Oregon Legal Research Blog
Some stories just catch your eye – from Justia Verdict (via Law in the News):
“Can Laypersons Ordained Online as Universal Life Church Ministers, or the Like, Officiate at Weddings? In Some States, the Answer Is No,” by Professor Joanna L. Grossman.
“In the second of a two-part series of columns raising questions about the legal effect of online ordination, Justia columnist and Hofstra law professor Joanna Grossman discusses whether persons who are ordained only by an online ministry, with no prerequisites for ordination but the payment of a fee, can legally perform marriages. Such online ministries include the Pastafarians (who belong to the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster), the Church of Body Modification, the Universal Life Church, and others. Grossman points out that in some states, such ordinations mean nothing, and thus, marriages performed by such “ministers” will not be valid….” [Link to full article.]
Other eye-catching legal news links from Lewis & Clark’s Law in the News.
(If you’re wondering if your own marriage ceremony was lawfully performed, you might also want to check the Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS))