{"jurisdiction": "us-ny", "code": "penal", "section": "255.05", "citation": "Penal Law § 255.05", "heading": "Unlawfully issuing a dissolution decree", "text": ["§ 255.05 Unlawfully issuing a dissolution decree.", "A person is guilty of unlawfully issuing a dissolution decree when, not being a judicial officer authorized to issue decrees of divorce or annulment, he issues a written instrument reciting or certifying that he or some other purportedly but not actually authorized person has issued a valid decree of civil divorce, annulment or other dissolution of a marriage.", "Unlawfully issuing a dissolution decree is a class A misdemeanor."], "official_source": "https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PEN/255.05", "from_official_api": true, "plain_english": "A person who is not a judicial officer authorized to grant divorce or annulment commits this offense by **issuing a writing that claims the person or another unauthorized person issued a valid civil divorce, annulment, or other marriage-dissolution decree**. It is a **class A misdemeanor**. ★", "in_force_on": "2026-05-31", "retrieved": "2026-09-27", "url": "https://elyphived.com/us-ny/penal/255.05", "publisher": "Elyphived LLC"}