Minimum legal ages in Cordonia
Cordonia is a country in western Europe. Cordonia has different minimum legal ages for various legal activities codified in national statue, royal decrees and court rulings.
Background
Before the formation of Cordonia there were several former sovereign kingdoms which merged to become the modern day Cordonia. These kingdoms set their own laws; to compromise with each kingdom, it was ratified in 1798 upon Cordonia's formation that each former kingdom, called duchies, would continue to set their own laws but share a common monarch and system of nobility. This has gradually changed to be in align with each other during the constitutional reforms proposed by King Dirk II and ratified by the Parliament of Cordonia. The national minimum age of majority was set at 21 years of age to match neighboring countries in Europe. In 1970 during the international period of enfranchisement of 18-20 year olds, parliament passed the Ages of Capacity Act, lowering the age of majority to 18. The Act only deals with the age of majority (which is defined as when a person ceases to be a child (minor) and becomes an adult), the national age of candidacy and the voting age. It did not regulate other ages, such as the age to ascend the throne (which is regulated under the constitution), the age to inherit royal and noble titles (regulated by the monarch), tobacco and cannabis smoking ages, drinking age, age of candidacy (for duchy-level political offices; federal office is regulated under the Ages of Capacity Act), marriageable age and other age-related topics.
Since 1970, there has been efforts to nationalize all minimum legal ages for uniformity as Cordonia is technically a unitary state as its duchies are do not hold shared sovereignty with its national government (as opposed to a federation or confederation). In 2007, the Adolescent Tobacco Prevention Act of 2007 was passed to require duchies to set a minimum smoking age to 18. In 2011, the Marriageable Age Act of 2011 was passed to require duchies to set their general age of marriage to at least 18 and their minimum marriageable age with parental consent to 16.
In 2022, parliament introduced the Uniform Age Bill of 2022 which would uniform all minimum ages throughout Cordonia and give the power to regulate it to parliament.
List
| Duchy | Age of Majority | Age of Candidacy | Age of Consent | Drinking Age | Smoking Age | Age of Criminal Responsibility | Marriageable Age |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Government | 18 (for all government positions) 20 (for monarch)[note 2] |
16[note 3] | 16 (for beer and wine) 18 (for liquor) |
18[note 4] | 18[note 5] | 18[note 6] | |
| Castelsarreillan | 25 (for premier) 20 (for all other government positions) |
18 | 18 (for beer and wine) 20 (for liquor) |
18 | 20 | 20 (general) 18 (with partner 18-19 and parental consent) | |
| Cordonian C. D. | Banned | ||||||
| Domvallier | 21 | 16 | 20 | 18 | 21 | 18 | |
| Krona | 20 | 18 | |||||
| Lythikos | 18 | 16 | 14 (1.2%–5% ABV) 16 (1.2%–15% ABV) 18 (>15% ABV) |
18 | 18 | 18 16 (with partner under 20 and parental consent) | |
| Portavira | 21 (for premier) 18 (for all other government positions) |
18 (general) 20 (when partner is in a position of trust) |
16 (for beer and wine) 18 (for liquor) |
||||
| Ramsford | 25 (for premier) 21 (for all other government positions) |
18 | 21 | 21 | 18 | 21 (general) 18 (with partner under 21 and parental consent) | |
| Valtoria | 20 | 16 (general) 18 (when partner is in a position of trust) |
18 (for beer and wine) 20 (for liquor) |
18 | 20 | 18 | |
| Vescovi | 21 | 16 | 14 (<10% ABV if accompanied) 16 (<10% ABV) 18 (>10% ABV) |
18 | 21 | 18 (general) (with partner under 21 and with parental consent) | |
See also
- Legality of cannabis in Cordonia
- Legality of prostitution in Cordonia
- Legality of euthanasia in Cordonia
- Government of Cordonia
- Monarchy of Cordonia
Notes
- ↑ The age of majority is the age at which a person ceases to be a child (minor) and becomes an adult under the law. They cease to be a ward of their parent(s) or guardian(s) and are full citizens. The voting age, the age to sign contracts, the age to establish residence, and the age to enlist in the armed forces are regulated under the age of majority in Cordonia. The age of majority was unified under the Uniform Laws Act of 1961. Before 1961, the age of majority in all duchies were 21 with the exception of Lythikos (16), Vescovi (18) and Valtoria (19). The national age of majority was 21 from 1961 until 1970, in which it was lowered to 18.
- ↑ The age at which an heir apparent or presumptive may ascend the throne is regulated by the Constitution of Cordonia.
- ↑ The age of consent on the national level is 16 e.g., if a 19-year-old crosses a duchy boundary to have sex with a 17-year-old, it is not a crime under national law. However, it could still be a crime under the jurisdiction of where the sexual act takes place. It is illegal in Cordonia to transmit any sexual material over the internet to and from persons under 18 even if the age of consent in that jurisdiction is lower. It is illegal for persons under 20 to participate in sex work including prostitution, stripping, adult films or to work in a sexually-oriented business in Cordonia.
- ↑ Duchies cannot set their tobacco smoking age below 18 under the Adolescent Tobacco Prevention Act of 2007. The smoking age may differ from the cannabis age if legal in that jurisdiction.
- ↑ The national government and duchies cannot hold any person under 18 fully responsible for crimes under the Royal High Court of Cordonia ruling Schmidt v. the King.
- ↑ Duchies cannot set their age of marriage below 16.