Family Law
Print
EmailHotlines
-
1-800-845-8550
-
1-800-818-9888
-
Denton1-800-927-4673
-
Bel Air410-836-8430
-
Towson(800)845-8550
General Family Law Articles
-
This article outlines legal issues related to adultery and bigamy.
-
There are a variety of benefits that unmarried cohabitant's may receive from one another.
-
In Maryland, unmarried cohabitants can create express written contracts that are enforceable in a court of law. They can also create express oral contracts to divide personal property, but they are best advised to put into writing any divisions of real property.
Adoption
-
This article covers the basic laws of adoption in Maryland.
Annulment
-
Annulment is a relatively rare special action that establishes that your marriage never existed. If a court finds the facts necessary to grant an annulment it is as if you and your spouse were never married.
Birth Certificates
-
If there is no name on the birth certificate or the name is misspelled on the certificate, it may be corrected without a court order.
Child Abuse/Neglect
-
Children (under age 18) are deemed to be "in the need of assistance" if there is apparent abuse (physical, sexual, emotional) or neglect by a caretaker.
-
Maryland law makes it a crime to fail to provide for children in your care.
-
In Maryland, a child under the age of 8 cannot be left unattended at home, school or in a car.
Child Support
-
During the 2010 Legislative session the MD General Assembly voted to revise the current child support guidelines. These new guidelines went into effect on Oct 1, 2010.
-
Frequently asked questions about child support in Maryland
-
In Maryland, each county has established a child support enforcement agency that can assist in collecting child support.
-
The law allows a larger amount of earnings to be garnished for child support or alimony than for ordinary debts.
-
Both parents have a legal duty to support their child based to their ability to provide that support. Since 1990, Maryland has had child support guidelines in effect, which provide a formula for calculating child support based on a proportion of each parent's gross income.
-
Changes can be made to the amount of child support ordered by a court. These modifications are usually based on a "changed circumstance" of one of custodial parents.
-
Establishing paternity is the process of determining who is the legal father of a child.
Custody & Visitation
-
Custody and visitation are the legal terms for court decisions about how the child will spend his/her time between parents (or others).
-
Grandparent visitation rights are codified in the Maryland Annotated Code, Family Law Article, Section 9-102.
-
Guardianship is a sub-set of custody. Often, a third party just needs to obtain guardianship for health and/or educational purposes. This is less intrusive than custody.
-
Visitation is the part of the court order that defines when, how and where the non-custodial parent may have contact with the child.
Divorce
-
Alimony is a periodic payment by one former spouse to the other to provide an opportunity for the recipient spouse to become self-supporting.
-
Divorce mediation is a time-limited, confidential process in which both you and your spouse meet with a neutral third person who helps you decide on the division of parenting responsibilities, where your children will live, how decisions will be made, and the financial issues of property and support.
-
Maryland will recognize as valid out-of-state divorces that meet the requirements of the court granting the divorce judgment.
-
When a former spouse fails to comply with a court order or the terms of a private separation agreement, the other spouse may ask the court for help in gaining compliance
-
Federal legislation gives spouses and divorced spouses some rights in a worker’s pension plan and social security benefits.
-
To obtain an absolute divorce, one spouse must first prove that at least one ground for absolute divorce exists. The following is a brief description of each ground for divorce in Maryland.
-
To obtain a limited divorce, you must first prove at least one of four grounds. These grounds include the following: mutual and voluntary separation, cruelty of treatment, excessively vicious conduct, or desertion.
-
With a few important exceptions, all the property that was acquired during a marriage is considered marital property.
-
"No fault" divorce (divorce with no grounds) requires separation living separate and apart for 12 months.
-
Divorce is the ending of a marriage ordered by a court. Because marriage is considered a civil contract between the parties under Maryland law, the complete dissolution of marriage is a divorce. In Maryland, there are two types of divorce: absolute and limited. Limited divorce is sometimes referred to as a legal separation.
-
If you are handling your own divorce, one important type of marital property that can be easily overlooked is the interest your spouse has in his/her pension.
-
Agreements between persons about to marry made prior to the time a ceremony is performed and in anticipation of marriage are usually called pre-nuptial contracts or agreements.
-
A few facts on how property is treated during a divorce in Maryland and a quiz to see if you should represent yourself in your divorce.
-
In order to have access to a part of your spouse’s pension you must have a court order often called a Qualified Domestic Relations Order.
-
To file for divorce in Maryland one party must be resident in Maryland.
-
A couple may privately enter into an oral or written agreement to live apart. This is typically called a marital settlement agreement, separation agreement, or property settlement agreement.
-
Divorce can affect your income taxes. Your written settlement agreement should state how you and your spouse will handle:
Foster Care
-
This article gives general information about foster care law in Maryland.
Grandparents' Issues
-
Grandparent visitation rights are codified in the Maryland Annotated Code, Family Law Article, Section 9-102.
Guardianship
-
Guardianship is a court proceeding. When an adult is unable to make personal decisions, such as medical decisions, or to handle his or her own property, a court can appoint a guardian.
-
Guardianship is a sub-set of custody. Often, a third party just needs to obtain guardianship for health and/or educational purposes. This is less intrusive than custody.
-
A Standby Guardian is a person appointed by a parent or parents of a child to take care of the child in the event that the parent (s) is mentally or physically incapable of doing so.
Kinship Care
-
According to the ABA, kinship care is commonly defined as the "full-time care, nurturing, and protection of children by relatives, members of their tribes or clans, or other adults who have a family relationship to a child."
-
"Informal kinship care" means a living arrangement in which a relative of a child, who is not in the care, custody, or guardianship of the local department of social services, provides for the care and custody of the child due to a serious family hardship.
Marriage
-
A “tort” is a civil wrong or injury remedied by the award of money damages. The tort actions that have special significance between married persons are “wrongful death” and “loss of consortium” claims.
-
A “common law” marriage, a relationship in which a couple lives together but has not participated in a lawful ceremony, cannot be created in Maryland. Maryland does recognize as valid, common law marriages created in other states if the legal requirements of those states have been met.
-
How to get a marriage license in Maryland and on who is allowed to officiate.
-
Agreements between persons about to marry made prior to the time a ceremony is performed and in anticipation of marriage are usually called pre-nuptial contracts or agreements.
-
Married persons are generally regarded by the courts as parties to a contract. This contract can be validly entered into (or dissolved) only by following Maryland Family Law statutes.
Name Change
-
A select summary of case law from Maryland courts.
-
To change the name of a child or minor a petition for name change needs to be filed in Maryland circuit court in the county where the child is a resident.
-
A person can change their name for any reason. The only condition for a name change is that the name change is not for any illegal or fraudulent purpose and the new name does not interfere with the rights of others.
-
As part of a divorce, a party can ask the court for an order to resume using his or her prior name.
-
Any person may file an objection to a petition to change the name of another person.
Is this legal advice?
This site offers legal information, not legal advice. We make every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information and to clearly explain your options. However we do not provide legal advice - the application of the law to your individual circumstances. For legal advice, you should consult an attorney. The Maryland State Law Library, a court-related agency of the Maryland Judiciary, sponsors this site. In the absence of file-specific attribution or copyright, the Maryland State Law Library may hold the copyright to parts of this website. You are free to copy the information for your own use or for other non-commercial purposes with the following language “Source: Maryland's People’s Law Library – www.peoples-law.org. © Maryland State Law Library, 2010.”
