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Family Law: Topic 5Civil Marriage
A civil marriage is a marriage in terms of the Marriage Act or the Civil Union Act.
Traditionally, marriage is defined as a legally recognised voluntary union for life between a
man and a woman, excluding all others.
However, the Civil Union Act shifts this definition to two people in order to accommodate
same-sex couples.
Marriage is based in Roman-Dutch common law, many of the traditional laws are still in
practice today such as support and cohabitation.
Some rules have also been abolished or changed and are now regulated by law.
It is more accurate to use the term civil marriage than common law marriage.
A civil marriage is one that is not done in terms of customary or religious practices.
REQUIREMENTS FOR A CIVIL MARRIAGE
1. Capacity
Spouses must have the absolute and relative capacity to marry one another.
Absolute Capacity – capacity to marry
ᵒ This is the legal status and capacity to perform juristic acts.
ᵒ A marriage is only valid if both parties are able to understand the legal nature and
consequences of the act.
ᵒ Peoples capacity to marry may be restricted on other grounds such as age or an
existing marriage.
1) Mental illness restricts people from understanding the legal nature and
consequences of their actions. Often the mentally ill are motivated to act based
on delusions. Therefore, a marriage concluded by a mentally ill person is void.
2) Age is also a factor that restricts one’s capacity to marry. If a minor below the
age of puberty (12 girls or 14 boys) concludes a marriage it is void. According to
the Marriage Act, minors over the age of puberty can marry with the consent of
their guardians. Minor boys and girls below 15 require the consent of the Minister
of Home Affairs. Minors cannot conclude civil marriages according to the Civil
Union Act.
3) Those who are insolvent or have been appointed a curator in the case of physical
incapacity are allowed to marry. Those who are severely intoxicated do not
understand the legal nature and consequences of their actions and cannot
validly marry. The onus is on the party claiming incapacity to prove it.
4) Those who are already civilly married are unable to conclude another civil
marriage. Spouses who are already married according to customary law
(monogamously) may conclude a civil marriage with their customary law spouse
but may not conclude a civil marriage with anyone else. Civil marriage to more
than one person is illegal and thus a crime.
Relative Capacity – capacity to marry each other
ᵒ This is the capacity to specifically marry each other, meaning you have full capacity
to marry but that doesn’t necessarily mean you can marry each other.
, ᵒ Some people are related to each other and therefore cannot marry.
Prohibited degrees of relationship: Those who are too closely related are
prohibited from marrying.
ᵒ This is based on relationships of consanguinity (blood) and relationships of affinity
(through marriage) as well as direct and collateral relationships.
ᵒ Those related in a direct line are descendants or ascendants of one another.
ᵒ Collaterals are those who have common ancestors but are not related in the direct
line such as siblings, aunts or cousins.
ᵒ We look at the degrees of relationship between collaterals and the common
ancestor to determine whether or not two collaterals can marry.
ᵒ We count the steps up to the common ancestor from one collateral and then add
the number of steps from the common ancestor to the other collateral in question.
ᵒ The total number of steps is the “degree” of the relationship between two
collaterals.
ᵒ Relationships of affinity can be in the direct line or collateral. One is not legally
related to the blood relative of a spouse.
ᵒ Marriages cause people to become related to other people but not by blood.
Prohibited degrees of blood relationship:
ᵒ It is forbidden to marry someone to whom you are related to by blood in the direct
line.
ᵒ One may marry a collateral blood relative if there are four or more degrees of
relationship between them. (Siblings = 2 degrees, aunts = 3 degrees, cousins = 4
degrees). This will also apply to half-blood relatives.
Prohibited degrees of relationship by marriage:
ᵒ It is forbidden to marry someone to whom one’s spouse is related by blood in the
direct line, even if the marriage is ended.
ᵒ However, there is no prohibition on marrying the collaterals of a former spouse-
meaning you can marry your spouses’ brother if they also not married.
Adopted children
ᵒ Children who are adopted cannot marry any of their biological family in the same
sense as non-adopted children.
ᵒ Furthermore, they cannot marry their adopted parents. There is nothing said of the
rest of the adoptive family.
ᵒ An adopted child may marry anyone in his or her adoptive family apart from the
adoptive parents.
Opposite and Same-Sex Marriages
ᵒ Common law dictates that only opposite sex couples could marry.
ᵒ In the Fourie case this was ruled unconstitutional and now civil marriages can be
concluded by same-sex couples.
ᵒ The Civil Union Act was created to give effect to this decision rather than amending
the Marriage Act.
ᵒ Therefore, only opposite-sex couples can marry in terms of the Marriage Act.
2. Consensus: Voluntary Informed Consent
The basis of a civil marriage is that it is a voluntary union between two people.
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