Introduction to Family Law: Difference between revisions
From Clicklaw Wikibooks
→Different rules for different relationships
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===Different rules for different relationships=== | ===Different rules for different relationships=== | ||
Family law deals with all of these | Family law deals with all of these common family law problems and more. But not all family law problems are important to all families. It really depends on the type of relationship. | ||
Family law | Family law is about four types of relationships: | ||
* '''Married spouses'''. Married | * '''Married spouses'''. Married spouses are legally married and have to get '''divorced''' to end their legal relationship. | ||
* '''Unmarried spouses'''. Unmarried spouses, also | * '''Unmarried spouses'''. Unmarried spouses, also known as '''common-law partners''', have lived together in a “marriage-like relationship” for at least two years. Except when it comes to property and debt division, the term also includes people who’ve lived together for ''less than two years'' but have had a child together. Unmarried spouses ''don’t'' need a divorce to end their legal relationship. It ends when they separate. | ||
* '''Parents'''. Parents have had a child together | * '''Parents'''. Parents are people who have had a child together, regardless of the nature of their relationship with each other. Parents can be married spouses, unmarried spouses, in a dating relationship, or not in a relationship with each other at all. Parents can also have had a child by adoption or assisted reproduction. Or they might have helped a family to have a child by assisted reproduction, by donating eggs or sperm, or by being a surrogate mother. | ||
* '''Child’s caregivers'''. People who have a significant role in a child’s life but aren’t the child’s parents. | * '''Child’s caregivers'''. People who have a significant role in a child’s life but aren’t the child’s parents. | ||
* | |||
===Family law legislation=== | ===Family law legislation=== |