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Date: Thursday, May 16, 2024
Reflecting on Ten Years of Marriage Equality in Oregon, County Clerk Welcomes the Start of a Second Year of Officiating Weddings for Clackamas County Residents
Your guide to getting a marriage license and requesting a wedding ceremony.
Oregon City, OR – County Clerk Catherine McMullen has officiated 120 wedding ceremonies since reinstating the civil service in her office in June 2023. The Recording Division in the Office of the County Clerk offers marriage license appointments throughout the week and wedding ceremony appointments on most Friday afternoons.
“120 weddings in the first year adds up to a lot of happy couples, a lot of proud families, and a lot of beautiful moments on Friday afternoons,” Clerk McMullen reflected. “Same sex-marriage was legalized here in Oregon just 10 years ago, and I’ve been conducting civil ceremonies for all couples for only a year in my role as a county clerk. That is only an instant in time when we look at the arc of justice in our state. “
Same-sex marriage was legalized in Oregon on May 19, 2014, after US District Court Judge McShane ruled that the state’s 2004 constitutional amendment banning such marriages was unconstitutional in relation to the Equal Protection Clause of the Federal Constitution. Later, on June 26, 2015 the Federal Supreme Court in Obergefell v. Hodges held that the Fourteenth Amendment requires states to license and recognize same-sex marriage.
Clerk McMullen has officiated weddings for couples from many different cultural backgrounds, ages, sexualities, languages, and lived stories. She offers a printed template for vows and couples can fill it out; adding vows or editing it so that it works for them. One couple added the Jewish ceremony of the breaking of the glass, while another shared the seven sacred vows of a Hindu marriage. The Clerk has married couples who have only recently met, to couples who have been together for many decades. “Each wedding ceremony is important and marks a significant transition in that couple’s journey together,” McMullen stated.
How to get a marriage license in Clackamas County
If you are going to get married in Oregon, you are required to get a marriage license first. Couples can fill out the marriage application online and then schedule an appointment with the Recording Division to get the marriage license. Marriage licenses are effective starting three days after being issued and are good for 60 days for use anywhere in Oregon. You can learn more, fill out the application and make the appointment online at https://www.clackamas.us/how-to-get-a-marriage-license.
Making a wedding ceremony appointment with the County Clerk
The Clerk has wedding ceremony appointments available most Friday afternoons at the Recording office. Couples wishing to have the County Clerk officiate their wedding ceremony should call the Recording Division at 503-655-8551 to schedule. A marriage license can also be issued to the couple on the same day of the ceremony if not already issued. Wedding ceremonies last about 15 minutes and the space can accommodate ten guests, including two required witnesses. Couples should plan to be at the Recording office for up to an hour. Wedding ceremonies are conducted in English and staff can
provide interpretation in Spanish, Mandarin, Russian, and Vietnamese. Video remote interpretation services are also available.
Costs are affordable and couples can complete the Marriage Application online in advance of either the marriage license or wedding ceremony appointments and must bring photo identification for both members of the couple and the two witnesses. Birth certificates should also be brought for the members of the couple. Marriage licenses are $60, $15 for a waiver of the 3-day waiting period, wedding ceremonies by the Clerk are $117, and certified copies of the marriage license upon completion are $7.75 for the first and $4 for each additional certified copy. Couples can successfully get married for less than $200.
Contact the Recording Division
Recording Division, Office of the County Clerk
Phone: 503-655-8551
Email: recording@clackamas.us
Address: 1710 Red Soils Ct. Suite 110, Oregon City OR 97045
Office Hours: Monday – Friday 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Contacts: Catherine McMullen, County Clerk and Tiffany Staten, Recording Manager | countyclerk@clackamas.us or 503-655-8551