| Adoption Under the Indian Child Welfare Act |
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| Whenever a proposed adoption involves a child who is of recognized Native American lineage, both federal and state laws govern the proceeding. The Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (ICWA) is applicable to any adoption of a Native American child. The ICWA is not an adoption code, but it contains jurisdictional, procedural, and substantive provisions that pertain to adoptions. Pursuant to the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution, ICWA provisions supplement or parallel any compatible state adoption laws and preempt any inconsistent or contradictory ones. More... |
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| Divorce Generally |
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| A divorce is the termination of a marriage between two parties. It is ordered by a court after one spouse files a petition for divorce. After a divorce is finalized, both parties are free to remarry. They may even remarry one another. More... |
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| Parental Liability for a Minor's Torts |
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| A parent may be liable for a minor's torts. The parent may be found liable if the parent was negligent in their actions. The parent may be liable for an injury inflicted by the minor, if the injury was the natural and probable consequence of the parent's negligent act. The injury should be reasonably foreseeable due to the parent's negligence. More... |
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| Mortgage Issues and Divorce |
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| If a divorce decree awards one party the marital home, that party is typically required to pay the mortgage, unless other stipulations were made during the divorce proceedings. Most often the mortgage is a joint mortgage and therefore constitutes a joint debt. However, if one party that is awarded possession of the marital home and is ordered to pay the mortgage, that party theoretically becomes responsible for the entire mortgage.More... |
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| Overview of a Putative Father |
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| A putative father is an alleged father or a father out of wedlock. The putative father typically claims that he is the biological father of the child even though the mother failed to recognize his identity on the child's birth certificate.
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