Lawmakers will continue to push for raising the minimum age for marriage in Maryland after legislation failed for the third year in a row.

Tagged with: child marriage del. vanessa atterbeary marriage age Maryland General Assembly women's law center

Both chambers of the Maryland General Assembly have passed legislation eliminating exceptions to state law allowing 15-year-olds to marry, but differences over whether the new minimum age should be 16 or 17 mean the cross-filed bills are likely headed for a conference ...

Tagged with: child marriage marriage age Maryland General Assembly

The legislative debate over the minimum age for marriage in Maryland continues as cross-filed bills banning marriage for anyone younger than 18 were both amended in committee before moving forward in their respective chambers. The House Judiciary Committee adopted a ...

Tagged with: child marriage marriage age Maryland General Assembly

Advocacy groups expressed support Thursday for the concept of a bill providing a path to emancipation for 16- and 17-year-olds but called for a more in-depth discussion before moving forward. Del. Vanessa Atterbeary, D-Howard, introduced House Bill 1304 to assuage ...

Tagged with: child marriage del. vanessa atterbeary house judiciary committee

Legislation creating a path to emancipation for minors in Maryland has been introduced in the General Assembly, with sponsors hoping it will address some concerns raised about pending legislation to ban marriage for individuals younger than 18. House Bill 1304, ...

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ANNAPOLIS — Advocates returned to the State House on Thursday to renew their push to change a law allowing individuals as young as 15 to be married in Maryland, but civil and women’s rights groups echoed objections from the 2017 ...

Tagged with: child marriage del. vanessa atterbeary human trafficking marriage age

Advocates for eliminating laws that allow children to be married as young as 12 met in Washington D.C. Wednesday to discuss child marriage, an issue that has gained traction in the Maryland General Assembly in recent years. One of the ...

Tagged with: child marriage del. vanessa atterbeary tahirih justice center

Maryland's marriage laws have several "loopholes" which can make forced or coerced child marriage more likely, according to a new report from the Tahirih Justice Center.

Tagged with: child marriage marriage marriage age tahirih justice center

Legislation to allow courts to strip rights from a parent who conceived a child through non-consensual intercourse failed in the General Assembly again this year, as did a push to ban marriage for anyone younger than 18. Cross-filed bills which ...

Tagged with: child marriage family law General Assembly parental rights

A Howard County delegate’s crusade to end child marriage in Maryland has again faced opposition this session from legislators who say they understand the importance of stopping forced marriages but do not want to deny “legitimate couples” access to the ...

Tagged with: 2017 Maryland General Assembly child marriage