Can a catholic priest perform a civil wedding ceremony?

A Catholic Answer (Catholics in union with the Pope) In the United States, the answer would be yes, because customarily, nearly all members of the clergy of all faiths are licensed by the local state or county to perform marriages, and by agreement with the local state or county, when these clergy members perform the religious wedding ceremony, the civil marriage in the eyes of the civil law takes effect as well, silently, as it were. The couple will have applied for and received by mail their civil marriage license, which the clergyman will usually verify before he performs the ceremony.