Divorce Definitions

Paternity The determination of who the father of a child is in order to arrange child custody and child support in the event of a divorce. Lump-Sum Alimony Lump-sum alimony or alimony in gross refers to alimony that is a fixed payment that generally will be made regardless of circumstances that would be a basis for termination of other types of alimony. Custodial parent The parent who has physical custody of the children. Age of Majority Attained upon one's eighteenth birthday. However, a child support order will remain in effect beyond attainment of eighteen as long as the child continuously attends an accredited high school on a full time basis, the child is determined to be mentally or physically disabled by the court, or both parents have agreed to continue support after the age of 18 and it is incorporated in a divorce decree. Reimbursement Alimony Reimbursement alimony, as the name implies, is designed to reimburse one spouse for expenses occurred by the other. Contested Divorce A divorce where the parties are unable or unwilling to come to a mutual agreement. Child Support An amount of money under a court or administrative order that is due and owed by the non-custodial parent for the support of the parent's child(ren). Buccal Swab A recognized form of genetic testing used to determine paternity, which involves a q-tip type instrument for collecting saliva from individuals submitting to testing. Rehabilitative Alimony Rehabilitative alimony refers to alimony that is given to a spouse so that the spouse may “rehabilitate” herself or himself in the sense of acquiring greater earning power or training in order to become self-supporting. Alimony A payment made by one spouse to another pending divorce or separation.

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	Did You Know?
	An annulment is a court ruling that a supposed marriage was never valid. One of the most common grounds for annulment is fraud. For example, one person may have not disclosed to the other a prior divorce, a criminal record, or an unwillingness to have sexual intercourse. An annulment also may be granted may if one of the parties to the "marriage” was still married to someone else at the time of the marriage that is at issue. Other bases for annulments include marriage of an underage person, marriage to too close a blood relative, and marriage by a person under duress as the time of marriage.