Is Plural Marriage Legal in Australia
This subsection of Christianity is known for its historically atypical attitude toward polygamy. In the United States, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, based in Utah, practiced polygamy from 1847 to 1890, which it called “plural marriage.” The U.S. government declared polygamy illegal in 1862, mostly in response to the LDS Church. The church, recognizing that support for polygamy prevented the state of Utah, banned the practice in 1890, and the church`s founder, Joseph Smith, disavowed the practice in 1904. Some small Mormon groups that have split from the LDS Church still practice polygamy, as do some members of society as a whole, but these unions are not legally registered or recognized. Australian law recognizes both marriages and common-law relationships. Although bigamy is a criminal offence (under section 94 of the Marriage Act 1961), having several simultaneous common-law relationships is not a criminal offence. As mentioned in the various media reports on this topic, the polygamous “Islamic marriages” described are not legal marriages, but informal religious unions. Such “marriages” would not be recognized as legal marriages under Australian law, but the relationships between the different partners may be recognized as de facto relationships. If you are legally married to a person (or persons) in another country, you cannot legally marry another spouse in Australia. In most cases, overseas marriages are recognised in Australia. Until the adoption of the Marriage (Definition and Freedom of Religion) Act in 2017 (Cth), it was defined as the union of a man and a woman, to the exclusion of any other person voluntarily concluded for life. The Relationship Register Act 2010 (NSW) states that you can only be in a common-law relationship with one person at any given time.
It is illegal to register multiple relationships at the same time. If you`ve already registered a relationship, you`ll need to revoke that relationship before you can register a new relationship. Although polygamy is illegal, it is perfectly legal to be polyamorous and to be in a relationship with several people at once, as long as you do not try to marry more than one of them. Because Australian law recognizes both marriages and common-law relationships, you can de facto establish relationships with multiple partners. After their divorce, Mr. Gazel returned to Iran, where he married another woman in 2011. Ms. Ghazel asked the Australian Family Court to recognize her Iranian marriage.
The plenary also accepted that under Article 88D(2)(a), they could not deny validity because neither party was married to another person at the time of their marriage. The well-being of children from polygamous relationships is also highlighted by opponents who argue that these children experience psychological hardship and damage due to isolation, stigma, a messy mix of adult characters, and a lack of connection to a single devoted family. They also point to evidence of sexual abuse, early marriage, and marriage between close relatives, as documented in Mormon communities in the United States. In 2008, then-Australian Attorney General Robert McClelland said: “There is absolutely no way the government will recognise polygamous relationships. They are illegal and will remain so. Under Australian law, marriage is defined as the union of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others. Polygamous marriage necessarily violates this definition. [8] (Subsequently, the Marriage (Definition and Religious Freedoms) (Amendment) Act 2017 changed the legal definition from “union of one man and one woman” to “union of two persons.”) Former Supreme Court Justice Michael Kirby said in 2012: “Human relationships are complicated, but I would respectfully say these are problems for the future. [9] [10] However, marriage abroad is not recognized if: Unlike other countries that have laws prohibiting adultery or illegal cohabitation, Australia has no such laws and therefore adultery is technically legal in Australia. Polygamy is illegal in most states in the United States. Utah recently downgraded polygamy from a third-degree felony to a misdemeanor on May 13, 2020.
It is very difficult for polygamists to be prosecuted because they usually only apply for marriage licenses for their first marriage. Other marriages are celebrated in secret ceremonies. By recognizing multiple relationships, social security law recognizes the existence of de facto legal relationships involving more than two persons at a time. The application of the law and the payment of benefits to certain persons living in such relationships is intended to ensure that the situation of claimants is accurately assessed, as well as that of single persons and persons in couples. As a spokesperson for the Department of Social Services explained in one of the media reports: “Clients with multiple partners are assessed under Australian law in the same way as any other person. There are no additional payments for multiple partners. The word “polygamy” is Ancient Greek for “married with many” or “often married” and refers to a situation in which a person has more than one simultaneous marriage. Polygamy in Australia is illegal. Polygamy is legal in many countries in Africa, Asia and the Middle East and usually affects more than one woman. Polygamy is also common in some religious groups in other countries, such as Mormons in the United States.