| Former Stepparent Visitation Rights |
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| A stepparent is considered a legal stranger to a child and is not automatically entitled to visitation rights. However, where a close relationship between the child and the stepparent has been established, a court will consider granting rights of visitation and in some case, stepparents have been awarded legal custody. More... |
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| Putative Father's Right to Visitation |
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| Parents have a natural right to the companionship of their children. In order to experience that companionship, parents and children must have time to be together. This is generally a non-legal issue. When the child's parents are not married, the child's father is called the putative father because he is reputed to be the father of the child. A putative father may also be known as the child's natural father or biological father. To be the child's legal father, the putative father must prove his paternity before a court. The proof could be a paternity test result or acknowledgment of the child as required by statute. Once paternity is acknowledged the father has a right to visitation with his child, so long as it is in the child's best interests. More... |
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| Dependent Adult Support: Dependent Parents |
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| Statutes in 30 states impose a filial obligation on children to support their indigent or disabled parents. Indigence is not defined as completely destitute, but rather in terms of the parent's financial ability to meet his or her basic needs. More... |
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| Child Support Modification Upon Emancipation of a Child |
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| A non-custodial parent's support obligation generally continues until their child reaches the age of legal majority or becomes emancipated. Where a child has achieved independence from effective parental control, and is no longer dependent upon parental support, the child support obligation may be terminated, even if the child has not yet reached the age of majority. The most common cause of emancipation, however, is attainment of the age of majority. More... |
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| Liens to Enforce Child Support Obligations |
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| Where a past due child support obligation has been reduced to judgment, a lien can be placed against property owned by the parent who owed the child support, and the state agency or custodial parent can execute on that property to collect the amount owed. More... |
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