Family law (also called matrimonial law or the law of domestic relations) is an area of the law that deals with family matters and domestic relations.
Video Family law
Overview
Subjects that commonly fall under a nation's body of family law include:
- Marriage, civil unions, and domestic partnerships:
- Entry into legally recognized spousal and domestic relationships
- The termination of legally recognized family relationships and ancillary matters, including divorce, annulment, property settlements, alimony, child custody and visitation, child support and alimony awards
- Adoption: proceedings to adopt a child and, in some cases, an adult.
- Surrogacy: the law and process of giving birth as a surrogate mother
- Child protective proceedings: court proceedings that may result from state intervention in cases of child abuse and child neglect
- Juvenile law: Matters relating to minors including status offenses, delinquency, emancipation and juvenile adjudication
- Paternity: proceedings to establish and disestablish paternity, and the administration of paternity testing
This list is not exhaustive and varies depending on jurisdiction.
Maps Family law
Conflict of laws
Issues may arise in family law where there is a question as to the laws of the jurisdiction that apply to the marriage relationship or to custody and divorce, and whether a divorce or child custody order is recognized under the laws of another jurisdiction. For child custody, many nations have joined the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction in order to grant recognition to other member states' custody orders and avoid issues of parental kidnapping.
Positive and Negatives of Family Law
They are many different ways to approach a family dispute such as divorce or child custody. Many people go through what is called the practice of family law. Lawyers can practice different areas and family law is one of them. One of the negatives of family law is that they may rank higher to other practices when it comes to the number of complaints that have been received. Also, most of the time not everyone in the case leaves content because they may have not agreed with the verdict or they just did not get their way at all. Another thing is that it is up to the lawyer to talk to their client about the case and keep them informed of the status of the case. The courts also have to take the child into consideration because they want "the best interests of the child". This means that they want to make sure the child is placed in the greatest situation possible.. Another negative aspect of family law is that sometimes the lawyers must face challenges too, such as violence and counseling. They must take the best approach so that the family can settle the problems as easy as possible. A positive to family law is that you can settle disputes easier. For example, if there are children involved they will be able to see both parents equally if the parents agree to this, and this makes it easier for the child to develop healthy relationships without the parents fighting. Another positive quality to family law is that the families settle the dispute and then, they do not have to continue to revisit the situation. For example, in divorce they may find a way to split the money they had or who gets what. This way the court splits it up, how they feel is appropriate, and then it is over with and there is nothing to argue about. Another positive component is that parents can continue with shared child care. The parents receive help from one another so they do not feel like a single parent. This way, they do not have to worry about taking on all the finances for the child such as child care while the parent is at work. Family law also is where child support is decided. Both parents' income are used to calculate the amount to be paid. The lawyer or judge will investigate how much it will cost to take care of the child. The way that the child support is calculated varies from state to state because each state has its own guidelines and procedures. There are many positives and negatives to the use of family law. It can be hard on the family and the lawyer that the family has hired. It is a lengthy process, but many people use family law to settle disputes.
See also
- Alimony
- California Child Actor's Bill, or the Coogan Law
- Legitimacy (family law)
- Merger doctrine (family law)
- Supervised visitation
Specific jurisdictions
- Algerian Family Code
- Family Court of Australia
- Australian family law
- Family Law Act (Alberta, Canada)
- Family law system in England and Wales
- Children Act of 1989
- Malian Family Code
- Mudawana, the Moroccan Family Code
- The Philippines' Family Code of 1987
- Nashim, the order of the Mishnah outlining Jewish family law
References
Further reading
- Testimony of Barbara DaFoe Whitehead, Ph.D, Co-Director, National Marriage Project Rutgers University, before US Senate Subcommitee
- Wallerstein, Judith, Ph.D., "The Unexpected Legacy of Divorce", an analysis of the long-term effect of divorce on children; NPR interview (2001)
- R. Partain, "Comparative Family Law, Korean Family Law, and the Missing Definitions of Family", (2012) HongIk University Journal of Law, Vol. 13, No. 2.
- Finer, Sir Morris (1974). Report of the Committee on One-Parent Families: presented to Parliament by the Secretary of State for Social Services by command of Her Majesty July 1974. H.M.S.O.
Source of article : Wikipedia
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