10 Weirdest Laws In The Star Trek Universe
4. Sexual Relations Law
This law doesn't have its own designation so to speak, yet in Archer's day on Enterprise, colleagues were banned from engaging in sexual relations altogether. While there is the argument that relations between officers can lead to emotionally based decisions, it seems that Starfleet certainly realised how short-sighted this law was.
T'Pol, when affected by a microbe that advanced her Pon Farr, was told flat out by Dr. Phlox and Reed that it was against regulations to get involved with a fellow officer, even though technically T'Pol wasn't a member of Starfleet. While it may have simply been their way of trying to turn her down politely, it is said with some authority.
Thankfully, this rule was relaxed as the years went on. By Kirk's era, McCoy states that there's no rule preventing it and by Picard's time, Riker and Troi end up married. All of this seems a happy turnaround. However, Worf and Dax make the case for the enforcement of this law. On a mission to save the life of a Cardassian informant during the war, Dax is injured. Worf abandons their mission to save her, earning him a reprimand and the assurance from Sisko that he will never make Captain.
This law seems a guideline, one that has different merits at different points in time.