# Romeo and Juliet law

> English word · Noun

## Definitions
1. A law that reduces the penalty for voluntary sexual intercourse that would otherwise be statutory rape, typically where the age gap between the participants is no more than a few years.

## Etymology
From the names of the young lovers in William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/romeo-and-juliet-law