Domestic Relations

Question 1

Marital Property

Answer 1

Under DRL, marital property is all property acquired by the spouses during the marriage or prior to the separation agreement regardless of how the property is titled.

Question 2

Maintenance

Answer 2

Under DRL, maintenance is payments provided for in a valid agreement between the parties, or awarded by the court, to be paid at fixed intervals /’ɪntɚvl/ 时间间隔 for a definite or indefinite amount of time. An award of maintenance will terminate upon the death of either party or upon the recipient’s valid or invalid marriage, or upon modification.

Question 3

Ex parte divorce

Answer 3

Under DRL, an ex parte divorce is a divorce rendered upon the defendant without personal jurisdiction over the defendant that is founded upon the court’s jurisdiction over the marriage.

Question 4

Separation Agreement

Answer 4

Under DRL, a separation agreement is a legally enforceable document in which husband and wife decide to live apart from each other. The separation agreement must be freely made, in writing, signed by both parties, acknowledge, and filed in the office of the county clerk where either party resides prior to the divorce.

Question 5

Antenuptial /æntɪ’nʌpʃl/ 婚前协议 Agreement

Answer 5

Under DRL, an antenuptial agreement is an express contract between prospective spouses in contemplation /kɑːntəmˈpleɪʃn/ 计划 of marriage, typically addressing economic matters in the event of divorce after marriage, provisions for testamentary 遗嘱的dispositions, and any other topics related to the marriage.

Question 6

Doctrine of equitable estoppel

Answer 6

The doctrine of equitable estoppel prevents a biological father from claiming paternity /pə’tɜːnɪtɪ/ 父亲身份, or it prevents a non-biological father from denying paternity after he previously claimed to be the father or acquiesced /ækwɪ’es/ 默认 to being the father for a prolonged period.