Custodial interference refers to a parent breaking court determined custodial instructions. This can be as major as taking a child from the sole custodian or as minimal as calling a child more than directed. Custodial interference is a crime...
divorce
custodial parent
A custodial parent is the parent that lives with and cares for their minor child for all (sole physical custody) or most (primary physical custody) of the time. This contrasts with the noncustodial parent, who might have the child on a...
custodian
A custodian is a person having charge of something. Some common uses of the term “custodian” in a legal sense include:
Under the Uniform Transfers to Minors Act (UTMA) and Uniform Gifts to Minors Act (UGMA), a “custodian” is a person...custody
Custody is the state of physically holding or controlling a person or piece of property, or of having the right to do so. A person who has custody over property or another person often has affirmative duties to protect and care for those in...
custody (of a child)
Custody determines who lives with, cares for, and can make important decisions about a minor child. While such arrangements can be informally agreed upon by the parents, in family law the question generally arises following the separation or...
default divorce
A default divorce is one where a divorce judgment is entered on the other party's failure to file an answer to the divorce petition. In this situation, the spouse seeking a divorce files a petition for divorce against the other spouse. The...
desertion
Desertion is willful abandonment of a person's duties or obligations, especially to a spouse or child. Some common uses of the term desertion in a legal sense include:
Desertion is a ground for divorce in states with fault divorce. In...dissolution
Dissolution is the act of bringing an end or termination of a legal relationship between two parties, such as a partnership, contract or marriage.
In the context of partnership law, dissolution is a fundamental change of...
dissolution of marriage
Dissolution of marriage is the legal process that terminates a marriage. Divorce and dissolution are often used interchangeably, but these terms have different legal meanings. Dissolution of marriage can be thought of as being similar to no-...
divorce
A divorce formally dissolves a legal marriage. While married couples do not possess a constitutional or legal right to divorce, states permit divorces because doing so serves public policy. To ensure that a particular divorce serves public...