Family Law
Marriage and divorce
Family law governs marriage, divorce, personal and property relations of spouses, parents and children, and guardianship. Know the conditions for marriage (mutual consent, minimum age, absence of prohibited circumstances), the grounds for invalidity, and the divorce routes (administrative by registration body and judicial).
Property relations
Understand joint property of spouses, the marriage contract, separate property, and the division of property. Traps: confusing property acquired before marriage with joint property; assuming a marriage contract can regulate personal non-property relations; overlooking the requirement of notarization for a marriage contract.
Children
Know establishment of paternity, parental rights and duties, deprivation of parental rights and its consequences, and maintenance obligations (child support amounts, forms of payment). Traps: confusing deprivation of parental rights with termination of parental duties; assuming adoption ends all maintenance obligations automatically.
Rule of thumb
For property division, classify each asset as joint or separate first, then apply the marriage contract if valid, then the statutory default.
Worked example
A spouse bought an apartment during marriage with joint funds. It is joint property even if registered in one spouse's name; a valid notarized marriage contract may alter this.