Legal Glossary — Romeo and Juliet & Age of Consent Terms (2026)

Plain-English definitions of key terms used throughout U.S. age-of-consent and Romeo and Juliet law.

Age of Consent: The minimum age at which a person is legally considered capable of consenting to sexual activity. In the U.S., set by each state at 16, 17, or 18.
Close-in-Age Exemption: A statutory provision that reduces or eliminates criminal liability for consensual sexual activity between two minors who are close in age. Commonly known as a Romeo and Juliet law.
Statutory Rape: Sexual activity with a person below the legal age of consent, regardless of willingness.
Capacity to Consent: A person's legal and mental ability to give informed consent. Affected by age, intoxication, disability, and authority relationships.
Coercion: Use of force, threats, or undue pressure to overcome another person's free will.
SORNA: The Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, federal law setting minimum registration standards.
Megan's Law: State laws requiring public notification of registered sex offenders.
CSAM: Child Sexual Abuse Material — any sexual depiction of a minor under 18, regardless of consent or who created it.
Affirmative Defense: A legal defense the defendant must prove, even if the prosecution proves all elements of the crime.
Mistake of Age: A defense — recognized in only a few states — that the defendant reasonably believed the other party was of legal age.
Tolling: The legal pausing of a statute of limitations, often until a minor victim reaches the age of majority.
Diversion: An alternative to prosecution involving education, counseling, or community service in exchange for charges being dismissed.