Question:
If a Texas minor gets married in another state where underage marriage is allowed, does that make them emancipated under Texas law?
Answer:
No. A minor from Texas who marries in another state does not gain adult status in Texas unless that marriage is also valid under Texas law. In Broussard v. Arnel, a fifteen-year-old left Texas to marry in Missouri, a state where such marriage was legal with parental consent. But Texas refused to recognize the marriage because it violated its own laws. Texas requires a court order to remove the disabilities of minority before such a young person can legally marry. Without that order, the marriage is void in Texas. The court stood firm—Texas won’t bend to another state’s rules if they break Texas public policy.