Wis. Stat. 765.02 sets forth the qualifications for individuals seeking to tie the knot.
While marrying young has become a less common occurrence, it has not become
extinct (See https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/visualizations/time-series/demo/families-and-households/ms-2.pdf; the average age for first marriage in the
United States has been increasing over the past few decades. As of 2024, the average
age for men is around 31.1 years, and for women, it’s approximately 29.2 years)

By default, legal adults, age 18 and up are allowed to marry. “Romeo and Juliet” type
marriages (where a person is between the ages of 16 and 18 years old) require the
written consent of a person’s parent, guardian or custodian. Importantly, polygamy is not
formally recognized in Wisconsin law, so the courts would invalidate any marriage while
a party has a husband or wife living and no divorce was finalized.

Were you aware of the less common marriage scenarios?
Wis. Stat 765.03(1) writes “No marriage shall be contracted… between persons who are
nearer of kin than 2nd cousins except that marriage may be contracted between first
cousins where the female has attained the age of 55 years or where either party, at the
time of application for a marriage license, submits an affidavit signed by a physician
stating that either party is permanently sterile.”

No Judgment. Yes, 2nd cousins (your great-grandparent’s relative/ the child of your
parent’s first cousin) can legally become married. Even less common, a marriage can
be had between first cousins so long as the woman is age 55 or older. By far the rarest
type of marriage can be had between first cousins, so long as one party is medically
confirmed as being permanently sterile.

Circle back to next week’s blog to learn more about family law in Wisconsin.