drunk or under the influence of other substances,
legal or otherwise, can prevent you from getting
married
More
...
About
Destination Weddings - both here and there
ou
Will your overseas destination wedding be recognised
in Australia?
Categories: | Wedding Legals |
(28/08/2019)
While Australia generally recognises overseas marriages,
as long as those marriages would be legal if solemnised
in Australia, there are a number of things you need to
do to make sure your destination marriage overseas is
recognised in Australia ...
More ...
Will your Australian marriage be recognised
overseas?
Categories: | Wedding Legals |
(06/08/2019)
Will a marriage registered in Australia will be
recognised overseas? Generally speaking, legal marriages
solemnised in Australia are recognised world wide, but
that's not the whole story
More
...
Bali Weddings (27/07/2016 update 25/09/2019 to
reflect changes in Indonesian law)
Categories:
Wedding Legals |
Wedding Planning
Everything you need to know about getting married with
an Australian celebrant in Bali
... More ...
Other
Things to Know about Legal Marriage
out
Heads Up: Your Wedding Will Invalidate your Will
(14/11/2024)
Categories: | Wedding Legals | Wedding
Planning |
When planning your wedding don't forget that getting
married will invalidate your will. You need to make a
new one in order to ensure that your assets are divided
up the way you want them to be and that your children
are cared for by someone you trust.
More
...
What Marriage Changes - and What it Doesn't
(24/03/2024)
Categories: | Wedding Legals |
Getting married immediately changes your legal status,
and with that comes a change in rights and
responsibilities...
More ...
What Does The Marriage Act Do?
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony
|
Wedding Legals |
(26/09/2021)
The Marriage Act applies to all marriages solemnised in
Australia. It lays down the framework, creates offences,
and deals with the recognition of foreign marriages ...
More...
Why Border-Straddling Weddings Are a No-No
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony
|
Wedding Legals |
(25/09/2021)
Marriages in Australia must be registered in the state
or territory in which they take place...
More
Getting Married When You Have a Disability
Categories: |
Inclusive Weddings
|
Wedding Legals |
(19/08/2021)
There is no disability or disease that will prevent you
getting married in Australia...
More
7 Things your Celebrant does NOT need to know ...
and 3 things they have to be sure about
Categories: |
Wedding Legals
|
(29/07/2021)
There are certain things that the Marriage Act requires
that your celebrant must know in order to make sure your
marriage will be lawful. There are also things that they
don't need to know.
.. More
...
What if you change your mind? Annulment or Divorce
in Australia
Categories: |
Wedding
Legals |
(11/05/2021)
In Australia there are very limited circumstances in
which you can get a marriage annulled. Buyer's Remorse
(change of mind) isn't one of them. ...
More
...
Like First Impressions, the First Line of Your
Wedding Ceremony Matters
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
(26/09/2020)
The first line of your wedding ceremony can be
captivating and intriguing. It can make your
guests lean forward, eager to participate. It does not
have to be boring. Unfortunately, it often is...
More ...
Your Wedding Vows: Legal, Personal, Private? What's
the Difference?
Categories: |
Vows|
Wedding Ceremony
|
Wedding Legals |
(12/09/2020)
What's the difference between legal vows and personal
vows (personal promises) and can you keep
them private?...
More ...
The Most Important Step in Your Wedding is Free!
Categories: |
Wedding Legals |
(27/05/2020)
Did you know that the most important part of your
wedding happens after it is all over - and that it
doesn't cost you a cent? ...
More ...
Getting Married via Skype - Possible in Australia or
Not?
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
Wedding Planning |
(24/03/2020)
Sorry, it is NOT legal in Australia to get married over
Skype, FaceTime, Google Hangouts, or
other videoconferencing technology, or by proxy. And
this is why...
More ...
Can You Have Two (or More) Weddings?
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
Wedding Planning |
(17/03/2020)
Can you, as a marrying couple, have more than one
wedding? The answer is
Yes, but also,
That
Depends...
More...
Not "Just a Celebrant" (and Not "Just Half an Hour")
Categories: |
Celebrant |
Wedding
Ceremony |
Wedding Legals |
Wedding
Planning |
(28/02/2020)
What does a celebrant do? And why do they charge for
more than the half hour the ceremony takes? The easy
answer is that a celebrant changes your legal status
from not-married to married. which is a pretty big
thing. Life-changing, in fact. And they do that by
creating and performing a ceremony. But it certainly
doesn't stop there. When you hire me as a celebrant,
you're getting a lot more than someone who will make
sure you tick a few legal boxes, stand up in front of
your guests, rabbit on for a bit, and then declare that
you are married. ...
More
...
It's True - Your Marriage Ceremony can be
Unstructured!
Categories: |
Wedding
Ceremony |
Wedding Legals |
(19/01/2020)
It might surprise you to learn that there is nothing in
the Marriage Act that requires that your marriage
ceremony has to follow a tightly structured script. As
long as you meet the very minimal legal requirements,
everything else is optional! ...
More ...
When Disaster Strikes - Plan D - How to Get Married
Legally When your Venue and your Celebrant are
Unreachable
Categories: |
Wedding Legals
|
Wedding Planning |
(03/01/2020)
The one thing that is required to make any Plan B work
is the capacity to communicate. When disaster strikes,
and communications are cut, even the most detailed and
multi-faceted Plan B is useless. So what can you do if
you've planned your wedding (and a viable Plan B), and
now your venue and your celebrant are within one of the
disaster zones ...
More ...
I Won't Judge You or Your Choices (unless the Law
makes me do so)
Categories: Celebrant |
Wedding Legals |
(12/11/2019)
There are some things which the law, and my obligations
under the law as a Marriage Celebrant, requires me to
make judgements about. But there are many things that
people fear being judged about that I definitely don't
and won't judge you for ...
More ...
A Spontaneous Wedding? Yes you can
Categories: |
Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding Legals | Wedding Planning |
(29/09/2019)
Does that whole let's get married now vibe appeal to
you? No big wedding, just running away and doing it
without any fuss and bother?...
More ...
Saying I Do in Secret (it's legal!)
Categories: | Wedding Legals |Wedding
Planning |
(18/09/2019)
If you choose to be married with a civil celebrant in
Australia you can be married in secret ...
More ..
Getting married when you don’t identify with a
gender
Categories: Inclusive Wedding |
Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding Legals |
(23/05/2019)
Gender is now immaterial when getting married in
Australia. When marrying you do not have to use gendered
terminology or adhere to gendered role ...
Read on...
Surprise Weddings - How to have a successful one
without breaking the law
Categories: Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
Wedding Planning |
(03/05/2019)
The Marriage Act is very clear. Surprise weddings are
illegal - but only if one of the marrying
couple is being surprised. Which means there are plenty
of legal ways to have a surprise wedding ...
More ...
When are you actually legally married?
Categories: Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
(08/02/2019)
There are many incorrect assumptions about when in the
sequence of the ceremony, the signing, and the
registration of their marriage a couple is actually
legally married. ...
More
...
What if Someone Objects?
Categories: Wedding Ceremony |
Wedding
Legals |
(05/01/2019)
We've all
seen it in movie after movie - If anyone knows
any reason why these two should not be joined in
marriage, speak now .... So what happens if
someone objects at your wedding? More ...
Friend or Professional Celebrant?
Categories: Celebrant |
Wedding Ceremony
|
Wedding Legals |
(02/12/2018)
Would choosing a friend instead of a professional
celebrant to conduct your wedding ceremony be a good
option for you? Everything you need to consider -
and how you can have the best of both worlds ...
More
....
Privacy and You, Your Wedding, Your Marriage
Categories: Wedding Legals |
(04/11/2018)
If you’ve ever wondered what my reasons are for rarely
posting photos of the couple, or mentioning their names,
even though I’ve officiated well over 800 legal
marriages ...
More ...
Is your celebrant duly authorised?
(06/08/2018)
Categories:
Celebrant |
Wedding Legals |
While scams involving persons who are not authorised
celebrants are extremely rare in Australia, now that a
celebrant can be deregistered forthwith if he or she
fails to pay the annual fee celebrants are now required
to pay, it is particularly important to check whether
your celebrant is still registered
More ...