The Nationwide Family Law court hears a variety of different types of proceedings. This includes matters involving terminating a marriage or domestic partnership, child custody and visitation matters, child support, spousal support, paternity, and adoption. Any person can choose to represent themselves in their Nationwide family law matter. It is not required to hire an attorney. In fact, in many routine family law matters, hiring an attorney is simply not necessary.

Nationwide Family Law matters can be uncontested (meaning the parties involved agree with each other) or contested matters (the parties don’t agree.) In uncontested proceedings, the parties involved are able to keep their case “out of court,” agreeing to a complete resolution of all the issues without a formal court hearing or trial through a written marital settlement agreement. Sometimes the parties are able to reach agreements from the outset, and sometimes negotiation between the parties is required. Even if a matter is considered “uncontested,” the final resolution of all matters must be approved by the court. Some courts require a short uncontested hearing to be held, where the Court will review and approve any agreements made by the parties on the record after brief testimony of one or both parties, and some courts will approve the agreement without a hearing. For more specific information on a variety of Nationwide family law issues, click here.