Father’s Rights Vocabulary

The Words A Father Should Know : )

A

action: A lawsuit in which one party (or parties) sue another.

adopt: To take on the relationship of parent of another person, particularly a minor, by official legal measures.

affidavit: Any written document in which the signer swears under oath before a notary public (or someone authorized to take oaths) that the document’s statements are true.

affidavit of paternity: A written sworn statement by a father admitting that he is the biological father of the child.

age of emancipation: The exact age at which a child becomes an adult; a matter of law in each state.

allege: To claim a fact is true, commonly in a complaint which is filed to commence a lawsuit.

alternative dispute resolution: Any process by which legal adversaries reach a decision other than bringing the matter to trial for a judge’s decision; in divorce cases, it usually refers to mediation.

alimony: Support paid by one ex-spouse to the other as ordered by a court in a divorce (dissolution) case.

appeal: Procedure which forces a trial court decision to be reviewed by a higher court.

arrearage: Unpaid child support owed by a parent who is legally obligated to pay.

asset: Any item or property with monetary value.

B

biological father: Natural male parent of a child: his sperm fertilized the egg.

C

child: A person’s natural offspring, or, generally a person 14 years and under.

child support: The payment the noncustodial parent pays to the custodial parent to support (in theory) their child or children.

child support guidelines: The formulas used to determine the child support amount: these guidelines consider economic factors such as the custodial parent’s income, the noncustodial parent’s income, alimony, health insurance costs,day care, support obligations for other children, etc.

claim: To make a demand for money, property, or enforcement of a right provided by law.

collaborative family law: Settlement process in which the lawyers agree to withdraw if one of the parties decides to litigate divorce.

common law marriage: An agreement between a man and woman to live together as husband and wife without any official legal marriage, followed and/or preceded by cohabitation (usually for seven years.)

conjugal rights: A spouse’s “rights” to the comforts and companionship from his or her mate (usually referring to sex).

consent decree: A judge’s order based upon (a generally written) agreement between the parties to a lawsuit instead of continuing the case through trial or hearing.

custodial parent: The parent who has custody of the child or children. The custodial parent gets the child support payments.

custody: The responsibility and authority to make major decisions in a child’s best interests; these decisions may concern residence, dental, medical, education, religion, child care, recreation, etc. Custody is the legal right to act as a parent, have the children live with you, make decisions about their welfare, lives, upbringing, values, etc. When in a custody case, if the parents cannot agree, the court will decide custody.

D

decree: The same thing as judgment (except in a few specific areas of the law.)

default judgment: When a lawsuit defendant fails to respond to a complaint, the plaintiff may request that this failure be entered into the court record.

deposition: A pretrial procedure which is part of discovery in which one party forces the other party, or other witnesses, to answer questions under oath before a court reporter.

direct examination: A party’s (or attorney’s) questioning of a witness who has ben called as part of a case in a trial or hearing.

dissolution: A modern term for divorce.

divorce: Legal action which terminates a marriage.

docket: Cases on a court calender.

domestic relations: Term (polite) for the legal field of divorce, dissolution, annulment, child custody, child support, and alimony.

domestic violence: Violence against a spouse or a person in another family or romantic relationship.

domicile: A person’s permanent, main home.

E

emancipate: Independence of children from their parents due to age or circumstance.

equitable: Based on fairness rather than legal technicalities.

evidence: The proof which is presented at trial.

exhibit: Document or object introduced as evidence during a trial.

G

guardian ad litem: An attorney appointed to act as the children’s advocate or an advocate for the best interests of the children in a custody case.

garnishment: A legal proceeding in which a person’s property, money, or credit under the control of a third person (garnishee) is withheld from the defendant and applied to the payment of the defendant’s debt to the plaintiff.

genetic testing: DNA testing that is used to conclusively prove the paternity of a child; this may be a Buccal Swab Test involving the alleged father, the mother, and child.

guidelines: A standard method of setting child support obligations based upon the income of parent(s) and other factors as determined by state law.

H

hearing: Any proceeding before a judge or other magistrate without a jury in which evidence and/or argument is presented to determine some issue of fact or both issues of fact and law.

I

income withholding: An order or other legal process directed to an obligor’s employer or other income payer to withhold court-ordered sums from the obligor’s wage or other income.

interrogatories: A discover procedure. A party’s written questions to the other party that must be answered under oath in writing.

J

joint custody: A court order which awards child custody to two parents. Joint custody does not suggest that the child’s time is split equally between the parents or an equal parental financial responsibility.

jurisdiction: Authority given by law to a court to try cases and rule on legal matters within a particular geographic area and/or over certain types of legal cases.

L

legal custody: Legal custody gives a parent the right to make long-term decisions concerning his or her child’s upbringing, religion, education, health, etc.

M

marriage: Joining of man and woman in matrimony by a person qualified to perform the ceremony, after having obtained a valid marriage license.

matter of record: Anything which has been recorded by the court reporter or court clerk.

mediation: A cooperative process in which the parents meet with, presumably, a skilled and neutral mediator who guides the discussion and helps the parents reach agreements and lessen the level of conflict.

minor: Anyone under 18 in almost all states.

modification of support: A change of prior child support orders contingent upon a real change in circumstances (ie., parent is now making much more money.) A modification can be an increase or decrease.

N

noncustodial parent: The parent who does not have custody of the child; if custody is shared, the parent with less custody.

P

Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act (PKPA): A federal statute intended to prevent child snatching.

parent: This could be a natural parent, adoptive parent, or the person who is declared to be a parent by the court.

parental neglect: Crime which consists of acts or omissions of a parent which endangers the health and life of a child or fails to take necessary actions in the proper and safe raising of a child.

parenting classes: In contested custody cases, parents may be ordered to attend parenting classes which address how to minimize the harm that divorce can cause children (and other issues.)

parenting plan: A parental agreement which details each parent’s responsibilities, and, possibly, child support and visitation schedules.

paternity: The legal determination of fatherhood by acknowledgment, court order, administrative order or any other method allowed by state law.

pendente lite: Temporary until trial.

physical custody: The parent who lives in the home in which the child primarily resides has physical custody of the child.

plaintiff: Party who initiates a lawsuit by filing a complaint with the clerk of the court against the defendant.

pleadings: Pleadings are papers filed to the court: complaint, answer, counterclaim, etc.

pretrial conference: Final conference with the court before your trial. Prior to this, mom and dad will have had to file a statement of marital property and a pretrial statement concerning things like witnesses, pending motions, documents, etc.

presumed father: A presumed father is considered to be a child’s father. A man can be presumed to be the child’s father when he signs the child’s birth certificate or is married to the woman and the child is born during their marriage.

putative father: The putative father is alleged to be the biological father of an illegitimate child.

S

shared custody: The noncustodial parent has custody a significant amount of the time. Child support is calculated under the shared custody child support guidelines.

sole custody: A court order which awards child custody to one parent.

split custody: Each parent has physical custody of one or more of their children.

statute: Federal or state written law enacted by the Congress or state legislature.

statute of limitations: A state statute which sets a fixed time within which a legal action must be undertaken or the matter be forever barred from litigation.

subpoena: A document issued by a court forcing a person to attend a hearing or to produce documents for inspection at a particular time and location.

support order: A court order which instructs the noncustodial parent to pay an amount to the custodial parent (child support).

T

time-sharing: The noncustodial parent’s time with the child or children. Time-sharing is often referred to as visitation.

trial: A hearing at which the litigating parties present their witnesses and other evidence to the judge.

U

Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA): The purpose of UCCJEA is to prevent jurisdictional conflict between state courts which can occur when parents move children from state to state in search of a desired custody decision.

Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA): A state law used by all fifty states to handle interstate cases. It allows a method for establishing and enforcing support obligations when the the custodial parent and the noncustodial parent live in different states.

V

visitation: The noncustodial parent’s time with the children. Also referred to as time-sharing.

Y

your honor: Proper way to address a judge in court. Don’t forget this one : )

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