When is a wedding not a marriage? - A Briefing Paper for the Law Commission - Key Messages, Findings and Reform Proposals

Sep 24, 2026

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A law-commission briefing paper examines why some weddings are conducted outside the legal framework and evaluates the potential effects of the Law Commission’s 2020 provisional proposals for reform. Drawing on Nuffield Foundation–funded empirical research, the study analyses non-legally binding ceremonies, participants’ beliefs and preferences, and the practical relationship between informal ceremonies and accompanying legal weddings. Findings address recognition, procedure complexity, identity safeguards, notice arrangements, costs, and wider social impact, and conclude with implications for future work.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLetters

FormatPDF

Pages162

Reading Time57 min

AccessFree to download

Contents

Acknowledgements

Key Messages

Introduction

Preliminaries

Officiants

The Wedding Ceremony

Location

Validity

Costs and Impact

Conclusion

When is a wedding not a marriage? Exploring non-legally binding ceremonies A Briefing Paper for the Law Commission Prof Rebecca Probert Dr Rajnaara Akhtar Sharon Blake with Tania Barton and Vishal Vora December 2021 About the authors Professor Rebecca Probert is Professor of Law at the University of Exeter and the specialist advisor to the Law Commission’s Weddings Project. Dr Rajnaara Akhtar is an Assistant Professor at Warwick Law School and the Principal Investigator on this project. Sharon Blake is an experienced qualitative researcher and Honorary Associate Research Fellow at University of Exeter Medical School. She worked on this project as a Research Associate through Unitemps at Warwick Law School. About this briefing paper This briefing paper presents the findings from a Nuffield-funded project exploring non-legally binding weddings ceremonies. It analyses the provisional proposals for reform of weddings law put forward by the Law Commission in 2020 to ascertain what their impact on such ceremonies might be. It will be followed by a full report of our findings. Contents Acknowledgements 4 Key Messages 5 Introduction 9 Preliminaries 25 Officiants 43 The Wedding Ceremony 75 Location 102 Validity 127 Costs and Impact 145 Conclusion 154 Acknowledgements We would like to thank the individuals who kindly contributed their wedding experiences for this study and the organisations who helped support our participant recruitment. We would also like to thank members of the study advisory group for their guidance throughout the project. Finally, we are grateful to the Nuffield Foundation for recognising the importance of this work and funding this research project. The Nuffield Foundation is an independent charitable trust with a mission to advance social well-being. It funds research that informs social policy, primarily in Education, Welfare, and Justice. It also funds student programmes that provide opportunities for young people to develop skills in quantitative and scientific methods. The Nuffield Foundation is the founder and co-funder of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics, the Ada Lovelace Institute and the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory. The Foundation has funded this project, but the views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily the Foundation. [Visit](Visit www.nuffieldfoundation.org)[ www.nuffieldfoundation.org](Visit www.nuffieldfoundation.org). Key Messages Overview In 2020 the Law Commission published a consultation paper setting out provisional proposals for reform of the law governing weddings. In this briefing paper we draw on empirical research findings from a study funded by the Nuffield Foundation to analyse the potential impact of those proposals. Our study investigated why ceremonies are being conducted outside the legal framework, the nature of such ceremonies, and the beliefs, practices, and preferences of those involved. Using group and individual interviews and focus groups , it engaged 170 participants who had conducted or had had a non-legally binding wedding ceremony. These ceremonies took a range of different forms, reflecting the varying faiths, beliefs , and choices of participants. 67 of the 83 non-legally binding wedding ceremonies reported by interviewees were accompanied by a legal wedding, providing an insight into how the current processes work in practice. Participants regarded the current law as outdated and in need of reform to reflect changes in society including, though by no means limited to, religious and cultural diversity. Key issues here were the perceived lack of recognition of ‘non-Christian’ ceremonies, the nonrecognition of ceremonies conducted by Humanist and independent celebrants, and the limited options for interfaith weddings. Many also considered the legal processes for getting married to be complex and uncertain, with unexpected barriers. Preliminaries Participants recognised the importa

FAQs

What is the purpose of this briefing paper?

It presents research findings on non-legally binding wedding ceremonies and analyses how the Law Commission’s 2020 provisional proposals might affect such ceremonies.

How was the research conducted and how many participants were involved?

The study used group and individual interviews and focus groups, engaging 170 participants who had conducted or experienced a non-legally binding wedding ceremony.

What concerns did participants raise about the current law?

Participants described the law as outdated, citing limited recognition for non-Christian ceremonies, issues with ceremonies by Humanist or independent celebrants, limited options for interfaith weddings, and legal processes that can be complex and uncertain.

Sep 24, 2026

Upload by Liam