How to Officiate a City Hall or Courthouse-Style Wedding

Ceremony Planning

Not every couple wants (or needs) an official government courthouse wedding — many choose a courthouse-style ceremony with a friend officiant instead: small, simple, and quick, but held somewhere other than an actual courthouse. Here’s how to approach one well.

What makes a ceremony “courthouse-style”

Typically: a very short ceremony (often 5-15 minutes), minimal or no guests beyond required witnesses, no elaborate decor or wedding party, and a focus purely on the legal and symbolic core of getting married rather than a full traditional wedding experience.

Structuring a short, simple ceremony

1. A brief greeting. No need for an extended welcome — a simple “Welcome, we’re here today to join [Partner A] and [Partner B] in marriage” covers it.

2. A short personal note (optional). Even in a brief ceremony, one or two sentences about the couple adds warmth without extending the ceremony significantly.

3. Vows. Either a short traditional exchange (“Do you take…”) or brief personal vows, if the couple has something prepared.

4. Ring exchange, if applicable.

5. Pronouncement and kiss.

A full courthouse-style ceremony can run as short as 5 minutes for couples who want minimal ceremony, or stretch to 15-20 minutes if they want a bit more personal content while still keeping things simple overall.

Legal requirements don’t change

Even though the ceremony itself is brief, all the standard legal requirements — a valid marriage license, appropriate witnesses, correct waiting periods for the specific state — still apply exactly as they would for a full wedding. See our state-by-state legal guides for specifics.

Where these ceremonies typically happen

Courthouse-style ceremonies (performed by a friend rather than an actual government official) often happen at a couple’s home, a simple outdoor spot, a small event space, or occasionally the actual grounds outside a courthouse for symbolic reasons, even though the ceremony itself isn’t a government proceeding.

Managing expectations around simplicity

Some couples choosing this route still want it to feel meaningful, just condensed — don’t assume “simple” means “unimportant” to them. A quick conversation about what they’re hoping the brief ceremony will feel like (efficient and low-key versus still emotionally significant despite the short length) helps you calibrate your tone appropriately.

Witnesses

Confirm ahead of time who’s serving as the required witness(es) for the marriage license — for a very small ceremony, this is sometimes just you and one other person, so make sure everyone understands their role in signing the license afterward. See our guide on how many witnesses you need for state-by-state context.

Choosing a script for this format

A short and simple ceremony script or our dedicated elopement ceremony script both work well here — the key is picking something that matches the brief, efficient tone the couple is going for rather than trying to stretch a full-length traditional script to fit a 10-minute format.

What if the couple wants photos afterward?

Many couples choosing this format still want meaningful photos, even without a full wedding photographer booked — if you know in advance, it’s worth confirming who’s taking photos (a friend, a passerby, a quick phone session) so the moment isn’t rushed past entirely once the ceremony itself concludes.

Making a brief ceremony still feel significant

Even at 5-10 minutes, small touches make a real difference: genuine eye contact, a brief pause before the pronouncement, and one or two words specific to the couple rather than a fully generic script. See our guide on personalizing a wedding ceremony script for how to add this in a way that doesn’t add meaningful length.

For simple, efficient ceremony templates suited to shorter ceremonies, see our Ceremony Script Bundle.