Section 11. By whom a marriage must be solemnized  


Latest version.
  • No marriage shall be
      valid unless solemnized by either:
        1. A clergyman or minister of any religion, or by the  senior  leader,
      or  any  of the other leaders, of The Society for Ethical Culture in the
      city of New  York,  having  its  principal  office  in  the  borough  of
      Manhattan, or by the leader of The Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture,
      having  its  principal  office in the borough of Brooklyn of the city of
      New York, or of the Westchester Ethical Society,  having  its  principal
      office  in Westchester county, or of the Ethical Culture Society of Long
      Island, having  its  principal  office  in  Nassau  county,  or  of  the
      Riverdale-Yonkers  Ethical  Society having its principal office in Bronx
      county, or by the leader of any other Ethical Culture Society affiliated
      with the American Ethical Union.
        2. A mayor of a village, a county executive of a county, or  a  mayor,
      recorder,  city  magistrate,  police  justice  or police magistrate of a
      city, a former mayor or the city clerk of a city of the first  class  of
      over  one  million inhabitants or any of his or her deputies or not more
      than four regular clerks, designated by him or her for such  purpose  as
      provided  in  section  eleven-a  of  this chapter, except that in cities
      which contain more than one hundred thousand and less than  one  million
      inhabitants,  a  marriage  shall  be  solemnized by the mayor, or police
      justice, and by no other officer of such city,  except  as  provided  in
      subdivisions one and three of this section.
        3.  A  judge  of  the  federal circuit court of appeals for the second
      circuit, a judge of a federal district court for the northern, southern,
      eastern or western district of New York, a judge of  the  United  States
      court  of  international  trade,  a  federal  administrative  law  judge
      presiding in this state, a justice or judge of a court  of  the  unified
      court  system,  a  housing  judge  of the civil court of the city of New
      York, a retired justice or judge  of  the  unified  court  system  or  a
      retired  housing  judge  of  the  civil  court  of  the city of New York
      certified pursuant to paragraph (k) of subdivision two  of  section  two
      hundred twelve of the judiciary law, the clerk of the appellate division
      of  the  supreme court in each judicial department, a retired city clerk
      who served for more than ten years in such capacity in a city  having  a
      population  of  one million or more or a county clerk of a county wholly
      within cities having a population of one million or more; or,
        4. A written contract of marriage signed by both parties and at  least
      two  witnesses,  all of whom shall subscribe the same within this state,
      stating the place of residence of each of the parties and witnesses  and
      the  date  and  place  of marriage, and acknowledged before a judge of a
      court of record of this state by the parties and witnesses in the manner
      required for the acknowledgment  of  a  conveyance  of  real  estate  to
      entitle the same to be recorded.
        5.  Notwithstanding  any other provision of this article, where either
      or both of the parties is under the age of  eighteen  years  a  marriage
      shall  be solemnized only by those authorized in subdivision one of this
      section or by (1) the mayor of a city or village, or county executive of
      a county, or by (2) a judge of the federal circuit court of appeals  for
      the  second  circuit,  a  judge  of  a  federal  district  court for the
      northern, southern, eastern or western district of New York, a judge  of
      the  United States court of international trade, or a justice or a judge
      of a court of the unified court system, or by (3) a housing judge of the
      civil court of the city of New York, or by (4) a  former  mayor  or  the
      clerk  of  a  city of the first class of over one million inhabitants or
      any of his or her deputies designated by him or her for such purposes as
      provided in section eleven-a of this chapter.
    
        6. Notwithstanding  any  other  provisions  of  this  article  to  the
      contrary  no  marriage shall be solemnized by a public officer specified
      in this section, other than a judge of a federal district court for  the
      northern,  southern, eastern or western district of New York, a judge of
      the United States court of international trade, a federal administrative
      law  judge  presiding  in  this state, a judge or justice of the unified
      court system of this State, a housing judge of the civil  court  of  the
      city  of  New  York,  or a retired judge or justice of the unified court
      system or a retired housing judge of the civil court certified  pursuant
      to paragraph (k) of subdivision two of section two hundred twelve of the
      judiciary  law,  outside the territorial jurisdiction in which he or she
      was elected or appointed. Such a public  officer,  however,  elected  or
      appointed  within the city of New York may solemnize a marriage anywhere
      within such city.
        7. The term "clergyman" or "minister" when used in this article, shall
      include those defined in section two of the religious corporations  law.
      The word "magistrate, " when so used, includes any person referred to in
      the second or third subdivision.