Many people who attempt to handle their family law case on their own are unfamiliar with Legal Terms and Definitions used by the Court. There is a certain “language” that is spoken and/or referred to that can feel very intimidating, unfamiliar and downright scary. People also have many questions regarding family court procedures and the proper names of documents. Most importantly, they have no idea what document gets them where they want to go. This Blog is about what legal terms are used most often in Arizona family law cases and what they mean.
Divorce/Dissolution: The words “divorce” and “dissolution” mean the same thing but the terms are often interchanged. A divorce or dissolution occurs when a marriage ends and one or both parties no longer wants to be married. It is the legal procedure of ending a marriage.
Legal Separation: A legal separation is a legal process for parties who are married but have not yet decided for sure on whether or not to divorce. The same steps apply to receiving a legal separation as a divorce; however at the end, the parties are neither married nor divorced. Many people choose this option for religious reasons, or if they have not resided in the State of Arizona for the required 90 days prior to filing for divorce.
Paternity: A paternity action is filed when two people are not married but have a child or children in common and want to legally establish the Father’s standing as a parent to the child as well as determine what parenting time each party will exercise.
No Fault State: Arizona is a “no fault state” which means that the only basis that needs to be stated for filing a divorce or legal separation are irreconcilable differences.
Community Property: Community property is any property acquired during the marriage. There are a few exceptions but the presumption is that if something was acquired during the marriage it is community – meaning both parties own it equally.
Community Debt: Community debt is any debt acquired during the marriage. Either party can obligate both for community debt with just a signature except for real estate transactions.
Separate Property: Separate property is any property brought into the marriage by either party. There are a few ways to acquire separate property while married; for example, by gift or inheritance.
Legal Decision Making: Decisions that are made by the parents for the benefit of their children primarily regarding, medical issues, education issues, religious issues and personal care decisions.
Parenting Time: Parenting time refers to time each parent spends with their children.
Child Support: Money that is paid by one parent to the other for the support of the child. In Arizona there is a formula under the Arizona Child Support Guidelines for calculating child support. It can be found at http://www.azcourts.gov/Portals/31/GuideSched10072011.pdf
Physical Custody: Physical custody simply means that parent who has the child physically has physical custody of the child at that time. The State of Arizona no longer has the designation of “custody” but rather legal decision making and parenting time.
Petition: A Petition is a legal document that starts a case in court or that is the beginning of a new issue in a case that already exists where all other issues were previously decided.
Motion: A motion is a legal document that asks the court to do something.
Decree of Dissolution: The actual document that says you are officially divorced. It contains the specific terms of your divorce and is an official court order.
Spousal Maintenance: Also known as “alimony” or “spousal support” it is money that is paid from one former spouse to the other. The length and duration of spousal maintenance is determined either by agreement of the parties or a Judge’s decision.
Enforcement: An enforcement action is filed when a party is not doing something they were ordered to do by the court.
Modification: A modification action is a request to the court to change something about current court orders.
Temporary Orders: Temporary Orders ask the court to make some initial decisions about various issues rather than waiting for the entire case to be completed. Once received, temporary orders are required to be followed until all the issues are finalized.
Default Divorce: A default divorce happens when the responding party fails to file a Response with the court. The filing party then receives what they are asking for from the court.
RMC: The initials stand for “Resolution Management Conference” and it is usually the first hearing at the beginning of a divorce case. Its purpose is to set future hearing dates and to place agreements on the record.
Rule 69 Agreement: A Rule 69 Agreement is a legally binding agreement between two parties. It can be placed on the record verbally in court or submitted in writing. Once a Rule 69 Agreement is accepted by the court neither party can change their mind.
Parenting Plan: A parenting plan is a legal document and the blueprint that parents follow in spending time with their child. A parenting plan sets forth the schedule for regular parenting time, holidays, vacations, school breaks, travel and other issues related to each parent’s time with their child.