1. Domestic Relations Laws
Objective 8.01

2. Rights Relating to the Marriage Contract
The right to support, either emotional or financial, by one’s spouse when necessary
The right to inheritance from one’s deceased spouse
The right to property if the marriage fails
The right to file a joint income tax return
The right to compensation to continue one’s standard of living, if the marriage ends.
The right to the division of community property

3. Duties Relating to the Marriage Contract
The duty of faithfulness to one’s spouse
The duty to provide support, either emotional or financial, to one’s spouse when necessary
The duty to refrain from bodily harm to those with whom they live
The duty to support their children, if there are any

4. Premarital Agreements
A premarital agreement is an agreement between two people considering marriage
Each party in the agreement must be honest about every aspect of the agreement
Not every marriage contract includes a premarital agreement
A premarital agreement must be in writing and signed by each party
Also called prenuptial agreement

5. Ceremonial Marriages
Ceremonial marriages are typically used to make a marriage official (solemnize)
Ceremonial marriages must be administered by someone who has authority (judge, ordained minister, sea captain, and in some states notary public)

6. Common Law Marriages
Common Law marriages require no witnesses or ceremony by anyone authorized
Common Law marriages do not require a ceremony but is typically considered when a man and a woman share common residence for an extended period of time (different by state, typically 10 years)
Under Common Law, a published notice of an upcoming marriage was called a marriage bann

7. Proxy Marriages
One or both of the parties to a marriage are absent and are represented by an agent who acts on their behalf
Absent due to military duty or serious illness
Historically due to travel and distance issues on arranged marriages

8. Prohibited Marriages
Prohibited marriages include, in most states, marriage between close relatives, marriage between those related by blood (consanguinity), or marriages related by marriage (affinity)
The Uniform Marriage and Divorce Act prohibits marriage between parent/grandparent, child/grandchild, brother/sister, uncle/niece, or aunt/nephew
Bigamy (two spouses at one time) and Polygamy (more than two spouses at one time) are prohibited

9. Grounds For Ending a Marriage
Marriages can end either by:
Death
Annulment
Divorce

10. Voids the marriage contract
Death
Voids the marriage contract

11. Annulment The grounds for annulment include either spouse lying about:
Pregnancy
Freedom from disease
Willingness to have a child
Past Marriage
Age

12. Divorce
The grounds for divorce vary from state-to-state but can include:
No-fault (the breakdown of the domestic relationship)
Adultery
Physical or mental cruelty
Desertion
Alcoholism or drug addiction
Nonsupport
Conviction of a felony
A few states have allowed for divorce based on incompatibility
Impotency

13. Division of Marital Property
The division of marital property during a divorce depends on many standards:
Age and individual earning power of each spouse
Length of the marriage
Contributions of each spouse to the marriage (including the value of homemaking services)

14. Alimony
An allowance made to a divorced person by his or her former spouse for support
Set during the court settlement
The judgment of the court

15. Support and Custody of Children
The welfare of the child is the main concern of the courts
Many factors are considered when determining custody:
Parents’ wishes
Childs’ wishes
Child’s relationship with parents, siblings, and any other person who may affect the child’s welfare
Child’s adjustment to home, school, and community
Physical and mental health of all involved

16. Support and Custody of Children (continued)
Joint custody may be awarded
If one parent receives custody, the court will then set child support payments for the other parent.
If child support is not paid, a parent locator service is then used to help collect the unpaid child support payments