Family Law Midterm
A possible defense to having signed a prenup would not be:
A change of heart.
Marriage resulting from a license and ceremony at the courthouse is:
A civil marriage.
Legal requirements for a valid premarital agreement include all but which of the following?
A clear assignment of household chores and responsibilities
A valid marriage that is created without any civil or religious license or ceremony is:
A common law marriage.
Three of these approaches to alimony have been recently proposed as changes to the long-standing rule. Which one is not a proposed change, but rather an existing common approach?
A complete waiver of alimony in a prenup
A marriage that requires premarital counseling, fault-based divorce, and predivorce counseling is:
A covenant marriage.
A state statute provides that while married, a couple cannot contract to alter the terms of their marriage. Which of these documents is arguably barred by this?
A postmarital contract
Mexico and Puerto Rico have considered adopting laws that would require review of marital status every 5-10 years, in an effort to reduce divorce. This approach is called:
A renewable contract marriage.
Jackie loves his wife, but he just can't stand to live with her anymore. He still wants to take care of her, but not to share the same abode. His best legal action to resolve this would be:
A separate maintenance action.
In colonial America, _________.
A spouse who breached the marital contract could not sue for divorce
Which of the following is not generally true in a community property state?
A testator can completely disinherit a spouse without notification.
A valid prior existing marriage that was never legally terminated is an example of:
A voidable marriage.
In a family law practice, you, as a paralegal, may be asked to perform any of the following tasks except:
Advising a client on whether or not to contest a custody arrangement.
Celebrity antenups mentioned in the text include all but which of the provisions listed below?
An agreement that neither party would appear in a "reality" show to discuss the relationship in the event of a divorce.
Andrew and Charlotte were smart before they got married. They entered into a premarital agreement. This agreement allowed Charlotte to receive alimony. The agreed-upon amount was not a fixed amount, so she could actually receive more than is stated. This is based on:
An escalation clause or cost-of-living clause.
Alimony payments to a spouse are considered:
An event that transfers the tax obligations from the payor to the payee.
Some jurisdictions have altered their divorce proceedings, enabling pro se litigants to represent themselves more easily in each of these methods except:
Annulment
Premarital agreements are used by:
Anyone who believes that it is better to be proactive than reactive.
Artwork, copyrights, tax refunds, and bank accounts are all examples of:
Assets.
Marriage affords couples certain legal rights. One right not associated with marriage is:
Automatic citizenship.
Pendente lite alimony is:
Awarded for support during the course of the divorce.
Community property is based on:
Both the French and Spanish systems of law.
The first state to recognize no-fault divorce was:
California
Courts do not recognize which of these kinds of alimony?
Canon
The premarital clause that indicates which state law controls if there is a dispute is called the ___ clause.
Choice of governing law
The ways to end a marriage other than death do not include:
Common law divorce.
In a divorce action, the order of pleading and responsive pleadings is:
Complaint/petition; appearance and answer; cross complaint and special defenses.
Bigamy could be characterized as any of the following except:
Completely protected by the First Amendment.
Property held by one person is known as sole ownership. Property can also be held by two or more persons together. This later type of ownership is called:
Concurrent ownership.
Family court procedures can include all of the following except:
Criminal prosecution for nonsupport.
Tracing could include the process of:
Determining what portion of a marital asset was originally separate property.
Aaron and Erin have been married for ten years but not all happy. She realizes that it would be best to consider ending the marriage, and a friend recommended a dissolution. Which of these terms most closely resembles dissolution?
Divorce
The difference between divorce mensa et thoro and divorce a vincula matrimonii is:
Divorce a vincula matrimonii is a complete divorce that allows parties to remarry.
Factors that have affected the decision to grant alimony include all but which of the following:
Divorced women have had no legal identity during marriage, and will need to create one postdivorce.
Unity of spouses
English common law used to determine the division of marital property on dissolution of the marriage; husband and wife were merged into a single entity, the husband
Ustov came into this marriage with nothing but his love for Hilda, a well-off widow with an excellent job. After eight years, Hilda came to the conclusion that love is not all you need, so she filed for divorce. Ustov may receive some of their investments under the theory of:
Equitable distribution.
Prior to marriage, parties can enter into prenuptial, premarital, or antenuptial agreements that:
Establish separate property.
A client has called your law office regarding a prenup. She intends to marry in the spring and would like this to be taken care of before the wedding. Your supervising attorney has asked you to draft a letter telling them what information he will need from them to do a good job. In your letter you probably did not request which of the following?
Evidence of the engagement and wedding arrangements
The "second glance doctrine" will not consider which of the following factors to determine enforceability?
Existence of dependent children
At the turn of the twentieth century in the United States, ____marriages ended in divorce.
Fewer than one in twenty
Parties can attempt to salvage failing marriages by trying any of the following except:
Filing for a simple dissolution.
Prior to the 1960s, parties had to allege fault in a civil suit to dissolve the marriage: These allegations were called:
Grounds
In divorce proceedings, the purposes of a preliminary hearing, in jurisdictions that permit them, would include all of the following except:
Hammer out the final property division.
Changes in residency requirements for divorce:
Have decreased the number of migratory divorces.
Copy of Changes in residency requirements for divorce:
Have resulted in more collusion in proving grounds for divorce.
In the jurisdictions that permit postmarital agreements, a client might enter into a valid one except when:
He wants to guarantee that he will have custody of their children, and never be required to pay any support.
Joe and Jill are not married to each other, but own a piece of real estate together as tenants in common. Sadly, Joe dies intestate. Who gets the property Joe and Jill owned?
His heirs will share it with Jill.
Legal separation or separate maintenance differs from divorce because:
In divorce, parties are free to remarry.
The concentration of states that use community property are located:
In the West and Southwest.
Michael has fallen in love with Shirley, his father's sister-in-law, and hopes to marry her. This constitutes:
Incest by affinity.
Grounds for a legal annulment do not include:
Incompatibility
Historically, grounds for divorce did not include ____.
Incompatibility
In a cross complaint or counterclaim, the defendant spouse may:
Initiate divorce proceedings.
Forms of alternative dispute (ADR) used in the resolution of marital matters in the United States do not include:
Inquisitorial litigation.
Polygamy:
Is defined as having multiple spouses at the same time.
The Uniform Premarital Agreement Act (UPAA) :
Is merely a model for states to consider adopting.
Separate property will probably not transmute into marital property if:
It remains in a separate account.
Separate property will not lose its separate identity when:
It remains segregated throughout the entire marriage.
Which of the following is not a way in which the payment of alimony differs from child support?
It will always be determined as a factor of multiplying the number of years of marriage times income.
There are many ways to distribute rights to a pension earned by one spouse during a marriage. Which of the following would not be likely to occur?
It would be treated as separate property of the employee who earned it.
Our client feels that because her spouse is the one who initially sought the divorce, he should at least pay her attorney's fees. She will probably:
Lose. An automatic award of wife's attorney's fees to the wife without additional cause is unconstitutional.
Upon completion of a college degree by one spouse, which was required for her job, the resulting student loans are considered to be:
Marital debt.
A paralegal practicing in family law:
Must be competent and enthusiastic about that area of law. Have training providing him/her with a solid background in both family law theory and practice. Know the procedures that his/her law office uses to handle family matters. -All of the above.
Features typical of a divorce in the first half of the 20th century include all the following except:
No-fault divorce was commonplace.
Joise is divorcing Clarence. It is a bitter divorce because of dalliances on the part of both parties. However, Joise is more aggrieved than Clarence and wants to make sure Clarence pays dearly. She wants alimony for life, if possible. She has a good job, a few modest investments, and a little "slush" fund stashed away. What are her chances of getting what she wants?
Not too good. She is employed and has investments, not to mention the "slush" fund.
In the process of divorce, members in the law practice must be aware:
Of the sensitive nature of underlying issues. Of the community resources available to clients and their families. Of meeting the client's objectives with the least amount of court intervention. -All of the above.
Unconscionability in the formation of an antenuptial contract can be evidenced by any of the following except:
One party will receive less than if the relationship ends in a divorce.
By the late 1800s, the passage of the Married Women's Property Acts permitted married women to, for the first time:
Own property in their own names.
The more modern view of marriage compares it to:
Partnership law, requiring a fair division of marital assets.
Along with the marital home, a _______ is most commonly one of the two largest assets to be distributed in divorces.
Pension
Which of the following would not be considered part of the "wave of the future" in family law?
Permanent alimony
Ebenezer, an 83-year-old multimillionaire, has lost his heart to a 24-year-old yoga instructor. He knows his years are numbered, but she told him that if he did not marry her soon, she would leave him, taking her love with her. He has children (and grand- and great-grandchildren) and a lifetime alimony order to consider. Before the ceremony, he would be advised to enter into a:
Premarital agreement.
In the landmark decision in Posner v. Posner, 232 So.2d 381 (Fla. 1970), the court ruled:
Prenuptial agreements were not invalid per se.
After a divorce trial, parties may have to pursue postjudgment actions. These are generally not available for:
Property division.
The case of Marvin v. Marvin, 18 Cal.3d 660, 557 P.2d 106, 134 Cal. Rptr. 815 (1976) addressed the issue of palimony in cohabitation. All of the following are additional cohabitation remedies except:
Quasi-divorce, which applies all divorce rights and responsibilities to the cohabiting couple.
Roy's lawyer is going to use the discovery device known as interrogatories. The purpose of interrogatories in a divorce is to:
Question Roy's spouse, in writing and under oath, about financial or personal matters.
Robin has children from a previous relationship. Before she marries Carl she wants to make sure what little she has will go to her children. Carl says that they do not need to have a prenup because he will take good care of children. Robin can preserve the children's interests by doing any of the following except:
Rely upon their rights of intestate succession.
Which of the following situations are void, not merely voidable, marriages?
Remaining married despite the fact the relationship constitutes incest
Parties that seek a legal separation usually do not do so to:
Remarry quickly.
Erin's attorney will be using which discovery device to pare down the number of legal issues to be litigated?
Requests for Admission
Our client's fiancé, while waiting for the chapel to fill with wedding guests, insisted that she sign a prenuptial agreement. He said that if she didn't sign, he was leaving. Reluctantly she signed, but the marriage didn't last long enough to let the ink dry on the document. The agreement made no support arrangements at all, and settled less than the cost of the wedding on her, a tiny fraction of what he was worth. We might challenge the "prenup" on the ground that:
She did not enter the agreement voluntarily.
In their three-year marriage, Sarah and Dan transitioned from their last year of school into their entry-level jobs. They are seeking a divorce, and Sarah wonders if she might be entitled to permanent alimony, as her mother suggests. Which of the following is true?
She does not appear to meet the standards for a permanent award.
Which of the following would not be attempted to reduce income used in calculating alimony, because it would not affect the "bottom line"?
Shifting royalties received to investment income
Joint tenancy is similar to_______ ownership, because it carries the right of survivorship.
Tenancy by the entirety
Hugh is in a vicious battle with Helen over the custody of their young son, Junior. Hugh was told by counsel that the law automatically presumes both parties to be fit, and absent a showing that Helen cannot take care of the child, both parties would be strong contenders for custody. Hugh has decided, through counsel, to ask that Helen, who filed for the divorce, have a mental evaluation for fitness. The court would consider which of the following factors?
That Helen's mental condition could demonstrate her inability to properly parent Junior
To get a legal or civil annulment, a party must prove:
That there was a defect in the marriage at its inception.
Ethan is 17 years old. He wants to marry his 14-year-old girlfriend, and she, him. Which of these would they not expect to demonstrate to their state?
That they will remain married at least until the age of majority.
The original definition of marriage can be found in:
The Judeo-Christian culture.
In Oldani v. Oldani, 132 Conn. App. 609, 35 A.3d 407 (2011), plaintiff challenged the fairness of a prenuptial agreement that she had entered into with her husband. The court held that:
The agreement was invalid because Mr. Oldani had failed to reveal his income, despite Mrs. Oldani's being represented by counsel.
Court cases discussing the characterization of a degree earned during marriage take all but which of these factors into consideration in divorce proceedings?
The desire of the newly degreed spouse to seek a more suitable mate
The determination that there was no valid marriage.
The determination that there was no valid marriage.
Child support payments are based on state-enacted child support guidelines. Alimony will not be based on:
The future marriage plans of either spouse.
One of the requirements of a valid contract is consideration. In a prenuptial agreement the consideration is:
The marriage.
"Title" to property indicates:
The party's ownership interest in the property.
Alimony terminates on the death of:
The payor, unless an agreement extends it by an insurance policy that covers payments for a specific length of time.
Family law issues considered by courts and legislative bodies include all but:
The religious dissolution of the marriage.
The passage of Married Women's Property Acts granted married women all but which of the following rights?
The right to retain custody of minor children
Our client is considering whether to request periodic alimony, or a lump sum. We might suggest which of the following?
The tax burden in a lump-sum arrangement might be prohibitive for her, as a recipient.
Jurisdictions that recognize common law marriage usually require all of the following except:
There are no children of the union.
Courts may consider all but which of the following factors when determining whether to order a greater property division rather than alimony?
There is no difference to consider.
Our client has not been receiving his court-ordered spousal support because his ex-wife has been demoted. Which would not be a possible remedy?
There is no recourse. Women cannot be ordered to pay alimony.
John and Martha entered into a prenuptial agreement with no intent of ever marrying, although they were cohabiting. When they broke up, Martha tried to enforce the agreement. A court would probably rule:
There was no contract because there was no consideration.
When Joan married Louis, he and the mortgage company owned a duplex that they rented out, but she had a job. It is now paid off. Joan wants a divorce and the duplex, and her lawyer will probably tell her:
They can trace and subtract the initial contribution, then split the value of the property.
People who opt for common law marriages may do so because:
They can't afford the wedding, the official for the ceremony, or the costs of license and blood tests.
Arguments against an antenuptial agreement have, through the years, included all but which of the following?
They could never be true contracts.
Public policy arguments have been used to render all except which of the following provisions unenforceable?
Waiver of alimony upon divorce
In a custody dispute between parents, both parents are seeking custody of their 5-year-old son. What is likely to be the outcome if the father is a salesman who travels 15 days out of the month? His mother, the paternal grandmother, promises to babysit and care for the child in his absence. The mother is an up-and-coming executive spending long hours at the office. The court will probably grant physical custody to:
Whoever makes certain that the minor's well-being is best served.
Which of the following is something that would not have been a concern to a 30-year-old married woman living in the 1950s who was seeking a divorce?
Would she be able to enter into a state-recognized domestic partnership following the divorce?
Our client's ex-spouse was awarded permanent alimony. Two years after the divorce, she moved a man into the family home that she also received in the divorce. Our client is upset that he is paying alimony that supports the couple. Can he end his payments?
Yes, if he can prove she is financially benefitting from this arrangement.
Our client, James, is "part owner" of a winning lottery ticket. It's ironic, because his spouse, Kara, just filed for divorce yesterday, not knowing that James and his co-workers routinely pooled their money and purchased tickets. James wonders if Kara is entitled to any of these winnings.
Yes, if he is to receive proceeds as a contractual obligation, and marital funds were used to purchase the ticket.
After marriage, Larry joined Sharon in the home she had owned before she married him seven years ago. The down payment was made from a gift to Sharon from her grandparents. They are now divorcing, and plan on selling the house. Sharon wants the larger portion of profits from the sale to cover the down payment her grandparents gave to her. Is she entitled to reimbursement for the down payment?
Yes, if we can trace it back to the initial gift made to her prior to marriage.
Sham marriage
a U.S. citizen agrees to a marriage for monetary compensation
Public policy
a belief held by a majority of the people as to the desirability/rightness/wrongness of certain behavior
Antenuptial agreement
a contract entered into by prospective spouses regarding their rights during the marriage and in the event of divorce
Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO)
a court order served on the pension administrator ordering the plan to distribute part of the pension to a nonemployee spouse
QTIP
a device that will preserve assets in a trust
ERISA
a federal statute protecting employees and their pensions in case of employer bankruptcy or close of business
Simplified divorce procedure
a form of low-cost divorce enacted by a number of states
Annulment
a judicial decision that a valid marriage does not exist/never existed
Settlement conference
a meeting with both lawyers and their clients with the goal of settling the case without court intervention
ADR
a method of resolving disputes without resorting to a trial
Uniform Premarital Agreement Act (UPAA)
a model act that addresses the issues necessary to create a valid premarital agreement
Irreconcilable differences
a no-fault basis for divorce
Family counseling
a service/process that enables couples to evaluate the validity of their marriage
Equitable distribution
a system allowing family courts to distribute property acquired during the marriage, equitably, not necessarily equally
Collaborating lawyering
a team approach to divorce dispute resolution
Emancipation
acquiring adulthood by operation of law
Postnuptial agreement
agreements made after the marriage has been performed
Nominal alimony
alimony in the amount of $1.00 per year; it allows the spouse to preserve the jurisdiction of the court in case of a change in circumstances
Unconscionable
an agreement that is so unfair to one party that the court will refuse to enforce it
Premarital agreement
another name for an antenuptial agreement
Special masters
appointed experienced lawyers that might preside at a settlement conference
Collaborative lawyering
attorneys who represent the couple agree to seek a settlement, rather than a litigated divorce
Rehabilitative alimony
awarded for a limited period of time, to assist a spouse in becoming self-sufficient
Second glance doctrine
consideration of what circumstances exist at the time of enforcement of a prenuptial agreement
Cohabitation
couples choosing to live together without marriage
Dissipation of marital assets
depletion of the marital property by waste
Blended families
families combined in subsequent marriages
Polygamy
having multiple spouses
Child support enforcement amendments
helps parents in the collection of child support
Enterprise goodwill
includes such factors as reputation and location of a business
Void ab initio
invalid from its inception
Migratory divorce
litigants seeking a jurisdiction that requires a shorter period of residency
Waiver of alimony
one or both spouses relinquish their right to ask for alimony
No-fault divorce
parties only have to prove irreconcilable differences with no chance of reconciliation
COBRA
permits an ex-spouse to continue medical coverage under an employee's plan
Dissolution of marriage
phrase used to formally define the word divorce
Marital assets
property acquired during a marriage
Consanguinity
related by blood
Affinity
related by marriage
Permanent alimony
seldom granted, but most appropriate for people with health issues or of advanced years who will be unable to attain self-sufficiency
Bridge-the-gap alimony
short-term, lump sum alimony awarded to a spouse for the purpose of transitioning from married to single status
Pendente lite alimony
support awarded for the duration of the divorce process
Putative spouse
the spouse in a second marriage where the first marriage has not been legally dissolved
Civil code
the system of Spanish and French concepts of marital property law
Transmutation
the transformation of separate property to marital property
Durational alimony
usually awarded after a short- or moderate-term marriage, it is longer than bridge-the-gap, but cannot exceed the length of the marriage
Common law marriages
valid marriage based on intent rather than a state license
Reimbursement alimony
where a non-degreed spouse is compensated for his/her contribution to the student spouse's getting an advanced degree that results in higher earning capacity