Legal Definitions - Lyndhurst's Act

Lyndhurst's Act, also known as Lord Lyndhurst's Act or the Marriage Act of 1835, was an important English law. Its main purpose was to establish that marriages between individuals who were closely related by blood or marriage (referred to as "degrees of kinship") were legally invalid from the start. This meant that such marriages were considered null and void, as if they had never legally occurred, rather than merely being "voidable" (which meant they could be challenged and annulled by a court).

Here are some examples to illustrate Lyndhurst's Act:

• Imagine a scenario in England after 1835 where a brother, Thomas, and his biological sister, Eleanor, attempted to marry each other. Under Lyndhurst's Act, their marriage would be immediately considered null and void. This means that, legally, their union would not be recognized as a valid marriage because it falls within the prohibited degrees of kinship explicitly targeted by the Act.

• Consider Aunt Martha and her nephew, George, living in England in the late 19th century. If they were to go through a marriage ceremony, Lyndhurst's Act would render their marriage null and void. The law specifically prohibited marriages between an aunt and her nephew, treating such a union as if it never legally existed due to the close familial relationship.

• Before Lyndhurst's Act, a marriage between a man and his deceased wife's sister might have been considered "voidable." This meant it was technically valid unless someone (like a family member or the church) challenged it in court and had it annulled. However, after the Act, such a marriage would automatically be deemed null and void. This change meant that no legal challenge was needed; the marriage simply held no legal standing from its inception, illustrating how the Act solidified the legal invalidity of certain kinship marriages without the need for a court order.