Online-ordained ministers can, as a practical matter, perform legal marriages in Tennessee, even though a state statute still says they cannot. The question of whether online ordained ministers can marry couples in Tennessee was effectively settled in August 2023, when state prosecutors signed federal court stipulations agreeing they will not prosecute these officiants and will not challenge the validity of the marriages they perform.1GovInfo. USCOURTS-tned-3-24-cv-00247 The written ban remains on the books, which is why the answer takes a paragraph instead of a word.
What the Statute Says
Tennessee Code § 36-3-301 lists who may solemnize a marriage. Religious officiants qualify if they are at least 18, have the care of a congregation, and were ordained through a “considered, deliberate, and responsible act” of a church or religious organization. The statute then adds a flat prohibition on people whose ordination came from an online source.2Justia. Tennessee Code 36-3-301 – Persons Who May Solemnize Marriages
The law doesn’t define “online ordination” precisely, but the target is clear: credentials from organizations like the Universal Life Church or American Marriage Ministries, where you submit your name, click a button, and receive a certificate. The legislature meant to exclude that category. Enforcement is a different question.
Why the Ban Has No Teeth
In 2019, the Universal Life Church Monastery and two of its ministers sued Tennessee officials, arguing the ban violated the First Amendment. A federal judge enjoined enforcement that year, and the case moved through the courts until August 2023, when the remaining Tennessee prosecutors signed stipulations and the lawsuit was dismissed. Those stipulations are what matters to a couple planning a wedding today. The district attorneys agreed to three things:1GovInfo. USCOURTS-tned-3-24-cv-00247
- It has always been their position that § 36-3-301 contains no criminal prosecution mechanism, so no one can be charged for violating it.
- An online-ordained minister who signs the attestation on a marriage certificate is not making a false statement under Tennessee’s criminal code.
- They will not challenge the validity of any marriage performed by a Universal Life Church minister, and they acknowledged that ULC ministers will keep officiating in reliance on these stipulations.
The statute has not been amended or struck down. The words on the page still say online-ordained ministers “may not solemnize the rite of matrimony.” But with prosecutors on record saying they have no mechanism and no intention to enforce that language, the practical risk is very low.
The County Caveat
The stipulations were signed by specific district attorneys who were parties to the lawsuit. A couple marrying in a county whose prosecutor did not sign on is in a slightly less certain position, though the reasoning applies broadly and no Tennessee prosecution of an online-ordained minister has ever been reported. If you want absolute certainty rather than practical safety, pick an officiant from the categories the statute plainly authorizes.
Safer Alternatives If You Want Certainty
Tennessee’s list of authorized officiants under § 36-3-301 is long, and most couples can find someone they know who already qualifies or can qualify quickly.2Justia. Tennessee Code 36-3-301 – Persons Who May Solemnize Marriages The categories include:
- Ministers, pastors, priests, rabbis, and other religious leaders at least 18 who were ordained through a deliberate act of a recognized religious body and have the care of a congregation.
- Current and former judges and chancellors, county mayors, members of county legislative bodies, the governor, speakers of the state House and Senate, certain state legislators, district attorneys general, and municipal mayors and council members.
- Current county clerks and former clerks who held office on or after July 1, 2014.
- Any Tennessee notary public, with no additional registration beyond the existing notary commission (an authority added in April 2021).3Tennessee Secretary of State. Can a Notary Perform Marriages?
- Chaplains officially appointed by the head of an authorized state or local law enforcement agency.
The notary route is the simplest backup. If a friend or family member wants to officiate and you’d rather not rely on an online ordination, they can apply for a notary commission through the Tennessee Secretary of State. The Quaker tradition also gets specific recognition in the statute: a marriage solemnized according to the customs of the Religious Society of Friends is valid even without a designated officiant.2Justia. Tennessee Code 36-3-301 – Persons Who May Solemnize Marriages
What the County Clerk Will and Won’t Check
County clerks have no authority to investigate your officiant’s credentials. When the signed marriage license comes back, the clerk must accept it and presume the marriage is valid.4University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service. Solemnizing a Marriage The clerk cannot demand proof of ordination, ask where the minister was ordained, or refuse to record the marriage based on suspicions about who performed the ceremony.
Tennessee also grandfathered older marriages. Any marriage performed by a minister before July 1, 2019 cannot be invalidated solely because the ordination requirements weren’t met.2Justia. Tennessee Code 36-3-301 – Persons Who May Solemnize Marriages For weddings after that date, the 2023 stipulations are what protects an online-ordained minister’s ceremony from challenge, and they do so strongly, but they are prosecutorial commitments rather than a legislative fix. Keep that distinction in mind when you decide who stands at the front of the room.