![]() The couple was married by a ULC minister in 1986 but split months later, and one spouse requested a judge void the marriage because, they claimed, the officiant was illegitimate. In 1989, the Appellate Division of the state Supreme Court's Second Department heard the Ranieri v. And there are two main cases to know about: Ranieri and Oswald. Since lawmakers are unlikely to wade into that kind of debate without good reason, interpretation of the law has largely fallen on courts. "Which is a very tough question because then you're making subjective determinations about personal beliefs and New York is very loath to get into religious questions like that." "For New York to decide whether or not (an online ordination) is valid, you have to get into the question of, 'Is Universal Life Church a religion?'" Kiosse said. State law defines a clergy member or minister as someone "who has been officially ordained and granted authority to perform marriage ceremonies from a governing church body," or someone "who is not authorized by a governing body but who has been chosen by a spiritual group to preside over their spiritual affairs." The average person is not.īut what if an average person - like a best friend or an aunt - gets ordained online? Are they now a clergy person? Who can and cannot legally perform marriage ceremonies in New York is laid out in Section 11 of the state Domestic Relations law: Governors, mayors, state legislators, judges and clergy members, among others, are named as legal officiants. Kiosse, who is the president of the Capital District Women's Bar Association and a partner at the Albany firm Tabak & Kiosse. To get to the bottom of things, the Times Union spoke to two local attorneys who specialize in divorce and family law: Eric Tepper, who is the chair of the State Bar Association's Family Law Section and a partner at the Glenville firm Gordon, Tepper & DeCoursey, and Leyla A. Becoming ordained is free and can be done entirely online," ULC's website states. "Unlike traditional religious organizations, we don't require years of training or expensive courses to become a member of the clergy. There are several ways to get ordained online but the most popular is the Universal Life Church, a non-denominational religious organization founded in 1962 under the doctrine, "Do that which is right." The church says it has ordained 20 million people in nearly six decades, most of whom signed up in order to be a wedding officiant. ![]()
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