juvenile law

Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act (PKPA)

The Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act (PKPA) establishes national standards to determine jurisdiction in interstate custody disputes. PKPA imposes a duty on the states to enforce a child custody determination entered by a court of a sister...

parental neglect

Parental neglect is a parent or legal guardian’s failure to provide a child with necessities. This is often considered a type of child abuse, and is also referred to as child neglect. For example, California Penal Code § 270 states that “[i...

paternity suit

A lawsuit to determine the identity of the father of a child, usually one born outside of marriage. A paternity suit may be brought either by the mother seeking child support, or by the father himself if the mother is denying his paternity...

personal guardian

A personal guardian is an individual, appointed by a court, who has custody of the ward (generally, a person who is a minor or legally incompetent) and the authority to make personal decisions for the ward.

For example, in...

physical custody

1) A parent’s right to have the child reside with them. New York Domestic Relations Law § 75–a defines physical custody as “the physical care and supervision of a child.” Physical custody is not the same as legal custody, which is the...

PKPA

The Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act of 1980 (PKPA) establishes national standards to determine jurisdiction in interstate custody disputes. PKPA does not impose a duty on the states to exercise jurisdiction over any child custody issues,...

posthumous child

A posthumous child is a child born after the death of one of their biological parents. This becomes important in the context of intestate succession or survivor benefits. Generally, children conceived before the death one parent are treated...

professional guardian

Professional guardians are typically trained and licensed professionals who are paid to take care of incapacitated person, also known as the ward. Many professional guardians have backgrounds as lawyers, doctors, or social workers. They are...

stepparent

A stepparent, including stepfather and stepmother, is a person who marries one’s own parent after the death or divorce of the other parent and therefore has no biological relationship to the child. Stepparents are not legal parents of the...

stepparent adoption

Stepparent adoption is the legal, formal adoption of a child by a stepparent who is married to a legal parent of that child. Stepparent adoption is the most common type of adoption in the United States, with conditions such as voluntary...

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