Marriage in the State of Louisiana is governed by the Louisiana Revised Statute 9, Code Title IV – Husband and Wife. Marriages in Louisiana are valid between a man and a woman. Cousin marriages are allowed, however same-sex marriages are not valid.
Louisiana also does not recognize common law marriages. Louisiana has also passed covenant marriages.
You must apply for a marriage license before getting married, and there is a 3 day waiting period before a marriage can take place after the license has been issued. There is no standard waiting time for the issuance of the license itself. The license can be issued by the State Registrar of Vital Records, a judge of the city court, a clerk of a court or a district judge. License fees can vary from county to county, however the standard fee is $25.
Both parties must be over the age of 18 in order to marry, if one or more of the party is 17 or 17 years old, parental consent must be obtained. If the party/ies is under the age of 16, they can not marry without a court order.
The marriage ceremony may be performed by an official of a religious society, a state judge or justice of the peace. Other officials may perform marriage if they have registered to do so with the clerk of the court or the State Registrar of Vital Records.
A covenant marriage is legal in Louisiana. A man and a woman may contract a covenant marriage by declaring so on an application for a marriage license and executing a declaration of intent which will be filed by the clerk who issues the marriage license.
[…] Say you are married to your spouse then comes up quite the unfortunate eventuality: one of you passes on suddenly; leaving no will behind. Wouldn’t you want to respect the wishes of the deceased in deciding how and to whom their property shall be distributed? But how would you make certain of this in the absence of a will? There is one solution to that, and that is a Louisiana prenuptial agreement. […]
Every state is so different when it comes to marriage laws. It is important to know the laws for the state in which you plan to get married.
How do I apply for a prenuptial agreement in the state of Louisiana if I’ve already been married for 2 years
In Louisiana there is a legal process that allows you to switch for community property to separate property even though you’ve been married for several years. It requires three documents and court approval. One document ends the community property “regime,” one divides existing community property, and the third establishes the rules of the new “regime.”