Family

Question 1

Premarital contracts, A.k.a. prenuptial agreements, require

Answer 1

Formalities: in writing and signed by both parties. Marriage itself is considered sufficient consideration.
Enforceability turns on three factors: voluntariness, unconscionability, and disclosure.

Question 2

Types of marriages

Answer 2

Ceremonial marriage
Common law marriage
Putative spouse

Question 3

Ceremonial marriage

Answer 3

A legally valid civil marriage that follows all statutory requirements and has been solemnized before an authorized religious or civil official.
(Noncompliance doesnt always void an otherwise valid marriage.)

Question 4

Common law marriage

Answer 4

Common-law marriage creates marital obligations and rights identical to those flowing from a ceremonial marriage, including the equitable distribution of property.

Question 5

To establish a common law marriage, the proponent must show

Answer 5

Capacity to enter into a marital contract, a present agreement to be married, cohabitation, and holding out a marital relationship to the community.

Question 6

Putative spouse

Answer 6

Any person who has cohabited with another to whom she is not legally married in the good faith belief that she was married to that person is a putative spouse until knowledge of the fact that she is not legally married terminates her status and prevents acquisition of further rights.

Question 7

Property rights and interest of married persons

Answer 7

A married person may own, hold, control, dispose of, or encumber her separate property without the consent or joined her of her spouse and without her spouse having any right, title, or interest in such a separate property.

Property acquired by either spouse during an ongoing marriage other than by gift or inheritance is presumed to be marital property subject to division on divorce.

Question 8

Elements of loss of consortium action

Answer 8

Injuries to spouse
Loss and expenses of the plaintiff spouse
Liability of the defendant for those injuries

Question 9

Declaration of nullity

Answer 9

A declaration of nullity is the action pursued when the underlying marriage is legally void. There are two grounds for legally void marriages: incest and bigamy.

Question 10

Annulment

Answer 10

An annulment is the action pursued to terminate avoidable marriage. If a marriage is annulled, the parties are treated as though they were never married, but the process will be the same as divorce if there are children or property has been accumulated. Grounds for annulment are: under 18, lack of mental capacity, lack of physical capacity.

Question 11

Divorce

Answer 11

Divorce is affected by judicial degree which terminates the marital relationship and changes the legal status of the married parties

Question 12

Requirements of no-fault divorce

Answer 12

Showing of irreconcilable differences or an irretrievable breakdown of the marriage

Question 13

Traditional grounds for divorce

Answer 13

Cruelty, adultery, desertion and abandonment, habitual drunkenness or drug addiction

Question 14

Conversion divorce

Answer 14

Many states allow for the conversion of legal separation into a divorce where the parties have lived separate and apart for a specified length of time with the intention of ending the marriage.

Question 15

Is parental consent required for adoption?

Answer 15

Consent of the child’s biological parents is generally required for adoption. However, if the parents are not married, the father’s consent might not be required. If the child has been abandoned, consent is not required.

Question 16

When does an unmarried father have protection under the due process clause

Answer 16

When the father demonstrates a full commitment to the responsibilities of parenthood

Question 17

Legal custody v physical custody

Answer 17

Legal custody is the right to make major decisions that affect the child’s life. Physical custody is actual possession and control of the child.

Question 18

Standard for a custody decision

Answer 18

Custody and visitation disputes are governed by the court’s determination of the child’s best interest.

Question 19

In awarding joint custody, the most important factor to consider is

Answer 19

The capacity of the parents to communicate and to reach shared decisions affecting the child’s welfare

Question 20

When is modification of a custody order permitted,

Answer 20

Throughout the child’s minority but only when there are substantial and unforeseen changes in circumstances and the modification will serve child’s best interest.

Question 21

Approaches to division of property between spouses

Answer 21

In a majority of states, marital property may be divided between the spouses, but separate property remains the property of the owning spouse.
In a minority of jurisdictions, the court may divide all assets whenever or however acquired; a few states permit the division of separate property in special circumstances, such as hardship.
And community property states, all property other than separate property acquired during marriage is community property and a split 50-50 upon divorce or dissolution.

Question 22

Separate property

Answer 22

All property owned by each spouse before marriage and property brought into the marriage by gift, will, or inheritance is presumed to be separate property

Question 23

Traditional grounds for alimony

Answer 23

Under the uniform divorce and marriage act, a court may grant alimony for either spouse only if it finds thst the spouse seeking alimony: Lacks sufficient property to provide for her reasonable needs and is unable to support herself through appropriate employment.

Question 24

Modern factors considered when determining amount

Answer 24

Duration of marriage, standard of living during marriage, age of parties, condition of parties, contribution of parties, employability, marital fault not considered…

Question 25

Factors considered when determining amount of child support

Answer 25

Parent capacity to pay, parent income, the needs of the children.

Question 26

Annulment, separation, divorce jx

Answer 26

Domicile of either party. No personal jurisdiction is required for separation, divorce, or annulment, but it is needed for property rights, support, and alimony.

Question 27

Adoption jurisdiction

Answer 27

Under common law, the domicile of the adoptive parents.

Under modern law, sufficiently strong connection with the child and substantial evidence concerning case is present.

Question 28

Custody jurisdiction

Answer 28

The court has jurisdiction to make an initial custody determination only if it’s the child’s home state or the child has a significant connection with the state.

Question 29

When equitably dividing marital property, courts consider

Answer 29

Need, contribution (both monetary and nonmonetary) and marital duration.

Question 30

At divorce, most states permit division of only

Answer 30

Marital or community property, i.e. property acquired during the marriage except by gift, descent, or devise.