Father of the Bride
| Jurisdiction | Utah,United States |
| Citation | Vol. 22 No. 6 Pg. 18 |
| Pages | 18 |
| Publication year | 2009 |
Vol. 22, No. 6, 18. Father of the Bride
Volume 22 No. 6
Nov/Dec 2009
It's funny how life-changing events can start out so innocently. A blind date. Taking the LSAT on a dare. Ordering chicken sushi because you're bored with the same old squishy tuna. My daughter called and we were talking about her upcoming wedding.
Me: Who's going to perform the marriage?
Daughter: Well, we don't really know anybody and we were kind of hoping you would do it.
[All quiet on my end of the line]
Daughter: Dad?
Me: I can't do that. I'm not a minister and so far the Governor hasn't gotten drunk enough to ask me to be a judge. And speaking of the Governor, I'm not one of those, either. Not that I wouldn't be a good one.
Daughter: You can do it on the Internet.
Me: Become the Governor?
Daughter: Become a minister.
Me: Really? I'd rather be Governor; it pays better and I'd get to have my picture taken with Arnold Schwarzenegger. And if things got tough I could just ask Greg Bell what to do. Plus I'd like to be ambassador to Bermuda someday and the Governor's mansion is a nice stepping stone.
Daughter: Dad.
Me: Yeah?
Daughter: You can sign up to be a minister on the Internet and then you can marry people.
Me: Like you and Don?
Daughter: It's Ron.
Me: So it is.
Daughter: Dad, I'm serious. We'll write our own vows, and we'd like you to do the ceremony.
Me: Let me look into it and see if it works.
It works. I think. At least as well as those divinely inspired, tax free, BLM exempt, second amendment, money laundering business trusts that used to form the core of my practice. I really miss those, too. For some reason they were mostly popular with people trying to get dentists to invest in something - I guess the dentists caught on to the usual limited partnership ruse.
Anyway, Utah Code section 30-1-6(1) provides in relevant part as follows:
Utah Code Ann....Marriages may be solemnized by the following persons only: (a) ministers, rabbis, or priests of any religious denomination who are: (i) in regular communion with any religious society; and (ii) 18 years of age or older; (b) Native American spiritual advisors; (c) [Gary Herbert]; (d) [Greg Bell]; (e) mayors of municipalities or county executives; (f) a justice, judge, or commissioner of a court of recorda And it goes on from there but you get the drift of it.
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