Age of Consent

Important Definitions When Speaking of Children's Rights

3/16/2017

The following are definitions according to United States Law

Such words or terms as "age of consent", "consent", "minor", "age of majority", and "adult" differ yet have similarities depending in what country, even what county one is living. Convoluted meaning and understanding leads to violations of children's rights and high number of child marriages around the world.
"Personhood" is a term that differs around the world in regards to children. *An interesting FYI, in 2014, an orangutan was granted personhood. So have other animals/primates.
We can and must do better by our children.

*Personhood - A state of being a person

A person is a being that has certain capabilities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness, self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of property or legal responsibilities.
legal-definition.com

*In 2014, in Argentina, an orangutan was granted personhood. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2014/12/22/orangutan-granted-rights-of-personhood-in-argentina/?utm_term=.d32cff7988d5

Chimp acts human until she is released back to the wild. https://www.theatlantic.com/video/index/571318/lucy-chimp/?utm_source=fbb

Baby/Infant

Baby, infant, child, innocent, juvenille, little one, minor, nursling, one who has not yet come of age, one who has not reached majority, person under the age of majority, person under age of (18) eighteen years of age, person who is not of full of age, toddler, tot, young person, youngster, youth.
legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com

Child

1.) A child is a person's offspring
2.) A person 14 years and younger
legal-dictionary.freedictionary.com/child

Minor

Anyone younger than 18. (Mainly preteen aged to 18 years old.)

Age of Majority (Adult)

The age of majority is the age at which a person, formerly a minor or an infant is recognized by law as being an adult capable of managing his/her own affairs and responsibilities for any legal obligations created by his or her actions.

Legal-dictionary.com

Age of Consent

Consent- A concurrence of wills.
Varying throughout the world. There is not standard age of consent. Age of consent, especially age of sexual consent is many years in some cases more than five years lower than the age of majority (the age where adulthood starts, that being the age where one is legally responsible for his or her own actions). Not only does the age of consent vary throughout the world, the age of consent also varies throughout the United States, on the Federal, State, and county levels.

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Question- Can a child enter into contract?

3/15/2017

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An excerpt from an article written by Richard Stim, Attorney.

Minors Have No Capacity to Contract
Minors (those under the age of 18, in most states) lack the capacity to make a contract. So a minor who signs a contract can either honor the deal or void the contract. There are a few exceptions, however. For example, in most states, a minor cannot void a contract for necessities like food, clothing, and lodging. Also, a minor can void a contract for lack of capacity only while still under the age of majority. In most states, if a minor turns 18 and hasn't done anything to void the contract, then the contract can no longer be voided. (1.) For further clarifications concerning contracting with minors please see the footnotes. (2.), (3.)

A contradictory view point

According to the website on contractual law named https://contract-law.laws.com/consideration/minors

Minors have limited ability to enter into a contract agreement. A minor in a contract law case is anyone under the age of eighteen. There are several circumstances under which a person below the age of eighteen may have the full legal capacity to enter into a contract. If a person is married while under eighteen years of age, they usually are held to the full capability to enter into contracts, although this is determined on a State by State basis.
Emancipation may also cause an individual to cease to be considered a minor. Emancipation is a legal process which takes place when an individual who has not yet reached the normal age of majority can be declared to no longer be a minor if they are paying their own bills, supplying their own place of residence, and are no longer reliant upon their parent or legal guardian in any way.
A minor who has been emancipated has all the contractual rights and obligations of a person who has reached the age of majority. Unless the minor has been emancipated, they have distinct contractual rights.

That clarifies the matter doesn't it?

So while a minor (anyone below the age of eighteen (18) years of age can enter into a contract does this rectify the issue of whether a child can give consent? Is there not levels of consent in regards to contracts? How is it that a minor can be married, a minor or child can be emancipated, and we are still not clear on a child's capacity of consent. And let us be extremely clear here, when we are discussing consent, we are meaning sexual consent. These issues/questions we will explore further in the next article.

Which states in the United States allow contracting with minors.

New York, Texas and California. (4.)

1./http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/lack-capacity-to-contract-32647.html (no date is given for when the article was written or posted.)

2./https://contracts.uslegal.com/contract-by-a-minor/

3./http://contract-law.laws.com/consideration/minors

4./http://blogs.findlaw.com/law_and_life/2014/03/is-it-legal-to-sign-a-contract-with-a-minor.html

5. https// http://childcarelaw.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Know-the-Law-About-Contracts-Between-Parents-and-Child-Care-Providers-in-California.pdf

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Important Definitions When Speaking of Children's Rights

The following are definitions according to United States Law

*Personhood - A state of being a person

Baby/Infant

Child

Minor

Age of Majority (Adult)

Age of Consent

Question- Can a child enter into contract?

A contradictory view point

That clarifies the matter doesn't it?

Which states in the United States allow contracting with minors.

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