A person generally commits the criminal offense of rape by using force, threats of force, coercion, or fraud to have non-consensual sexual intercourse with another person. In some states this criminal offense is called sexual assault. Rape is a felony offense with significant jail or prison time as potential punishment.

Laws vary from state to state and some state laws also include in the definition of rape sexual intercourse with a person who is intoxicated by drugs or alcohol, unconscious, or mentally disabled and unable to consent to the sexual intercourse. And some states have a broad definition of the lack of consent to sexual contact constituting rape and include sexual contact with public servants (police officers, etc.), members of the clergy, mental health service providers, and employees of assisted living centers or nursing homes as lacking consent under some circumstances.

In some states it is rape or sexual assault for a health care services provider performing an assisted reproduction procedure to use human reproductive material from a donor other than the patient’s intended donor.

Rape or sexual assault laws are generally located in a state’s statutes—often in the penal or criminal code.

In Florida, the criminal offense commonly referred to as rape is legally termed 'sexual battery' under Florida Statutes Section 794.011. The law defines sexual battery as oral, anal, or vaginal penetration by, or union with, the sexual organ of another or the anal or vaginal penetration of another by any other object, without the victim's consent. Consent is not deemed given if it results from force, threats, coercion, or if the victim is mentally incapacitated due to intoxicants or other substances, or is physically unable to resist. The law also considers individuals who are mentally defective or incapacitated, or physically helpless, to be unable to consent. Sexual battery is a felony in Florida, with the severity of the charge ranging from a capital felony to a third-degree felony, depending on factors such as the use of force, the age of the victim, and the perpetrator's relationship to the victim. Additionally, Florida law recognizes that certain individuals, such as those in positions of custodial authority, cannot legally obtain consent from individuals under their care, such as inmates or patients. The state does not have a specific statute addressing the misuse of human reproductive material by health care providers in assisted reproduction procedures, but such actions could potentially be prosecuted under existing sexual battery or fraud statutes.