A formal request for a green card or a specific nonimmigrant (temporary) visa. In many cases, the petition must be filed by someone sponsoring the immigrant, su... (more...)

A formal request for a green card or a specific nonimmigrant (temporary) visa. In many cases, the petition must be filed by someone sponsoring the immigrant, such as a family member or employer. After the petition is approved, the immigrant may submit the actual visa or green card application.

FOSTER CHILD

A child placed by a government agency or a court in the care of someone other than his or her natural parents. Foster children may be removed from their family ... (more...)

A child placed by a government agency or a court in the care of someone other than his or her natural parents. Foster children may be removed from their family home because of parental abuse or neglect. Occasionally, parents voluntarily place their children in foster care. See foster care.

PHYSICAL CUSTODY

The right and obligation of a parent to have his child live with him. Compare legal custody.

ADOPTED CHILD

Any person, whether an adult or a minor, who is legally adopted as the child of another in a court proceeding. See adoption.

PATERNITY SUIT

A lawsuit to determine the identity of the father of a child born outside of marriage, and to provide for the support of the child once the identity of the fath... (more...)

A lawsuit to determine the identity of the father of a child born outside of marriage, and to provide for the support of the child once the identity of the father has been determined.

IRREMEDIABLE OR IRRETRIEVABLE BREAKDOWN

The situation that occurs in a marriage when one spouse refuses to live with the other and will not work toward reconciliation. In a number of states, irremedia... (more...)

The situation that occurs in a marriage when one spouse refuses to live with the other and will not work toward reconciliation. In a number of states, irremediable breakdown is the accepted ground for a no-fault divorce. As a practical matter, courts seldom, if ever, inquire into whether the marriage has actually broken down, and routinely grant a divorce as long as the party seeking the divorce says the marriage has fallen apart. Compare incompatibility; irreconcilable differences.

CLOSE CORPORATION

A corporation owned and operated by a few individuals, often members of the same family, rather than by public shareholders. State laws permit close corporation... (more...)

A corporation owned and operated by a few individuals, often members of the same family, rather than by public shareholders. State laws permit close corporations to function more informally than regular corporations. For example, shareholders can make decisions without holding meetings of the board of directors, and can fill vacancies on the board without a vote of the shareholders.

CENSUS

An official count of the number of people living in a certain area, such as a district, city, county, state, or nation. The United States Constitution requires ... (more...)

An official count of the number of people living in a certain area, such as a district, city, county, state, or nation. The United States Constitution requires the federal government to perform a national census every ten years. The census includes information about the respondents' sex, age, family, and social and economic status.

NEXT FRIEND

A person, usually a relative, who appears in court on behalf of a minor or incompetent plaintiff, but who is not a party to the lawsuit. For example, children a... (more...)

A person, usually a relative, who appears in court on behalf of a minor or incompetent plaintiff, but who is not a party to the lawsuit. For example, children are often represented in court by their parents as 'next friends.'

SAMPLE LEGAL CASES

DEPT. OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVS. v. Pelletier

... The family law magistrate (Langner, M.) found in favor of Pelletier after concluding that the Department had waived its right to seek child support. ... We now hold that the same rules apply when the District Court has vacated a family law magistrate's decision. ...

Smith v. Padolko

... On a post-judgment motion to modify a divorce decree, an abuse of discretion will only be found if the award is "plainly and unmistakably an injustice that is so apparent as to be instantly visible without argument." Levy, Maine Family Law Pleadings and Procedure Â§ 4.13.3 at 61 ...

Conrad v. Swan

... Robert G. Conrad appeals from a judgment of the District Court (South Paris, Lawrence, J.) denying his objection to a final order of parental rights and responsibilities in which the Family Law Magistrate (Carlson, M.) rendered a default judgment against him for failure to appear. ...

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LEGAL TERMS

PETITION (IMMIGRATION)