| Changing a Minor's Last Name |
|
| The issue of changing a minor's name is a rapidly emerging issue due to divorce, same-sex marriages, and parents using different last names. In the United States, there has been a tradition for centuries and a general assumption that a child born in wedlock will carry their father's last name or surname.
More... |
|
|
| Misuse of Adoption Affecting Economic Rights |
|
| Courts generally prohibit parties from using the adoption process to achieve purposes that would have a detrimental economic effect on the children involved. An attempt by a birth parent to adopt his or her own children for the purpose of terminating the other birth parent's relationship with the children is a misuse of adoption. Also, an agreement to release birth parents from support obligations in exchange for their consent to an adoption is a misuse of adoption. More... |
|
|
| Preferences Created by the Indian Child Welfare Act |
|
| The purpose of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) is to preserve and strengthen Native American families and culture. The ICWA attempts to accomplish that purpose by creating a legal preference for the placement of Native American children in Native American homes.
More... |
|
|
| Jurisdiction and Venue in Divorce Cases |
|
| Venue is the place, county, or geographical area that an action is brought. Jurisdiction deals with the proper court to hear the case and the court's power to hear the case. For purposes of a divorce action, the action is typically filed in the state where the parties have resided for a period of time prescribed by statute.
More... |
|
|
| Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act |
|
| In 1980 Congress enacted the Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act (PKPA) to close existing gaps and bring greater uniformity to interstate child-custody practice. The PKPA requires state courts to enforce and not modify custody and visitation determinations made by sister states unless the original state either no longer has jurisdiction or declined to exercise jurisdiction. More... |
|
|