Daytona Beach, FL asked in Juvenile Law for Florida

Q: Can a 13 year old get emancipated if she meets all the requirements in the state of florida?

Would she then have sexual and marital consent as a ememancipated minor who has no parents in reach

Related Topics:
1 Lawyer Answer

A: If, by "sexual and marital consent", you mean consent to have sex and get married, the former ("sexual consent") is not available in any case. It is not a defense to a criminal charge of "statutory rape" (what Florida calls sexual battery) that the parents gave consent. In fact, if such parents were to "consent", they might in theory be charged with aiding and abetting the crime.

As far as marital consent goes, parents cannot consent to the marriage of a person under the age of 16. Florida Statute 741.0405 provides as follows:

"When marriage license may be issued to persons under 18 years.—

(1) If either of the parties shall be under the age of 18 years but at least 16 years of age, the county court judge or clerk of the circuit court shall issue a license for the marriage of such party only if there is first presented and filed with him or her the written consent of the parents or guardian of such minor to such marriage, acknowledged before some officer authorized by law to take acknowledgments and administer oaths. However, the license shall be issued without parental consent when both parents of such minor are deceased at the time of making application or when such minor has been married previously.

(2) The county court judge of any county in the state may, in the exercise of his or her discretion, issue a license to marry to any male or female under the age of 18 years, upon application of both parties sworn under oath that they are the parents of a child.

(3) When the fact of pregnancy is verified by the written statement of a licensed physician, the county court judge of any county in the state may, in his or her discretion, issue a license to marry:

(a) To any male or female under the age of 18 years upon application of both parties sworn under oath that they are the expectant parents of a child; or

(b) To any female under the age of 18 years and male over the age of 18 years upon the female’s application sworn under oath that she is an expectant parent.

(4) No license to marry shall be granted to any person under the age of 16 years, with or without the consent of the parents, except as provided in subsections (2) and (3)."

So application to court would have to be made pursuant to subsections (2) and (3). The fiancée would, in that case, theoretically be still subject to criminal prosecution.

Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.

The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.

Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.