Domestic Relations
Definition of Domestic Relations
Note: See a more comprehensive approach to the Domestic Relations legal concept in the American Law Encyclopedia
An area of the law that involves family matters. Domestic relations issues affect many people and place substantial volume demands on civil courts. While family law covers both conditions for entering and terminating a marriage, it is the latter that produces those situations that require court intervention. Indeed, divorce cases often represent the largest single category of civil cases. Most states have attempted to lessen the adversarial character of divorce cases by moving to no-fault divorce. Rather than having to establish legal grounds for a divorce, the no-fault approach merely requires both parties to acknowledge the marriage is no longer viable. The no-fault approach, however, has not made other divorce-related issues, such as child custody, levels of child support, and access or visitation matters easier to resolve. On the contrary, disagreements over these matters frequently require extensive involvement of courts and administrative agencies established to support the courts in divorce cases. Once the issues are resolved, the courts retain jurisdiction to ensure that provisions of orders are fulfilled. Courts with jurisdiction over domestic relations matters also deal with paternity actions. In these cases, a claim is made that a man fathered an illegitimate child. If paternity is established, issues such as support are then addressed.
Resources
Domestic Relations Related Resources
- Domestic Relations in the United States Legal Encyclopedia
- Civil Judicial Process Keywords in the United States Legal Encyclopedia
- Civil Process Keywords in the International Legal Dictionary
Notes
- “Domestic Relations”, The American Law Dictionary, 1991, California
Leave a Reply