Family law 1

Handout

1
Family law regulates / encompasses …… divorces, custody, guardianship, adoption, marriages
Behaviour inside a family that is prohibited by criminal law: ………………………
Incest, child abusing, bigamy

2
What is a family? Group of persons who are connected either by blood (consanguinity), marriage
(affinity) or adoption (law)

Types of relationship: consanguinity X affinity X law

How are these people related to you?

3
immediate family – direct line x Extended family – uncles, aunts next of kin – same as immediate
family kinship – blood relationship – pokrevní příbuzenství

4
Who is a guardian?
A person who is given by court to another person (often minor) who is unable to make their own
decision

Tutor – poručník
Curator - opatrovník
5
MARRIAGE
= a legal union of a couple as spouses
How can we translate the Czech word “manželé” into English?
Solemnization – slavnostvní uzavření
Solemn – slavnostní
Solemnize – slavnostně uzavřít
Render – make – judge renders judgement
Void – no longer valid – lost its effect and force
Voidable – can be made no longer valid, but is not unless someone makes it void
Ab initio – right from start

When parties marry, they enter into a legal contract so that much of the terminology is that of contract
law. Parties may become married in a wedding/official/civil/religious ceremony or solemnization of
marriage. To contract a valid marriage, the parties must have the capacity to marry and must comply
with certain formalities, laid down by the law. Breach of certain rules, like breach of contract, may
render the marriage void ab initio or voidable. However, the marriage contract differs from ordinary
contracts, for unlike ordinary contracts where the parties are free within limits to define their own rights
and obligations, many of the legal consequences of marriage are given by the law, e.g., a spouse has
maintenance obligations to the other spouse and has parental responsibility for any children.

6
Different unions or arrangements between partners
Marriage / matrimony union / …………… / ……………….
Common law marriage = ………………………….= a couple lives together for a period of time and
holds themselves out to the community as being married but without going through a formal ceremony
or getting a marriage license; requirements include living together, having the capacity to marry (legal
 age, sound mind, not being married to someone else), an intention to be married and holding out to
others as being married (taking the same last name, referring to each other as spouses, holding joint
bank accounts); common law marriage is recognized only in several states in the USA
Cohabitation = live together and have sexual relationship without marriage the partners are referred to
as cohabitants
Civil partnership / civil union = ………………………..
Termination of marriage
Divorce / dissolution of marriage / legal separation – because of religious reasons
Judgment of nullity / decree of nullity = when the conditions of marriage were void judgment of
nullity erases rather than dissolves a marriage
Death of one partner
On what grounds can a court issue a decree of nullity?
Non-consummation of the marriage due to the incapacity of either party, lack of valid consent of the
marriage (duress, mistake, unsoundness of mind), suffering from a mental disorder making a person
unfit of marriage
Suffering from vental disease
impediments to a marriage
non-consummation of marriage

7
Differences between Civil Partnership, Marriage and Cohabitation

Civil partnerships were created by the Civil Partnership Act 2004 (“CPA”) and were initially
available only to two people of the same sex allowing them to formalise their relationship in a manner
similar to marriage. Following a decision by the Supreme Court in 2018, confirming that the law
banning opposite-sex couples from forming civil partnerships was discriminatory, the CPA was
amended in 2019 to allow opposite-sex couples to register a civil partnership in England and Wales.
Further, since March 2014 the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 has made marriages of same-sex
couples legal in England and Wales. There is no difference between a same-sex marriage and an
opposite sex marriage.
A civil partnership is a legal union entered into by a couple which is registered and provides
them with similar legal rights to married couples. While they remain in a partnership, civil partners have
the same legal status as married couples in England and Wales, including in respect of available tax
reliefs and pension provision. Civil partnerships entered into in England and Wales do not, however,
benefit from the same international recognition as a marriage. While the terminology to describe the end
of a marriage or a civil partnership is different (marriages are ended by "divorce" while civil
partnerships are ended by "dissolution"), the reality is the rights and obligations are very similar. It
should be noted, however, that it is not possible to petition on the grounds of adultery upon the
breakdown of a civil partnership, but it is possible to do so upon the breakdown of a marriage.
Importantly, this does not have any impact upon either partner’s rights to financial provision. Similarly,
the option to enter into a prenuptial Agreement remains available for those entering into either a civil
partnership or a marriage. This is a formal written document which enables both parties to set out the
ownership of their assets and record how they are to be divided upon the brake down of their marriage
or civil partnership.
Some couples prefer to cohabit, believing that neither marriage nor a civil partnership is
appropriate for their relationship. Unfortunately, many people believe, in error, that if they have lived
together for a period of time they will enjoy the same rights as a married couple, so called “common
law marriage”. This is not the case. Generally speaking, when you are cohabiting you will have fewer
rights than if you are married or in a civil partnership and in the event of a relationship ending will have
to fall back on normal principles of property and contract law. This applies to taxes, inheritance,
pension provision and financial provision upon separation. During your relationship, or upon its
breakdown, no legal or financial responsibility to each other will arise from your relationship –
regardless of the length of your cohabitation.

8
Match the types of divorce with their definitions – to file for a divorce, petition for a
divorce
 a fault divorce a no-fault divorce a contested divorce
an uncontested divorce a legal separation
1) An uncontested divorce is a divorce proceeding where the court formally grants the requested
divorce without the need to go through significant portions of the adversarial litigation process
2) A legal separation is a court-ordered arrangement whereby a married couple lives apart, leading
independent lives
3) A fault divorce is a divorce granted when one spouse proves that the other spouse did
something which resulted in the failure of the marriage
4) A no-fault divorce is a divorce based on showing that the parties had an irremediable or
irretrievable breakdown of the marriage or had irreconcilable differences
5) A contested divorce is a divorce where the spouses cannot agree on their divorce issues and end
up in court asking a judge to make these decisions for them

9
Listening
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kEHRivVLag&t=449s)

Family law does at least three things. First, it defines our relationships, which of them count for legal
purposes and which do not. Secondly, it grants formal recognition with legal consequences to some
relationships which would not otherwise have them. And thirdly, it provides remedies when things go
wrong or the need arises. [….] The modern trend is decisively in favor of more and more inclusion […]
Children whose parents were not married to one another became full members not only of their
mother’s but also of their father’s families for almost all legal purposes. But it went further than that.
Section 1 of the family law reform is one of the most important reforms that stemmed from my time at
the Law Commission. It sounds dry but it means a lot: References to relationships in legislation and
legal documents, such as wills and conveyances, are to be construed without reference to whether a
person’s parents or the parents of anyone through whom the relationship is traced were married to one
another. […] There is no need to have an adjective describing the children. Illegitimate should have left
the language. The 1997 act provided that the husband of a woman who had a child as a result of doner
insemination deemd to be the father for almost all legal purposes, unless it was proved in court he
didn’t consent. A radical departure from the normal rule that heritage is a genetic rather than a social
relationship. The pressure came from doctors who have treated couples for male infertility and
sympathized with their wish to pretend that everything was normal.

10
Prepositions
1) The parties to a marriage must have the capacity to marry.
2) Anyone who is not prohibited by law may enter into marriage.
3) In the United States, married couples are allowed to end a marriage by filing ......... a
divorce ............ the grounds of either fault or no fault.
4) A person is said to have died intestate when he dies without leaving. a will.
5) Minor is generally legally defined .......... a person ........... the age of 18. Minors are treated
differently than adults for many legal purposes.
6) Individuals have the capacity to marry if they are ............ the age of 16.
7) The TV series Law & Order: Trial by Jury showed the workings of the judicial system.
8) John McCain ran …....... president in the 2008 presidential election, but he lost ........... Barack
Obama.

11
Derivations
1) A ..................... (void) marriage exists until a decree of nullity is obtained.
2) ........................ (cohabit) are a couple who live together and have a sexual relationship without
being married.
3) Any intentional (intent) harm or mistreatment to a child is considered child abuse (use).
4) Married, single, divorced and widowed are examples of marital (marry) or personal status.
5) Upon termination of a marriage, courts should distribute the family property equitably (equity).
 6) A common law marriage is a legally recognized marriage which was not ................. (solemn) by
a ceremony.
7) Some states offer limited ................. (recognize) of common law marriages.
8) The ......................... (maintain) obligation of parents towards their children is a legal duty that
applies as long as the children are unable to support themselves.
9) If you have ….................... (parent) responsibility, it means that you must provide a home for
your child and protect and maintain your child.
10) In the past, fathers of ………………….. (legitimacy) children had no obligation to support
them.

Arguing about the