Where you live.The "antiquated" provision of Massachusetts Massachusetts (măsəch `sĭts), most populous of the New England states of the NE United States. law referred to in "New England New England, name applied to the region comprising six states of the NE United States—Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. The region is thought to have been so named by Capt. Nuptials?" [Match 16] was enacted in 1913. In 91 years it hasn't been challenged in state or federal court. This statute prohibits issuance of a Massachusetts marriage license if just one party is a resident of another state in which such a marriage would be illegal. This effectively punishes the Massachusetts resident because their fiance resides in the "wrong" state. Besides the question of the fundamental rights of travel, privacy, and equal protection, this statute is probably voidable That which is not absolutely void, but may be avoided. In contracts, voidable is a term typically used with respect to a contract that is valid and binding unless avoided or declared void by a party to the contract who is legitimately exercising a power to avoid the for vagueness. There's no specificity within the statute Encompassed by, or included under, the provisions and scope of a particular law. In the U.S. legal system, a person who is charged with violating a statute must have committed actions that are specifically addressed in the law. as to durational residency A duration of stay required by state and local laws that entitles a person to the legal protection and benefits provided by applicable statutes. States have required state residency for a variety of rights, including the right to vote, the right to run for public office, the . In Dunn v. Blumstein, 1972, the U.S. Supreme Court held that durational residency in order to vote is subject to strict judicial scrutiny. Surely the right to marry is on the same constitutional plane as the right to vote. Hopefully, this 1913 statute will be challenged in court later this year. Steven L. Kendall, Seattle, Wash. |
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