Family law

Family law is the area of the law that deals with issues such as marriage, spousal abuse, divorce, child custody, visitation, adoption, and division of property after dissolution of marriage. Often family law is administered by a family court which may also hear matters involving children such as domestic violence, child custody, visitation, guardianships, child abuse, paternity and adoption in couples that are not married or in a common-law marriage. With the introduction of civil unions in the law of several jurisdictions and the acceptance of adoption by same-sex couples Family law also deals with issues affecting same-sex couples.

The use of the term 'divorce' has been replaced with 'dissolution of marriage', the modern action used in all the states of the United States except New York. Most other countries still use the term divorce.