MEE - Family Law

Question 1

Home-State Jurisdiction (Initial Custody Determination)

Answer 1

A court has subject matter jurisdiction to preside over custody hearings and to enter or modify custody or visitation orders if the state (1) is the child’s home state or (2) was the child’s home state in the past 6 months and the child is absent from that state but one of the parents (or guardians) still lives there.

Question 2

Child’s Home State

Answer 2

The state in which the child has lived (1) with a parent or guardian for at least six consecutive months immediately prior to the custody proceeding or (2) since birth, if the child is less than 6 months old.

Question 3

Marital Property

Answer 3

In most states, all property acquired during the marriage is marital property and subject to equitable distribution. The definition of marital property is typically broadly applied and includes retirement benefits and, under some circumstances, equity in nonmarital property.

Question 4

Separate Property

Answer 4

Property acquired before the marriage; property excluded by the parties’ valid agreement entered into before, during, or after the marriage; property acquired by gift or inheritance, or property acquired in exchange for such property, except when it is between spouses; property a party has sold, granted, conveyed, or otherwise disposed of in good faith and for value before the date of final separation; property to the extent that it has been mortgaged or otherwise encumbered in good faith for value before the date of final separation; and any award or settlement payment received for any cause of action or claim that accrued before the marriage, regardless of when the payment was received

Question 5

Dissipation

Answer 5

Dissipation occurs when one spouse uses marital property for his sole benefit after the marriage has irreconcilably broken down, such as the purchase of expensive gifts for a paramour.

Question 6

Factors in the distribution of Marital Property

Answer 6

1. Length of Marriage;
2. Prior Marriages;
3. Age, health, earnings, earning potential, liabilities, and needs of both spouses;
4. Contributions to education;
5. Needs for future acquisitions;
6. Income, medical needs, retirement of both spouses;
7. Contributions to increase in marital property, including homemaking and child-rearing services;
8. Value of separate property;
9. Reduction in valuation in marital property by one spouse;
10. Standard of living;
11. Economic circumstances of each spouse of the time of divorce;
12. Custodianship of any minor children.

Question 7

Jurisdiction over Divorce

Answer 7

A court hearing a family-related dispute must generally have both subject-matter jurisdiction and personal jurisdiction. Most states have residency requirements to establish subject-matter jursidiction.

Question 8

UCCEJA

Answer 8

Uniform Child Custody Enforcement and Jurisdiction Act- Most states have adopted the UCCEJA. The purpose is to prevent jurisdictional disputes with courts in other states on matters of child custody and require the court to have subject-matter jurisdiction.

Question 9

Jurisdiction over Child Custody

Answer 9

In an initial custody determination, a court has subject-matter jurisdiction to enter custody orders if the state is the child’s home state.

Question 10

Doctrine of Divisible Divorce

Answer 10

Under the DofDD, a court may have sufficient jurisdiction to grant a divorce, but lack such jurisdiction with respect to other divorce-related matters, such as property division, without personal jurisdiction over the other spouse. A court may not exercise personal jurisdiction over a defendant unless the defendant has minimum contacts with the state4 in which the court sits and the exercise of jurisdiction would be fair and reasonable.

Question 11

Fault Grounds for Divorce

Answer 11

(1) adultery, (2) cruelty, (3) desertion, (4) habitual drunkenness, (5) bigamy, (6) imprisonment, (7) indignity, and (8) mental disorder

Question 12

Adultery

Answer 12

Adultery is voluntary sexual intercourse with someone other than one’s spouse. Evidence must show that a party had the opportunity and the inclination to commit adultery.

Question 13

Cruelty

Answer 13

To prevail on grounds of cruelty or inhumane treatment, most jurisdictions require that the plaintiff demonstrate a course of conduct by the other party that is harmful to the plaintiff’s physical or mental health and that makes the continued cohabitation between the parties unsafe or improper. The conduct of the defendant must be serious and typically cannot be based on one isolated incident. The majority of jurisdictions permit divorces based on cruelty in cases of physical abuse, while only some permit it in cases of only emotional abuse or mental cruelty.

Question 14

Physical Custody

Answer 14

Physical custody is the right to have the child reside with the parent and provide for routine daily care and control of the child.

Question 15

Best Interest of the Child (Custody)

Answer 15

The standard for determining child custody is the best interests and welfare of the child. In addition, courts can consider who the primary caretaker of the child was during the marriage and separation, and prior to the divorce, as factors in determining who should have custody.