A Life Celebrant - Lou Szymkow

A Life Celebrant - Lou Szymkow

In short, ‘NO’, it is not legal.

There are a number of concerns here in the description of events you have given.

1. The NOIM must be lodged 1-18 months before the marriage is solemnised unless a Shortening of Time in Notice (SOT) has been granted but a SOT requires the involvement of both parties to the marriage and is only granted by a Prescribed Authority in special circumstances. Clearly, from the description, there was no SOT approval.
2. As the NOIM must be lodged 1-18 months before the marriage is solemnised, it is illegal for the celebrant to fill the NOIM form, hear the vows and give the couple a marriage certificate, all in the same day. The marriage would be declared invalid and the Celebrant open to prosecution.
3. ‘Surprise weddings’ where one of the parties to the marriage is ‘surprised’ in the manner described, are illegal.
4. Consent MUST be active, informed and current and since June 2024, Celebrants must meet privately and individually with parties to a marriage to clarify & ensure that consent. The description of events indicates that was not done.
5. Where a party is ‘forced’ into marriage, the persons involved (other than the victim of course) have committed an offence that car carry a 7-9 years prison sentence.

You and/or your friend can report the matter to the Attorney General at Complain about a marriage celebrant | Attorney-General's Department and to Federal Police as it appears from your description of events, that the marriage is invalid and that various crimes have been committed, even if the marriage is not registered.

A Life Celebrant - Lou Szymkow

If I read that correctly, you lodged a signed and witnessed (completed) Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM) at a Marriage Registry.

A NOIM is lodged with a Celebrant 1-18 months before a marriage is the be solemnised. A NOIM can also be lodged with a Celebrant at a Marriage Registry, and that seems to be what has been done.

The NOIM cannot be revoked  as such, since it is a legal document outlining an intention at the time of signing and once given to a Celebrant (lodged) cannot leave the custody and control of the Celebrant, unless transferred to another Celebrant, until the marriage is solemnised whereupon the NOIM goes to the Marriage Registry with other documents including a signed Official Marriage Certificate and associated Declaration

If you don’t want to proceed with the marriage, you simply allow the NOIM to expire. Nothing needs to be done by you. You simply take no action and it will expire after 18 months.

If you do wish to proceed with a marriage ceremony but wish to use a different Celebrant, you can have the NOIM transferred or can create a new NOIM if there is time. Note also that each lodgement and each transfer can incur fees.transfers

A Life Celebrant - Lou Szymkow

As others have said, YES, it can be done, and most if not all Celebrants will happily assist. I have gladly performed many ceremonies in that way.

On the face of it, the Celebrant just has to make the legal announcement commonly referred to as the Monitum, explaining that it is the Celebrant conducting the ceremony and offering a legal definition of marriage, but can then step back and just keep a close watch and ear on the ceremony. If all legalities are satisfied, the Celerbant just steps back in to sign the marriage Certificates and can step away again.

Don't expect a discount from the Celebrant though as there is actually more work (and stress) involved in checking and rechecking the work of the 'co-celebrant' than if the Celebrant conducted it solo, and of course the Authorised Celebrant carries all the legal responsibilities including accepting your Notice of INtended Marriahe 1-18 months before the marriage ceremony, meeting you each privately and individually to ensure consent and later registering the marriage and so lots to be done before and after the ceremony.