Children and the Law: Family Law

Families with special needs children have much higher divorce rates and cases involve specialized handling. This book examines what lawyers can do to make the family court system work better for these children and their families. Filled with practice tips, the book includes forms modified to address issues raised by a special needs child. Includes sample forms and documents, checklists, resource materials, and contact information for organizations and state agencies. Includes forms CD-ROM.

Adoption is a process that can require both time and patience. This guide helps you efficiently handle all steps in an adoption case, from consultation through finalization. Jennifer Fairfax, an experienced adoption attorney covers the primary types of adoption, both domestic and international, and examines the full range of issues impacting the adoption process, including the Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children, special needs, adult, and stepparent adoptions, financing and tax issues, open records, and wrongful adoption.

The sixth edition of Canadian Family Law, current to 31 March 2015, contains commentary on new cases decided since the publication of the fifth edition. There is new material dealing with the effect of substantial property division, inter-jurisdictional variation of support orders, and an entirely new chapter on appeals. The book will be of particular interest to judges, legal practitioners, mediators, arbitrators and other professionals who require an understanding of the law related to families

This book examines whether and how children should be involved in the process of resolving family law disputes. Courts dealing with family law issues are constantly faced with a dilemma. Is it better to keep children out of the conflict, or to give them a say so that the arrangements are as workable for them as possible? This book integrates examinations of these issues with empirical data from interviews which explore the views and experiences of children,parents, counsellors, mediators, lawyers and judges involved in such disputes in Australia. Drawing on this research, the authors suggest ways that children can better be heard without placing them at the centre of their parents' conflicts. They argue that the focus should not just be on how children areheard in legal proceedings, but on how they can be better heard in those families who resolve their conflicts without going to court.

This book is about four philosophical problems that arise from consideration of legal relationship of the state to the family and the ethical relationship of individuals within families: do children have the same rights as adults? When can the state intervene in family to protect children and other family members? What standards are used to resolve disputes? Can ethical theory be used to resolve moral problems?

Handling divorce and family law cases involving service members has never been more timely, and the unique factors involved in representing these cases will affect nearly all family and general practice lawyers. This practical resource covers all aspects of representing service members and their spouses in divorce in an accessible, easy-to-use format, and includes numerous Practice Tips, forms and appendices. Topics include the Service members Civil Relief Act, custody, domestic violence, tax issues, and the division of military retirement benefits. Includes forms CD-ROM.

Spanning thousands of years, this collection brings together writings and teachings about sex, marriage, and family from the Jewish, Christian, Islamic, Hindu, Confucian, and Buddhist traditions. It reveals the similarities and differences among the teachings of each tradition and the development of their ideas and practices over time.

Today, many family courts are opting for a "problem-solving" model in which courts attempt to resolve both legal and non-legal issues. At the same time, American families have changed dramatically. Divorce rates have leveled off and begun to drop, while the number of children born and raised outside of marriage has increased sharply. Fathers are more likely to seek an active role in their children's lives. While this enhanced paternal involvement benefits children, it also increases the likelihood of disputes between parents. As a result, the families who seek legal dispute resolution have become more diverse and their legal situations more complex. In Divorced from Reality, Jane C. Murphy and Jana B. Singer argue that the current "problem solving" model fails to address the realities of today's families. The authors suggest that while today's dispute resolution regime may represent an improvement over its more adversary predecessor, it is built largely around the model of a divorcing nuclear family with lawyers representing all parties--a model that fits poorly with the realities of today's disputing families. To serve the families it is meant to help, the legal system must adapt and reshape itself.