Va. Code » Title 20. Domestic Relations » Chapter 2. Marriage Generally
Virginia Code

Va. Code Ann. § 20-28 (2026)

Penalty for celebrating marriage without license

✓ current as of May 2026
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If any person knowingly perform the ceremony of marriage without lawful license, or officiate in celebrating the rites of marriage without being authorized by law to do so, he shall be confined in jail not exceeding one year, and fined not exceeding $500.

Code 1919, § 4542.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 10 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1989–2026 · leading case: MacDougall v. Levick, 805 S.E.2d 775 (Va. 2017).
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MacDougall v. Levick, 805 S.E.2d 775 (Va. 2017). · cites it 12× “11 Levick also makes much of the fact that the rabbi violated Code § 20-28, which prohibits an officiant from "perform[ing] the ceremony of marriage without lawful license.”
Richard S. Levick v. Deborah MacDougall, 782 S.E.2d 182 (Va. Ct. App. 2016). · cites it 2× “Most significantly, Code § 20-28 provides that, “[i]f any person knowingly perform the ceremony of marriage without lawful license, or officiate in celebrating the rites of marriage without being authorized by law to do so, he shall be confined in jail not exceeding one *65…”
Mawyer v. Lumbermens Mut. Cas. Co., 377 S.E.2d 401 (Va. 1989). “§ 20-28 8(e) permits such an interpretation.”
Landes (W.D. Va. 2026). · cites it 20× “Plaintiffs argue that the Attorney Defendants have an “unrenounced obligation to enforce Va. Code Ann. § 20-28 against ULC Monastery ministers who perform marriage rites that are prohibited.”
Gottlieb v. Crouch, 44 Va. Cir. 268 (Arlington Cir. Ct. 1998). · cites it 2× “Section 20-28 provides for a penalty to be imposed upon anyone who performs a ceremony without a license.”
MacDougall v. Levick, 87 Va. Cir. 160 (Fairfax Cir. Ct. 2013). · cites it 7× “*167 Most significantly, Va. Code § 20-28 prescribes criminal penalties for an officiant that celebrates a marriage without a license.”
Deborah MacDougall v. Richard S. Levick (Va. Ct. App. 2016). · cites it 2× “Most significantly, Code § 20-28 provides that, “[i]f any person knowingly perform the ceremony of marriage without lawful license, or officiate in celebrating the rites of marriage without being authorized by law to do so, he shall be confined in jail not exceeding one year,…”
Richard S. Levick v. Deborah MacDougall, 776 S.E.2d 456 (Va. Ct. App. 2015). · cites it 2× “Most significantly, Code § 20-28 provides that, “[i]f any person knowingly perform the ceremony of marriage without lawful license, or officiate in celebrating the rites of marriage without being authorized by law to do so, he shall be confined in jail not exceeding one year,…”
Deborah MacDougall v. Richard S. Levick (Va. Ct. App. 2015). · cites it 2× “Most significantly, Code § 20-28 provides that, “[i]f any person knowingly perform the ceremony of marriage without lawful license, or officiate in celebrating the rites of marriage without being authorized by law to do so, he shall be confined in jail not exceeding one year,…”
Deborah MacDougall v. Richard S. Levick (Va. Ct. App. 2015). · cites it 2× “Most significantly, Code § 20-28 provides that, “[i]f any person knowingly perform the ceremony of marriage without lawful license, or officiate in celebrating the rites of marriage without being authorized by law to do so, he shall be confined in jail not exceeding one year,…”
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