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ORIGINALLY
ADOPTED: September 30,1992 |
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DATE
AMENDED: ________________ |
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SUBJECT:
MARRIAGE |
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RESOLUTION
NUMBER: 056-92 |
MARRIAGE ORDINANCE
TRIBAL CODE § 3.12
(a)
AUTHORITY AND PURPOSE: The purpose of this Ordinance is to
grant to the Tribal Court the authority to perform marriages.
(b) DEFINITIONS: For purposes of this Ordinance, the following
definitions shall apply:
(1) "Common
Law Marriage" shall mean a relationship between two consenting
adults that is recognized in the Grand Ronde community as a family.
(2) "Court Clerk" or "Clerk" shall mean the Clerk
of the Tribal Court.
(3) "Judge" or "Tribal Judge" shall mean any Judge
of the Tribal Court.
(4) "Premarital Agreement" shall mean an agreement between
fiancees about property ownership made so as to take effect upon marriage.
(5) "Reservation" shall mean all lands held in trust for
the Tribe or its members by the United States.
(6) "Tribal Court" or "Court" shall mean the Tribal
Court of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon.
(7) "Tribe" shall mean the Confederated Tribes of the Grand
Ronde Community of Oregon.
(c) MARRIAGE: CONSENT/CEREMONY: Marriage is a consent relationship
that becomes a civil contract if entered into by two people capable
of making the contract. Consent alone does not constitute a marriage.
A conventional marriage relies upon the issuance of a license, a ceremony
and the issuance of a marriage certificate as authorized by this Ordinance.
(d) CAPACITY TO CONSENT: Any single person, 18 years of
age who is an enrolled Tribal Member, a resident of the Tribe's reservation,
or who consents to the jurisdiction of the Tribal Court may consent
to and consummate a marriage.
(e) MARRIAGE LICENSE :
(1)
All persons wishing to be married by the Judge shall obtain a license
from the Clerk. The license shall contain the following information
for each person: (a) full legal name; (b) place of residence; (c)
age, (d) sex, (e) Tribal affiliation (if any); (f) date of birth;
(g) whether previously married, and if so, how marriage ended (i.e.,
dissolution, death, annulment, etc.). No license may be issued unless
both parties are capable of consenting to and consummating the marriage
as provided herein.
(2) For purposes of obtaining all facts needed or required, the Clerk
at the time of application, may question the applicants under oath.
The information received shall be reduced to writing and sworn to
by each applicant under penalty of perjury, if necessary. The Clerk
may request any additional documentation as needed for verification
of facts.
(3) The Judge shall prescribe the application forms for the license
and the marriage certificate as required by this Ordinance within
30 days from the date of adoption by the Tribal Council.
(f) HEALTH INFORMATION: The Tribe's Community Health Representative
shall provide the Clerk with a list of centers available for the testing
and treatment of genetic defects and diseases. The Clerk shall provide
a copy of this information to all persons applying for a marriage license.
No medical examination or laboratory tests shall be required.
(g) EXPIRATION OF LICENSE: The marriage license shall not
be valid for 24 hours after it has been issued and expires 90 days after
it is issued. The day and time of issuance and the date of expiration
shall be clearly noted on the face of the license.
(h) AUTHORIZATION TO PERFORM MARRIAGES: Any Judge of the
Tribal Court shall have the authority to perform a marriage ceremony
on the Tribe's reservation.
(i) PREMARITAL AGREEMENTS: Fiancees may enter into premarital
agreements. The agreements must be in writing and may only be changed
after the marriage by written amendment. The agreements may involve
any property of the parties but may not adversely affect child support.
Agreements are enforceable without consideration.
(j) MARRIAGE CEREMONY: The ceremony need not take any
particular form, but the fiancee's must declare, in the presence of
the Judge performing the ceremony, that they receive each other as husband
and wife. Prior to the ceremony, the Judge shall obtain the license
and determine the fiancees' to be the persons named on the license.
For that purpose, the Judge may administer oaths and examine the fiancees'
or require documentary proof that they are in fact the persons named
on the license.
(k) COMPLETION OF LICENSE/CERTIFICATE OF MARRIAGE:
(1) After
the ceremony, the Judge shall sign and endorse the license with a
statement which shall include: (1) time and place of the ceremony;
(2) names and places of residence of one or more witnesses; and (3)
name, address, and title of the Judge performing the ceremony.
(2) The Judge shall execute a Marriage Certificate, which shall certify
the spouses have entered into marriage. The Clerk shall combine the
license and certificate into one form and file it with the County
Recorder of the County of residency of the spouses within ten (10)
days of the ceremony.
(l) VOID MARRIAGE: Any marriage attempted between first cousins
or persons of nearer kin, except when the first cousins are by adoption
only, is prohibited and void.
(m) RECOGNITION OF COMMON LAW MARRIAGES: For a period of
one (1) year from the date this Ordinance is adopted, the Court shall
recognize and certify common law marriages, provided all of the following
requirements are met:
(1) They
must have been known as a family, with children resulting from the
relationship;
(2) They must sign an affidavit, witnessed by not less than two (2)
individuals outside their immediate families, attesting to: (a) their
common law status, and (b) the month and year they began the relationship.
This affidavit must be filed with the Clerk with the appropriate Certificate
fee.
(n)
FEES:
The Court shall establish fees for obtaining a license and for performing
ceremonies.
I certify this to be a true copy of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand
Ronde Community of Oregon Marriage Ordinance.
___________________________
Tribal Council Secretary
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