California has officially banned child marriage after Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation requiring people to be at least 18 to marry in the state.
The new law, Assembly Bill 1267, takes effect on January 1, 2027, and removes provisions that previously allowed minors to marry with parental consent and judicial approval. California had been one of the few states without a statutory minimum marriage age. Newsom described the measure as a “long overdue” step to protect minors.
He signed the legislation alongside Courtney Stodden, a former child bride and prominent advocate for ending child marriage in the United States. Stodden’s parents allowed her to marry actor Doug Hutchison when she was 16. Stodden welcomed the law and said she would continue campaigning for similar protections across the country.
California is now the 18th US state to enact a complete ban on child marriage, according to Unchained At Last. The advocacy group says child marriage remains legal in 32 states, although the rules and exceptions vary between jurisdictions. The group estimates that nearly 315,000 children were legally married in the United States between 2000 and 2021, including children as young as 10. Most were girls married to adult men.
Survivors have played a major role in campaigns to change state marriage laws. Brittany Bee, who was married at 17 to escape an abusive home, told the BBC that she later experienced alleged abuse from her adult husband.
“I was just going from one prison to another,” Bee said.
The previous California system allowed minors to marry with parental consent and a judge’s approval. Advocates also highlighted the difficulties minors could face when attempting to leave such marriages, including limited legal and financial independence.
Supporters of the new law argue that setting the minimum marriage age at 18 without exceptions will close those gaps and provide greater protection for minors. California’s action leaves 32 states where child marriage remains legally possible under varying circumstances, according to Unchained At Last.
