Mississippi Code
Miss. Code Ann. § 93-1-15 (2026)
License and solemnization required for valid marriage
✓ current as of July 2026
- (1) No marriage contracted after April 5, 1956 shall be valid unless the contracting parties shall have obtained a marriage license as otherwise required by law, and unless also the marriage, after such license shall have been duly issued therefor, shall have been performed by or before any person, religious society, institution, or organization authorized by Sections 93-1-17 and 93-1-19 to solemnize marriages. Failure in any case to comply with both prerequisites aforesaid, which shall also be construed as mandatory and not merely directory, shall render the purported marriage absolutely void and any children born as a result thereof illegitimate.
- (2) Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to affect the validity of any marriage, either ceremonial or common law, contracted prior to April 5, 1956.
Codes, 1942, § 465.5; Laws, 1956, ch. 239, §§ 1, 2.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 22
cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1975–2023 · leading case: Carlisle v. Allen, 40 So. 3d 1252 (Miss. 2010).
Carlisle v. Allen, 40 So. 3d 1252 (Miss. 2010). “Miss.Code Ann. § 93-1-15(1) (Rev.2004) (emphasis added).”
Towner v. State, 812 So. 2d 1109 (Miss. Ct. App. 2002). “Miss.Code Ann. § 93-1-15 (Rev. 1994). The State's plan to call Sullivan to rebut the testimony of Towner and his sister, though, was thwarted by events that were described outside the presence of the jury.”
Clark Sand Co., Inc. v. Kelly, 60 So. 3d 149 (Miss. 2011). “1980) (citing Miss.Code Ann. § 93-1-15 (1972); Walker v.”
Davis v. Davis, 643 So. 2d 931 (Miss. 1994). “§ 93-1-15 (1) (1972) that: No marriage contracted after April 5, 1956 shall be valid unless the contracting parties shall have obtained a marriage license as otherwise required by law, and unless also the marriage after such license shall have been duly issued therefore, shall…”
Dean v. Kavanaugh, 920 So. 2d 528 (Miss. Ct. App. 2006). “Miss. Code Ann. § 93-1-15 (Rev.2004). ¶ 32.”
Caspar v. Snyder, 77 F. Supp. 3d 616 (E.D. Mich. 2015). “01 (1941); Miss.Code Ann. § 93-1-15(2) (1956); 2 The Revised Codes of Montana of 1921 15 (1921) (citing Mont.”
Tanya Dale Wright Sanderson v. Hobson L. Sanderson, Jr., 245 So. 3d 421 (Miss. 2018). “Miss. Code Ann. § 93-1-15 (Rev. 2013). And instead of conveying marital rights, cohabitation is a statutory crime.”
Cates v. Swain, 116 So. 3d 1073 (Miss. Ct. App. 2012). “2d at 934 -35 (citing Miss.Code Ann. § 93-1-15(1) (1972)). In denying Elvis Davis equitable distribution, the supreme court reiterated its earlier position in Estate of Alexander : We are of the opinion that public policy questions of such magnitude are best left to the…”
George v. George, 389 So. 2d 1389 (Miss. 1980). “During this time, he testified, Billy always called Brenda "my wife," they shared the same bedroom, ate together, slept together, and traveled together.”
Campaign for S. Equality v. Bryant, 197 F. Supp. 3d 905 (S.D. Miss. 2016). “See Miss. Code Ann. §§ 93-1-15 , 93-1-17. But the plaintiffs then omit § 3(8)(b) from their proposed Amended Permanent Injunction.”
In Re Est. of Erwin, 317 So. 2d 55 (Miss. 1975). “…and PATTERSON, INZER, ROBERTSON, WALKER and BROOM, JJ., concur. NOTES [1] Common-law marriages were valid until 1956. Miss. Code Ann. § 93-1-15 (1972).”
In Re Est. of Alexander, 445 So. 2d 836 (Miss. 1984). “Mississippi Code Annotated § 93-1-15 (1972).”
Miss. Code Ann. § 93-1-15(1): 2 cases
Carlisle v. Allen, 40 So. 3d 1252 (Miss. 2010). “Miss.Code Ann. § 93-1-15(1) (Rev.2004) (emphasis added).”
Cates v. Swain, 116 So. 3d 1073 (Miss. Ct. App. 2012). “2d at 934 -35 (citing Miss.Code Ann. § 93-1-15(1) (1972)). In denying Elvis Davis equitable distribution, the supreme court reiterated its earlier position in Estate of Alexander : We are of the opinion that public policy questions of such magnitude are best left to the…”
Miss. Code Ann. § 93-1-15(2): 1 case
Caspar v. Snyder, 77 F. Supp. 3d 616 (E.D. Mich. 2015). “01 (1941); Miss.Code Ann. § 93-1-15(2) (1956); 2 The Revised Codes of Montana of 1921 15 (1921) (citing Mont.”
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