Family Law
Divorce (aka Dissolution of Marriage)
The goal of a divorce is to end a marriage and resolve such issues as child custody, visitation, child support, spousal maintenance (alimony), property and debt division and attorney's fees and costs. A divorce decree (final judgment) can be based on an agreement between the parties or result from a trial. An agreement is usually less traumatic for you and your children and far less expensive than a trial. Ultimately, most cases are resolved without a trial.
Child Custody
There are two kinds of custody: Legal and Physical.
Child Support
Parents have a legal duty to support his or her natural or adopted children. The support of other persons, such as stepchildren, is deemed strictly voluntary.
Spousal Maintenance
In a proceeding for dissolution of marriage or legal separation the court may grant a spousal maintenance order for either spouse if it finds that the spouse seeking maintenance:
Mediation
Mediation is the process whereby an impartial third person helps disputing parties resolve their differences in a private and confidential setting. Mediation is a low cost, flexible, fast, efficient and completely confidential method of resolving disputes and is increasingly encouraged by Arizona courts. While mediation is neither therapy nor counseling, it is a process whereby both parties are able to explore various settlement options, make informed decisions and realize a positive outcome. Mediation has proven highly successful in many types of disputes, including assisting families in the resolution of disputes arising from divorce, as well as the ongoing issues associated with co-parenting children after the divorce is over.
Relocating With Your Child
ARS § 25-408 states that if both parents are entitled to reasonable parenting time and both parents reside in the state, at least sixty days' advance written notice must be provided to the other parent before a parent may do either of the following:
Parental Education
On April 18, 1996, Arizona established Domestic Relations Education on Children’s Issues Programs throughout the state. This law requires every parent of a minor child who files for divorce, separation, parenting time/custody, or paternity to attend a Parent Education class. Additionally, a Court may order attendance when parents are involved in a child support case or seek to change an order for custody or parenting time.
Grandparent Rights
Pursuant to ARS § 25-409, a court may grant the grandparents of the child reasonable visitation rights to the child during the child's minority on a finding that the visitation rights would be in the best interests of the child and any of the following is true:
Establishing Paternity
Establishing paternity means to be declared the legal and biological father of a child. If the parents of a child were not married when the mother became pregnant or when the child was born, the child does not have a legal father until paternity is established. This is true even if the father's name is on the child's birth certificate.
Attorney's Fees
Either parent may request attorney fees, costs and expert witness fees to enable the parent with insufficient resources to obtain adequate legal representation and to prepare evidence for the hearing. If the court finds there is a financial disparity between the parents, the court may order that the parent having more resources is responsible for the payment of reasonable fees, expenses and costs to allow adequate preparation.
How to Obtain an Order of Protection (Restraining Order)
A domestic violence Order of Protection, also called a "restraining order", is a civil court order from a judicial officer, such as a judge or magistrate. In order to issue an Order of Protection, a judicial officer must find that domestic violence has occurred and that you have a specific relationship with your abuser. The restraining order is intended to provide protection from physical harm caused by force from a family or household member.