7 Fast Facts About Family Law

The attorneys at GillespieShields practice family, employment, civil, criminal, probate, appellate, and immigration law.

Family law is a complicated field of law that encompasses many different areas. If you are involved in any type of family legal issue, it’s important to understand the basics before you take action or make decisions.

Why is Family Law Important?

Family law can affect family dynamics in a variety of ways. In some situations, family law is used to establish whether an individual has legal rights and responsibilities for another family member who needs care or support due to illness, addiction, or disability. Family law could also determine the custody arrangement following divorce, child abduction cases, or adoptions.

Family law deals with issues including:

• marriage/divorce
• adoption/foster care
• child abuse and neglect
• elder abuse and exploitation

Family laws are different from state to state but there exists federal family law that addresses common family issues such as parental kidnapping across states boundaries. There are certain rules when it comes to applying family laws between jurisdictions (countries) and family members.

Family law is important because it helps family members and extended families navigate the legal issues of family life by setting out their rights and responsibilities to each other, as well as providing a framework for resolving family disputes through mediation or adjudication in court. It provides guidance on how best parents can provide care and security for their children while at the same time meeting their own needs such as employment opportunities, housing stability, education attainment, etc.

The following seven facts about family law might serve as helpful resources for anyone looking for more information on this complex topic:

1. Divorce

Divorce is a family law issue that can have long-term impacts on family members, especially children. Divorces come with many issues including child custody and visitation rights as well as spousal support or alimony payments.

• In the United States, family courts handle more than 90% of all cases involving children and families.
• There were over half a million divorces in 2011 alone – 62% percent of which involved couples without minor children under 18 years old.
• The average age for divorce is now 29 years old, compared with 27 back in 1980. And this number is only expected to increase as marriage rates among those 40+ have doubled since 1990!

2. Parental Rights and Adoption Termination

Termination of Adoptions and Parental Rights is a family law action that can be used to sever the legal ties between an adopted person and his or her family. It’s also known as “relinquishment.”

Termination of Adoptions and Parental Rights can be initiated by either adoptive parents or adopted family members. It is typically the result of a family disagreement about contact between an adult adoptee and his or her birth family, but it might also occur in cases where there are concerns about how the adoptive family has raised their child over many years (such as with physical abuse), which may make it difficult for them to form healthy relationships later on.

Adoptive families sometimes feel that they don’t have any other choice than to terminate adoptions; however, experienced family law attorneys will caution against this drastic measure because it’s irreversible. Once parental rights are terminated—even if only temporarily—the adoption decree becomes void, meaning that all legal ties between family members are severed.

3. Protective Orders and Domestic Violence

A family law protective order, or restraining order, is used to keep family members safe from physical harm. If you are in immediate danger of another person hurting you physically, your lawyer will seek an emergency family law protective order on your behalf against the party who has been making threats against you and/or harming you.

These types of family law orders can include everything from ordering an individual to stay away from someone’s residence or place of employment to not being able to contact that other party at all by phone or through any means whatsoever. A family law attorney may also file for a long-term family court protective order which could last up until trial if things get too dangerous before then.

4. Child Custody

In family court, child custody cases are usually focused on who gets physical possession of the children. In most states, the parents can come to an agreement or they will be ordered by a judge how they both plan for their kids to spend time with each parent. However, in some instances, it may not work out so smoothly and one parent might decide to take things to family court.

If you are the parent using the family court in order to get child custody, your goal is typically going to be focused on getting primary or “full” physical custody of the kids with supervised visitation for the other party.

Meanwhile, if you’re fighting against a family law custodian’s claim—or trying not to have one filed against you—you may want full legal and physical custody while denying any claims about shared physical possession being good for children by pointing out that it can lead to too much confusion when they shuttle back and forth between homes every day.

5. Paternity

A family law paternity case is a legal action that establishes the biological parent-child relationship, whether it be for custody or support purposes.

In family law, paternity cases are necessary when a child is born out of wedlock or if the parents were not married at the time that the child was conceived.

In family law, there are two types of paternity: presumed and biological. A legal presumption means that you will be considered to be someone’s father unless evidence can prove otherwise (for example in instances where your name isn’t on the birth certificate). 

Legal presumptions apply to certain family members such as children and spouses who rely on each other financially while they seek more economic independence from their families. In some states like California, even an unmarried cohabitant with a partner may establish parentage based upon having supported a child over nine months; this group includes heterosexual couples, gay male couples, and lesbian couples who have children together.

A biological family law paternity case is a legal action taken to determine whether or not you are the parent of a child born through sexual relations with another person at any point during that time frame. 

In family court, if there has been no presumption made for your family member (parent-child relationship) then it’s up to you as the petitioner -the party initiating an order from parents- to prove by clear and convincing evidence why such an order should be issued (i.e. DNA test results).

Paternity laws vary across state lines so it’s important to consult with an attorney about how the legal system works where you live – depending on where you fall within these two types mentioned above – before going through with a family law paternity case.

6. Juvenile Matters in Family Law

Juvenile matters are family law issues that involve minors, or those who have not yet reached the age of majority.

This includes child custody and visitation disputes as well as abuse and neglect cases involving children under 18 years old. Juvenile matters also include dependency (or temporary guardianship) proceedings for children whose parents’ rights to them have been terminated. 

Dependency is a legal term used when one party has an unending need for support from another person until he/she reaches adulthood.

7. Property Division

The division of property can be a difficult, complicated process. There are many factors that family law courts consider when distributing the marital assets and debts between two people who have decided to end their relationship. 

The court always wants what is in the best interest of the family as well as both parties involved; however, it can be hard to make everyone happy with this arrangement. One party may feel like they received more than what was fair for them, while another feels like they did not receive enough. It’s important to remember that your family law attorney will do everything possible within reason for you during this process.

How Can You Benefit from Understanding Family Law?

Understanding family laws enables you to know your rights before taking any action that might not be in accordance with these rules. If one does not fully understand what they are entitled to when dealing with divorce proceedings or separation then there may be room for arguments and family disputes in the future. It is best for family members to have a clear idea of what family law entails and how they can benefit from it before going into any negotiations or court proceedings that may impact their family life significantly.

Family laws provide guidance on how to go about filing child support claims; this includes determining the amount of money due based on income level and expenditure requirements for children. In family law, fathers have the right to be involved in their children’s lives and that includes financial support. Thus family laws protect both mothers and fathers from unfair treatment or discrimination when it comes to child custody disputes.

Family law provides a system of checks and balances for family members who are going through difficult times such as separation or divorce by ensuring they don’t resort to emotional behavior but instead think rationally about what is best for themselves, their children, extended families/friends, etc.

Finally, family laws help individuals understand how far one can go with violence within the home; thus creating an environment where everyone feels safe, especially women and children living at home. This also ensures there will exist no barriers between family members including partners not willing to report family violence or abuse.

Call us today if you’re going through something similar and need more information about family law.

Are You Looking for a Family Law Attorney You Can Trust?

The attorneys at GillespieShields are well-versed in a variety of different legal fields, ranging from family law to civil suits, employment disputes, and probate cases. Although we specialize in several areas of practice, our greatest passion is family law. We believe in giving families peace of mind no matter their situation, and we fight hard to maintain that peace. Whether you’re filing for dissolution or divorce, determining custody of your children, or thinking about adopting children, our experienced attorneys are here to help you every step of the way.  During our private, one-on-one consultation, we’ll take the necessary time to answer all of our questions surrounding Arizona’s family laws, your family’s unique situation, and the possible court outcomes. Contact us today for your consultation!

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