Professional Documents
Culture Documents
I. Answer
II. Legal Explanation
1. Issue
2. Law (Herein Are the Relevant Rules of Law and More Including
Statutory
Interpretation)
3. Application (of Law to Facts)
4. Purpose (, Principle, and/or Policy)
5. Analogy (to at Least Two Cases from the Reading Assignments)
6. Conclusion (A Very Brief Summary of the Essence of the Legal
Argument)
Course Themes
Tension b/w private ordering and state supervision of family life
Focus on larger context in which family law matters arise
Gender issues
Growing importance on ConLaw in family matters
Family Law Changes over the years in response to major social shifts
More divorce
More same sex parents
More kids out of wedlock
More women working
Contraception/privacy laws
More cohabitation
1
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Standards of Analysis
A. Standards of Analysis
1. Strict Scrutiny
i. Ends – Government Objective Involved
a. Compelling
ii. Means – Relationship Between Ends and How Ends
are Accomplished
a. Necessary
b. Narrowly Tailored
iii. Examples
a. Race
b. Religion
c. Ethnicity
2. Intermediate Scrutiny
i. Ends – Government Objective Involved
a. Important
ii. Means – Relationship Between Ends and How Ends
are Accomplished
a. Substantially Related
iii. Examples
a. Gender
2
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
3. Rational Relationship
i. Ends – Government Objective Involved
a. Legitimate or Permissible
ii. Means – Relationship Between Ends and How Ends
are Accomplished
a. Rationally or Conceivably Related
iii. Examples
a. Familial Status
b. Age
c. Disability
d. Sexual Orientation
e. Wealth
I. What is a family?
3
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
4
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
5
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Held
Supreme Court struck down a law barring the use of contraceptives by
married couples
6
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
7
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
8
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
2. Adultery
To prove adultery, the circdumstantial evidence must clearly establish:
a. A disposition on the part of the defendant & the paramour to commit
adultery and;
b. An opportunity to commit the offense.
3. Desertion
Crosby v Crosby 1983 pg 363
Held
The law is unconstitutional b/c it violates EP for women, so they
didn’t look at the fault issue here
Facts
Voluntary separation by one spouse from the other with the intent not
to resume cohabitation without justification or consent from other
spouse
9
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Constructive desertion
Acts that fall short of physically leaving marital home
o 1992 VA case found constructive desertion
Ws willful withdrawal of sex w/o just cause; would not
do Hs laundry, cleaning, meals etc
2. Connivance
When one souse procures or consents to the other spouse’s
commission of marital fault
o Innocent spouse petitions for fault based divorce
o Party allegedly at fault may defend conduct
Asserts that he would never have acted without…
10
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
3. Condonation Defense
If you know about the spouses affair and keep living with them you
can say that the adultery was condoned and is no longer an adequate
reason for divorce
If they do it again, it is revived
Can be express or implied
Spouse is essentially on temporary probation
11
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
4. Collusion Defense
When both parties collude to bring about a bad act upon which one of
them will bring a petition for divorce
Court denies b/c no innocent party
One motivation for no fault divorce
No-Fault Divorce
12
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
13
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
These two cases together show that, yes, you can contract divorce, but
you can’t add law to a no fault state, so this is contrary to CA’s public policy
14
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
15
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
16
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Is State imposing the cost? Could argue no, b/c not every case will entail
costs. State has important interest in regulating the terms on which divorces
are granted. Could argue yes and say only real justice can occur if you have
access to the courts. The practical effect is the same as Boddie, b/c the state
reqs do cause the costs
17
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Difonzo pg 421
Discusses the evolution of divorce
Amato pg 425
Thinks divorces should be harder to get. Require conceling etc
III. PARENTING
18
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Custody Definitions
Sole or Joint
Physical and Legal
o Physical
Parent has right to have child live with
Joint physical: kid spends significant time with
both
o Legal
Right and obligation to make decisions about child’s
upbringing
Schools, religion, medical care
Visitation or Not
o Sole physical custody with visitation
Child lives mostly with one and visits the other
19
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
• No.
(1) The presumption may hurt the best interests of the child.
(2) It reinforces the stereotype of women as child rearers & males as
irresponsible.
20
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
21
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
22
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
activities, that's the end of it: The court will defer to the
custodial parent's wishes.
In short:
Unless the content of the parent's religious beliefs would threaten the
health & well being of the child (see Kendall), the court will not deny
custody to a parent merely because their religion is strict.
23
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Most courts will consider the wishes of the child as to his custodians as
described in § 402 of UMDA. However, this broad language is tempered by
the court’s discretion to determine whether the child has sufficient maturity
to express a meaningful preference. Teenagers especially are consulted.
24
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
25
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
26
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
27
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
3. Joint Custody
a. Joint legal custody: Not necessary for parent to be living with kid, but
must be consulted for kid's major life decisions.
b. Joint physical custody: Kid has to spend a certain amount of time living
with each parent.
28
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
29
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
30
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
31
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
32
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
33
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
34
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Original agreement was agreed to by the parents and the court didn’t
determine the factual underpinning of the custody agreement; same
for the amendment by the parties
M wanted to move to TN; F didn’t like this; new agreement signed
o Mom got custody and stipulated in agreement to live w/in 60
miles of ND city of Fargo
o She moves anyway; court gives custody to dad now
Mother here says domestic violence by dad toward her and the girls
Father says res judicata re issues before divorce and first custody
determination
Issue
Facts
Court first gives custody to mom; 4 years later changes and gives to
dad
Parents are often convinced that if the other parent gets the kids, they
will suffer irreparable harm.
3 types of experts in this case
o Suicide experts
o Parenting experts
o Joe Goldstein: an expert on parent-child separation.
(Propounder of the psychological parent theory)
Says:
Ex. in Rose, Jason (the kids) had been w/his dad for one
year. This is a long time in a young child's life.
35
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
2. Modification – Relocation
36
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
noncustodial
parent to maintain a full and continuous relationship with the child; (7) the
likelihood that the custodial parent will continue to foster the child’s
relationship
with the non-custodial parent if the move is allowed; (8) the effect of the
move on
extended family relationships here and in the new location; (9) if the child is
of age,
his or her preference; (10) whether the child is entering his or her senior year
in high school at which point he or she should generally not be moved until
graduation
without his or her consent; (11) whether the non-custodial parent has the
ability to
relocate; (12) any other factor bearing on the child’s interest.
Issue
Facts
Autistic kid, can’t afford to be a single mom in NJ w/o normal day
care; wants to move to where her parents can help care for him
no, that would impair relations with dad
kid’s wellbeing closely tracks that of custodial parent
to move here: show good faith reason, and that kid will not be
harmed…remand
37
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Facts
WA statute, any person can petition for visitation rights at any time –
grant if in BIOTC
a. Fathers
38
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
39
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
40
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
41
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
42
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Lived together, got married, both called some form of mom, both sets
of grandparents recognized, started adoption procedures
The split, there was visitation, then the birth mother stopped that and
stopped taking money from the other
43
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
are entitled to equal parental rights for children born during the civil
union.
44
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
a. UCCJA 1968
Since 1984, in effect in some form in every state
2 bases of jxn
o Home State
o SCSE: significant connection and substantial evidence
A state with jxn may decline to exercise if it determines
o It is inconvenient forum AND
Is in BIC that another state assume jxn eg another state is
or recently was the child’s home state; if substantial
evidence more readily available in another state etc
o Another state more appropriate see section 8
UCCJA section 8 on jxn
Florida may decline to exercise jxn over an initial
custody proceeding if Jane has been wrongfully taken
45
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
46
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Has the two jxn bases above, homestate beats significant connection
Adopted by all states
Provides that a court with home state jxn has priority over a court
with jxn based only on significant connections and substantial
evidence
Basically, in practice if a judge starts a proceeding and then learns
another state did the same, they talk to each other and decide the more
appropriate forum.
If they can’t decide, priority filing wins
May decline jxn too
Don’t want to relitigate in other jxns and have forum shopping etc
Sec8 says you can decline to exercise jxn over initial custody proceeding if
child is wrongfully taken from home states (wrongfully defined under state
law) and may not modify the Ohio decree of mother unlawfully took the
child from father
Full faith and credit clause requires states to give nationwide recognition
and enforcement to final judgments of other states
Custody decrees are not considered final judgments b/c the court
retains jxn to modify in the BIC until they turn 18
47
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
48
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
49
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
ground that petitioner had failed to state a claim upon which relief
could be granted.
IPKCA
US federal law providing criminal sanctions in support of Hague
Convention (Us v Amer)
ICARA
International Child Abduction Remedies Act
US federal law providing procedures for implementation of the Hauge
Convention in the US (Alonzo)
UCCJA
In several states interpreted to apply b/w state and other countries,
provided countries meet minimum standards of DP
UCCJEA
50
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
51
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Mom filed a Hague petition seeking the child's return to Sweden and
to determine habitual residence and wrongful removal
She took the child back to Sweden violating court order and was
found in contempt
The father then filed a Hague petition in Sweden for return of child to
the United States.
Mom filed to dismiss her district court petition
The District Court, denied her motion, and subsequently ordered the
child's return to United States
The Court of Appeals held that district court abused its discretion in
denying the motion to dismiss solely on the basis of the mother's
contempt of its order not to remove the child, and dismissal of the
petition was warranted.
52
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Mn to file for bankruptcy; She comes back a month later and there is
an Israeli court order that she not leave the country ( arestraining
order) and the kids passports were locked up etc
Mom was having an affair in the states; they tried to reconcile
They both went to US for the bankruptcy proceeding where they said
under oath that their residence was MN; tax return said this also
Both went back to Israel
Kids enrolled in Israeli school, learning hebrew etc
H filed in Israeli court for divorce but cancelled the proceeding
Wife took the kids to the states for ‘vacation’ but kept them there and
filed for legal separation and custody in MN
Robert filed in Israel a "Request for Return of Abducted Children"
with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
(NCMEC), pursuant to the Hague Convention.
Wife moves to Mass with kids to live with her boyfriend
Father brought suit under International Child Abduction Remedies
Act (ICARA)
6. Enforcement of Custody
53
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
damages are allowed (she gave daughter means to get away from the
dad)
When one party has primary physical custody, there is an action
Distinguishes b/w legal and physical custody
Issue
Can Husband sue for tortuous interference with custody when mom
had physical care custody? YES If so, are punitive damages
available? YES (Woods case) need to show willful and wanton
conduct Were the damages excessive? No, three years of not seeing
your child plus atty expenses is worth 25K
Facts
Tim and Joan are in custody battle over Ashley (now an adult)
Court award sole custody to Joan and modified to joint later tho
primary physical care to Joan
Tim appealed; reversed and he got physical care custody in Iowa
Ashley moved to Arizona with Joan
Tim got habeas decree and got Ashley back for a month and a half
when she flew back to AZ
Joan petitioned AZ court for custody and they refused b/c Iowa had
jxn
Joan filed in IA next and both she and Ashley went there to testify;
court told them to stay in IA and they agreed, but left and went back
to AZ
Court denied her petition and gave custody to Tim
Tim filed civil suit for tortuous interference; joan didn’t appear but
her atty went and moved to dismiss for failure to esatlbish prima facie
case (denied)
54
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
55
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
56
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
H wants to use affirmative defense that the children would have been
exposed to psychological harm and that the Hague convention allows
him allows him to argue that it is against the children’s rights to deny
them an Islamic upbringing
57
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
County doesn’t want the kids; Guardian Mueller spends time with
father and the trial court decides that Diane is the more diffucult
parent and defiant and that Mark the husband should get the kids
Parent by Estoppel
Co-parenting agreements prior to birth
o Lived with child since birth
o Full and permanent parental responsibilities
o When in BIC you will be named parent by estoppel
Co-parenting after birth
De Facto Parent
If you don’t qualify as legal parent or by estoppel, you can try this
Requires
o You live together at least 2 years for reasons other than
financial compensation AND
o Have to have the agreement of the parent to form parent/child
relationship, OR
58
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
PROPERTY DIVISION
UMDA pg 697
Section 307 Disposition of Property:
Alternative A and alternative B
Alt A
o Hotchpot approach to marital property
Equitably apportion
Property and assets
o Belonging to either or both, however
and whenever acquired
o Whether title is in one name or both
Applies e.g. MT, CT, IN
Factors for Equitable apportionment (broad
discretion to judge)
59
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Duration of marriage
Prior marriage
Antenuptial agreement
Age, health, station, occupation
Amount and source of income
Vocational skills
Liabilities
Needs
Custodial provisions
In addition/in lieu of maintenance
Future acquainting of assets and income
Alt A and B
o Both alternatives
Property divided w/o regard to marital misconduct
60
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
61
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
62
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
63
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
64
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
65
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
66
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Facts
NJ statue says dissipation in value of MP considered in equitable
distribution
Here, debt belongs to gambler
Vocabulary
Vested
o When Ee discharge doesn’t forfeit benefits
Non-vested
o Contingent on continued employment
Mature
o When Ee on retirement has unconditional right to receive
payment
67
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Non-matured
68
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
69
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
70
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
71
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
o Contribution
o Restitution
o Compensation for Forgone Opportunities
o Return on investment
o Partnership
Alimony: Cases
Facts
72
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Issue
o Standard of living is higher than reasonable needs here. What to do?
Facts
o Married 20 years; H has to pay 2K/ month. He says wife’s reasonable
needs are met; He says gives W income higher than her reasonable
nedds
o Duration relates to:
o (1) Financial need arising from the marriage
o (a)Courts believe that the longer a person is married, the more
plausible it is that her financial disparity is attributable to the
marriage.
o (b) Also more plausible that spouse has benefited from homemaking
labors that gave rise to financial disparity
73
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
o (i) See Clapp, which discusses the right of both parties, after a long
marriage, to maintain the marital standard of living
o (ii) And Wilson, where court denied support to wife who was disabled
in an accident. Because marriage only lasted two years and disparity
not attributable to marriage, no support even though husband able to
pay.
o (c) The older one gets, the more they rely on the marital commitment
because life course becomes harder to change, and the prospects of
finding a new spouse decline
74
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
o Trial court said that increase in income, alone, was insufficient basis
to modify a court order for support
Facts
o 20 year marriage; was paying 625/wk combined; his income almost
tripled up to 255K per year
75
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
76
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
77
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
78
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
CHILD SUPPORT
Federal Gvt
1. 1984 Aid to Families with Dependent Children program
o Shapes state policy by conditions imposed by the programs through
conditions of receiving AFDC assistance to establish numerical
guidelines on which to rely in determining child support obligation
o These are rebuttable presumptions of the appropriate amount
o Judges may deviate only upon a written finding that applying them
would be inequitable
2. Child Support and Establishment of Paternity Act 1974
o Recipients of public assistance
o Must cooperate I establish and enforcing support orders and
locating potential obligors
o Objectives
o Reduce public expenditures on welfare
79
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
80
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
o Based on data that indicate how much more income a family necds
after divorce to sustain its s predivorced standard of living
o Bureau of labor statistics
Eg. Parents with 1 child need 114% of predivorce
income for same SOL
CP needs 70% and NCP needs 44%
CP chould get 70%/114%, or 61%of the income
NCP should get 44%/114% or 39% of the income
o Focuses more directly on post divorce needs than assuming same % of
income should be spent on kids before and after
81
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
o Heather got her degree and then married Brent moved from Madison
to SD; they let Jody have Christen for the summer, Stephen got
Michael for summer. They did fine apart.
o The two fathers each filed for custody; Doc recommending that
primary custody of Christian be awarded to Jody and that Heather get
Micheal b/c Stephen was a worse parent
o The trial court found that Heather, as primary caretaker, provided
appropriate education, recreation, care, parental love, affection and
guidance.
82
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
o Authority for a court enforcing child support where the parties have
agreed to share the cost of college (an action to enforce the agreement
as a contract)
Issue
o In Arizona does father still pay child support as long as she is in
college? NO Does she need to be living at home also?
Facts
o F (findley) and M (Solomon) submit joint petition for
o In AZ Termination of support at 18 or until child graduates from high
school, but not past 19
83
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
84
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
85
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
86
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
o Should a court relived a mother who wishes to care at home for kids
ant not work from her support obligations to the child that her ex-
husband has custody of?
PP
o Appealing an order that suspending wife’s obligation to support 9 yr
old daughter; dad has permanent custody, start support proceedings;;
since she was 8 months pregnant at that time, support order given 6
week hiatus; she decides to be stay at home mom; trial court said she
had a right to be a stay at home mother
87
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
o Statute says parents must pay until kid is 18; another section says
court may order to pay college tuition for married parents; is this an
EP violation against unmarried parents that they can’t use that
section?
PP
o Mother appeals courts denial to modify the dads support obligation to
include college subsidy; reversed on second appeal;
Facts
o Mother had the kid and got support from father;
88
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
89
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
WA on Marital Rape
Doesn’t recognize this except for 1st degree rape (rape involving
kidnapping, threat of deadly force, serious physical injury)
Does allow exemption for 3rd degree rape (where victim does not
consent)
90
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
91
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
92
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
93
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
o Grandmother and mother of the child, not related by blood, are still
covered by the statute that requires blood relation for abuse prevention
order
Rationale
o Civil protection statutes that address family members ust be equally to
all concepts of family as they exist in the reality of our diverse family
relationships
Issue
o Whether the paternal grandparent of a child whose parents were not
married is related by blood to the child’s mother, and thus, has a right
to invoke protection from domestic abuse under the statute. YES
Facts
o Unmarried parents; mom is a crackhead; fathers mom has the kid;
mother shows up high and wants the kid and winds up beating up
grandma
94
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Issue
o Is it unconstitutional to deny this woman a passport for the reason that
she owes a bucket of child support?
PP
o Trial court said it was not unconstitutional. Affirmed on appeal.
Fact
o Eudence Eunique denied passport b/c she hadn’t paid child support
payments in a while (20K); she wants injunctive relief; although she
won’t pay child support, she wants to travel internationally for
business and pleasure
o There is a statute that directs the state to notify the secretary of HHS,
and they did, and there is a law that then directs the secretary shall
refuse to issue a passport to the person in question
95
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
o Trail court gave the condition on probation b/c they thought it better
to have him not in prison so that he could support his kids, and if does
go to jail, he can support none
Facts
o Dad with 9 kids, 4 moms, refuses to pay child support; this is a
FELONY here
o Statute says the court may set aside the sentence and impose any
conditions on the probation; wants to protect the kids from future
wrongdoing; broad discretion granted
96
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
97
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Facts
o Child Support Recovery Act (CSRA) is to help fill that gap that
occurs when parents flee a state to avoid child support; cumbersome
for state courts to try and extradite etc
o W gets custody of the kid; doc had to pay 5K a month in child support
o Dad wants to modify this now, but he hasn’t been paying the full
amount, according to the mom
o Court found he owed like 75K in back support;
Loving v Virginia pg 59
Miscegenation statute/EP
Marriage is fundamental freedom (still don’t say right)
Held
Statutes violate EP of the 14th amendment; strict scrutiny for invidious
discrimination; fundamental right; no legitimate overriding purpose
Also deprive the Lovings of liberty w/o DP 14th amendment
Issue
Is there an EP violation in the miscegenation statute? Is there
invidious discrimination? YES. Is there a liberty DP violation? YES
PP
District court denied motion to vacate the sentences; affirmed on
appeal;
Facts
VA statute made it illegal to marry between races and set punishment
98
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
99
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Wisconsin tried to make a statute that provided that people who had
been married, divorced, and subject to court imposed child support
could not marry until they proved that they were keeping up with the
child support payments
Criminal penalties if you marry w/o permission
In the Notes pg 74
Four factors of reasonableness in Langone v Coughlin
o The statute not reasonably related to the stated goal
o No alt means for the person to be married
o With deference to prison, court found that accommodating the
inmates right to marry would not jeopardize the security
o No ready alternative to the fundamental right to marry
100
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
101
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
a. Incest
102
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
b. Age
103
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
104
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
105
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
106
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
107
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
o NOTE: Prop 8 does not disturb that part of the court's holding that
gay men and lesbians constitute a Suspect Class for purposes of
equal protection under Art. I § 7
Issue
Why would FFC clause not be violated by DOMA? Court dismisses citing
Baker. See slide. Gay not suspect class. Same sex marriage not guaranteed
by 14th b/c not rooted in our history and tradition, so not a fundamental right.
This is different from Goodrich.
108
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Nat’l Pride at Work Inc v. Gov of Mich. Mich Sup Ct 2008 [ Supp 30]
Taking even benefits away from same sex couples after amending
constitution to forbid gay marriage
Held
o Providing benefits would violate the state constitution; the language
in the amendment provided that ‘To secure the benefits marriage..for
society…between a man and a woman
Issue
o Whether an amendment to the Michigan state constitution prohibiting
recognition of same-sex marriages or any "union" that is "similar" to
marriage also prohibits public employers in the state from conferring
benefits on the same-sex partners of their employees. YES
Which branch should make these decisions. In Canada they had leg and
judiciary working together. They determined that it’s okay for legislativei
branch to ast in this area and it is consistent with their equivelant of the bill
of rights
International slides
Prenuptial Agreements
Status vs Contract
Status relationships are controlled by law
Contract relationships controlled by agreement
Arguably employment is moving towards a status relationship
109
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Edwardson
110
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
111
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
Separation Agreements
o Agreement of the parties at the time of divorcing
o These are allowed by UMDA 306(a)
o Property division, alimony, child support, custody, visitation
o Rationale in comment
o Promote amicable divorce
o Must follow basic principles of contract law to be enforceable
o Courts more strictly scrutinize child-related issues under parens
patriae
o Court will also enter a divorce decree
o Enforceability and modifications subject of litigation
112
Family Law Notes Marianne E Dutton
113