Marriage Lawsuit in the State of Florida Case Study

Main Issue

The trial of Brian and Jennifer against the State of Florida is based on a lawsuit in relation to the existing law prohibiting marriage between short spouses for preserving the birth rate of tall children.

Relevant Legal Concepts

When considering this case from the position of general constitutional law, the young people have an opportunity to marry. As Schubert and Samaha note, no one should violate “personal decisions relating to marriage, procreation, contraception, family relationships, child rearing, and education” (30). At the same time, the state legislation predetermines legal acts at the local level, which complicates the process of challenging.

Relevant Case Law

The case United States v. Brown mentioned by Schubert and Samaha confirms that people’s “rights include personal intimacies relating to the family, marriage, motherhood, procreation, and child rearing” (256). In accordance with the Fourth Amendment cited by the authors, “no state shall… deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws” (Schubert and Samaha 256).

Rationale

The current legislation cannot forbid Brian and Jennifer to marry because of their physiological characteristics, in particular, short stature. They both are capable and do not have any physical or mental deviations. The conscious choice of each of the young people should be respected by the law, and the statement about the necessity of prohibiting marriage between short people is not a justification for the prohibition of marriage.

Ruling

The state of Florida should not forbid Brian and Jennifer to marry.

Work Cited

Schubert, Frank A., and Joel Samaha. Introduction to Law and the Legal System and Criminal Procedure. Cengage Learning, 2017.