Family Law
Marriage and its incidents
A valid marriage requires capacity, a license, and solemnization, or compliance with common-law marriage elements (capacity, present agreement, cohabitation, reputation). Putative-spouse doctrines protect good-faith parties when a marriage proves invalid. Premarital agreements are enforced if voluntary, with disclosure, and not unconscionable when enforced.
Divorce and jurisdiction
Jurisdiction to dissolve requires domicile of at least one party in the forum; child custody jurisdiction is governed by the UCCJEA, with home state defined by six months of residence. Grounds may be fault-based or no-fault.
Property division
Classify property as separate or marital. Community property states divide community property equally; equitable distribution states divide marital property fairly under statutory factors. Questions of appreciation, commingling, and tracing recur.
Support and children
Spousal support factors include marriage duration, standard of living, earning capacity, contributions, and health; modification requires a substantial change in circumstances. Child support follows income shares or percentage guidelines. Custody is decided by the best interests of the child - stability, caregiver role, child preference, health. Parenting plans and relocation rules vary. Termination of parental rights requires clear and convincing evidence; adoption requires consent or termination.
Worked example
A spouse inherits $200,000 during the marriage and deposits it in a joint account. In a community property state the inheritance remains separate property if traceable; the other spouse's management does not automatically convert it.
Rule of thumb: classify property at acquisition, then trace it, before applying any division formula.