What Does the Law Say About Leap Day? A UI Prof Breaks it Down

People born on leap year have to be sick of the same jokes year after year.

"You look really old for 15," chuckle, chuckle. Or, "Are you old enough to vote?" I know, I am guilty. I have a family member, who is a leap year baby and will celebrate her first "real" birthday in four years on Wednesday.

Leap day is a peculiar day, and a article raised a question about how law applies to those born on Feb. 29, such as when they can officially vote or get their license.

It is an interesting thought, but it sounds like it actually isn't much of an issue. The legal scribes don't spend a whole lot of time thinking about it.

“I don’t know of any statute or general rule that has anything to do with leap day,” University of Iowa law professor John Reitz said in the article.

He points out that "laws that are time sensitive define a time period—30 days, 60 days, one year. So any impacts of leap day are covered there." Presumably, March 1 is the recognized date in non-leap years.

For now, the law can leave the truly big questions of our generation to us writers.

For more on the topic, read about it on the University of Iowa website.