La. Rev. Stat. § 9:203
This is the official text of La. Rev. Stat. § 9:203, part of Louisiana’s Rev. Stat — part of the compiled statutory law of Louisiana, published by the state as "Rev. Stat." Browse the sections below, each linked to its official government source.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
Officiant; judges and justices of the peace
Official statutory text
A. Judges and justices of the peace may perform marriage ceremonies within the following territorial limits:
(1) A justice of the supreme court within the state;
(2) A judge of a court of appeals within the circuit;
(3) A judge of a district court within the district;
(4) A judge of a family court, juvenile court, parish court, city court, or, in Orleans Parish, a municipal or traffic court, within the parish in which the court is situated; and
(5) A justice of the peace within the parish in which the court of that justice of the peace is situated, and in any parish within the same supreme court district, or in a parish that has no justice of the peace court, except for Orleans Parish.
B. A judge's authority to perform marriage ceremonies continues after he retires.
C. A retired justice of the peace who has served a total of eighteen years in that capacity shall retain his authority to perform marriage ceremonies within the territorial limits authorized in Subsection A of this Section provided he registers to perform such ceremonies as required by R.S. 9:204.
D. Notwithstanding the provisions of Paragraph (A)(5) of this Section, a justice of the peace within any of the parishes of DeSoto, Bossier, Caddo, Bienville, Webster, or Red River may perform marriage ceremonies within any of these parishes.
E.(1) A United States District Court judge or magistrate judge of the Eastern District of Louisiana, Middle District of Louisiana, or Western District of Louisiana may perform marriage ceremonies in this state upon the adoption of a court rule, resolution, or standing order by a majority of the judges sitting en banc authorizing judges to perform such ceremonies.
(2) A judge of a court of the United States whose official duty station includes a municipality having a population in excess of one hundred five thousand but less than one hundred thirty thousand persons according to the latest decennial census may perform marriage ceremonies within his official duty station. The authority granted by this Paragraph shall be effective only from August 1, 2012, through September 1, 2012.
Acts 1987, No. 886, §3, eff. Jan. 1, 1988; Acts 1991, No. 710, §1; Acts 1993, No. 105, §1; Acts 1995, No. 212, §1; Acts 1997, No. 73, §2; Acts 2001, No. 341, §1, eff. June 12, 2001; Acts 2001, No. 1103, §1; Acts 2002, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 60, §1; Acts 2003, No. 255, §1, eff. June 6, 2003; Acts 2004, No. 454, §1, eff. June 24, 2004; Acts 2005, No. 4, §1, eff. May 27, 2005; Acts 2007, No. 114, §1; Acts 2008, No. 675, §2, eff. July 1, 2008; Acts 2008, No. 873, §2, eff. July 9, 2008; Acts 2008, No. 879, §3; Acts 2009, No. 15, §1; Acts 2010, No. 199, §1; Acts 2010, No. 237, §1, eff. June 17, 2010; Acts 2012, No. 184, §1; Acts 2012, No. 286, §1; Acts 2014, No. 794, §1.
(1) A justice of the supreme court within the state;
(2) A judge of a court of appeals within the circuit;
(3) A judge of a district court within the district;
(4) A judge of a family court, juvenile court, parish court, city court, or, in Orleans Parish, a municipal or traffic court, within the parish in which the court is situated; and
(5) A justice of the peace within the parish in which the court of that justice of the peace is situated, and in any parish within the same supreme court district, or in a parish that has no justice of the peace court, except for Orleans Parish.
B. A judge's authority to perform marriage ceremonies continues after he retires.
C. A retired justice of the peace who has served a total of eighteen years in that capacity shall retain his authority to perform marriage ceremonies within the territorial limits authorized in Subsection A of this Section provided he registers to perform such ceremonies as required by R.S. 9:204.
D. Notwithstanding the provisions of Paragraph (A)(5) of this Section, a justice of the peace within any of the parishes of DeSoto, Bossier, Caddo, Bienville, Webster, or Red River may perform marriage ceremonies within any of these parishes.
E.(1) A United States District Court judge or magistrate judge of the Eastern District of Louisiana, Middle District of Louisiana, or Western District of Louisiana may perform marriage ceremonies in this state upon the adoption of a court rule, resolution, or standing order by a majority of the judges sitting en banc authorizing judges to perform such ceremonies.
(2) A judge of a court of the United States whose official duty station includes a municipality having a population in excess of one hundred five thousand but less than one hundred thirty thousand persons according to the latest decennial census may perform marriage ceremonies within his official duty station. The authority granted by this Paragraph shall be effective only from August 1, 2012, through September 1, 2012.
Acts 1987, No. 886, §3, eff. Jan. 1, 1988; Acts 1991, No. 710, §1; Acts 1993, No. 105, §1; Acts 1995, No. 212, §1; Acts 1997, No. 73, §2; Acts 2001, No. 341, §1, eff. June 12, 2001; Acts 2001, No. 1103, §1; Acts 2002, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 60, §1; Acts 2003, No. 255, §1, eff. June 6, 2003; Acts 2004, No. 454, §1, eff. June 24, 2004; Acts 2005, No. 4, §1, eff. May 27, 2005; Acts 2007, No. 114, §1; Acts 2008, No. 675, §2, eff. July 1, 2008; Acts 2008, No. 873, §2, eff. July 9, 2008; Acts 2008, No. 879, §3; Acts 2009, No. 15, §1; Acts 2010, No. 199, §1; Acts 2010, No. 237, §1, eff. June 17, 2010; Acts 2012, No. 184, §1; Acts 2012, No. 286, §1; Acts 2014, No. 794, §1.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in Louisiana?
Find a Louisiana lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.