Family law

Family law

Law that deals with family-related issues such as spousal abuse, legitimacy, adoption, surrogacy, child abuse, and child abduction.

Industry: Legal services

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Family law

Reply

Legal services; Family law

The name of the paper you file in reply to the other side's opposition. The reply is the third and final step in the three-step process called motion practice.

Binding arbitration

Legal services; Family law

Parties agree in advance that they will follow the decision of the arbitrator.

A complete understanding between both sides. You can agree one issue or many. If you reach an agreement with the other side on all issues, you can ask the judge for a hearing to put your agreement on ...

Arbitration

Legal services; Family law

In arbitration, a neutral third party called an arbitrator hears arguments, reviews evidence and makes a decision. This is different from mediation, where the parties, not the mediator, make the ...

Joint legal custody

Legal services; Family law

Both parents share the responsibility for making the major life decisions affecting the child's welfare, such as where the children go(es) to the doctor, goes to school or how money matters are ...

Service

Legal services; Family law

Delivering a copy of a legal document to the person on the other side of your case. There are strict rules about how to serve different kinds of documents. For instance, the summons and complaint ...

Servicemembers Civil Relief Act

Legal services; Family law

In a divorce or custody case, this act means that an active duty soldier, who is not available to defend his or her case, cannot generally be defaulted. This act was passed by Congress to provide ...