Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Scotland) Act 1980

22 Amendment of Marriage (Scotland) Act 1977

(1) In the [1977 c. 15.] Marriage (Scotland) Act 1977—

(a) in section 6(5) (restriction as to date and place of religious marriage), for the words " 13(3)" there shall be substituted the words " 23A ";

(b) in section 8(1) (persons who may solemnise marriages), at the beginning there shall be inserted the words " Subject to section 23A of this Act, ";

(c) in section 13 (preliminaries to solemnisation of religious marriages), subsections (2) and (3), which in so far as they are not inconsistent with the provisions inserted in the said Act of 1977 by paragraph id) below are superseded by those provisions, shall cease to have effect;

(d) after section 23 there shall be inserted the following section—

“23A Validity of registered marriage.

(1) Subject to sections 1 and 2 of, and without prejudice to section 24(1) of, this Act, where the particulars of any marriage at the ceremony in respect of which both parties were present are entered in a register of marriages by or at the behest of an appropriate registrar, the validity of that marriage shall not be questioned, in any legal proceedings whatsoever, on the ground of failure to comply with a requirement or restriction imposed by, under or by virtue of this Act.

(2) In subsection (1) above, " appropriate registrar " means—

(a) in the case of a civil marriage, an authorised registrar; and

(b) in any other case, a district registrar.”.

(2) The said Act of 1977 shall be deemed for all purposes to have had effect as if it had originally been enacted as amended by subsection (1) above.