F1 Day 1 CPT to H4, thinking of court wedding in US

[seven2]

I am on H1B with approved I-140 in the US. My girlfriend and I have been dating for a while and want to get married. She completed her MS and has been on Day 1 CPT since her H1 didn't get picked so far. 

We would like to get married, but her parents do not approve of the marriage, despite us trying hard. We plan to get a court marriage in the US and then talk to the family, go to India and see about having a wedding ceremony there after things are worked out.

1. Should I register in a county office and is solemnizing the marriage a part of completing this process?

2. Is the date of solemnizing the marriage in the US the date of marriage for all future purpose, such as H4 applications, H4 interview, future green card applications etc., or if we have a wedding ceremony in India, is that the date?

3. Since she's in Day 1 CPT, she would have to file for an H4 to return to USA once we go to India. How will this court wedding in US affect anything, if any? The situation in India may and how the wedding will be conducted is still an uncertainty, so wanted to see if this may affect her return. I understand she may not be able to work with H4, but we plan to apply for EAD after her return. 

Edited January 3 by GAsh

[pontevecchio]

1. You get married and then get the fact officially recorded or "registered". The rules vary by state.

2. A legal Marriage in any country is legal in any other country. If you get married here, that is the date you use.

3. Day I CPT is only allowed if the CPT is integral to the course. If that is the case, there should be no problem. If day 1 CPT was a shortcut, the consulate may delay the issuance of an H4 Visa and in this case, get a lawyer's guidance.

 

[seven2]

20 hours ago, pontevecchio said:

1. You get married and then get the fact officially recorded or "registered". The rules vary by state.

2. A legal Marriage in any country is legal in any other country. If you get married here, that is the date you use.

3. Day I CPT is only allowed if the CPT is integral to the course. If that is the case, there should be no problem. If day 1 CPT was a shortcut, the consulate may delay the issuance of an H4 Visa and in this case, get a lawyer's guidance.

 

Thank you for your response, pontevecchio.

Regarding (1), by 'get married', do you mean have a ceremony and get married, with friends/family etc? In this case, since there's opposition from her family, we planned to get registered first, without a ceremony and have a ceremony in India depending on how things work out - is this okay?

Regarding (3),  yes her day 1 CPT is integral to the course. 

Given the above, what should we plan for, in terms of her H4 application and proofs? Some context: We found each other through a dating app, met a few times, text and spoke regularly (almost everyday). She even flew to meet my parents when they visited the US this year. When we visit India, we hope to have a traditional wedding and ceremony, with photos for those.

Additionally, is there anything to consider from a future green card processing standpoint (still only have approved I-140, will take years before mine becomes current). Maybe this is irrelevant now, but just wanted to bring it up in case there's something to consider.