The Assembly Judiciary Committee unanimously released bills, A3841/S2665, which would repeal obsolete statutes concerning the status of women.
The bill would repeal the antiquated so-called “Married Women’s Property Acts” of the 19th century that allowed married women to own, control, and dispose of property.
While such laws may have been considered forward-thinking in their day, the bill sponsors – including Assemblywomen Valerie Vainieri Huttle, (D-37), Englewood; Linda Stender, (D-22), Scotch Plains; Connie Wagner, (D-38); Paramus; Joan Voss, (D-38), Fort Lee; and Annette Quijano, (D-20), Union, as well as Assemblyman Domenick DiCicco, (R-4), Sewell – argue they are no longer needed. Prior to the statutes’ enactment in the 1800s, the common law had imposed restrictions on married women’s legal and property rights.
