Definitions and Info About Family Law
Below are various definitions and select Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S.) dealing with dissolution and children. These statutes do change and should not be interpreted as a complete recitation of the law. You may click on the statute number to go to the current statute at the Arizona Legislature’s website.
Arrearages: Past child support or spousal maintenance payments which have not been made. A.R.S. § 25-500: The total unpaid support owed, including child support, past support, spousal maintenance and interest.
Best Interest of the Child: A standard by which a court determines what arrangements would be to a child’s greatest benefit, often used in deciding child-custody and visitation matters and in deciding whether to approve an adoption or a guardianship.
A.R.S. § 25-403: A custody determination shall be made in accordance with the best interests of the child. All relevant factors shall be considered, including: (1) the wishes of the child’s parent(s) as to custody, (2) the wishes of the child as to the custodian, (3) the interaction and interrelationship of the child with the child’s parent(s), the child’s siblings, (4) the child’s adjustment to home, school and community, (5) the mental and physical health or all individuals involved, (6) which parent is more likely to allow the child frequent and meaning continuing contact with the other parent, (7) whether one parent, both parents or neither parent has provided primary care of the child, and (8) the nature and extent of coercion or duress used by a parent in obtaining an agreement regarding custody.
Child Custody: The care, control, and maintenance of a child awarded by a court to a responsible adult. Custody involves legal custody (decision-making authority) and physical custody (care giving authority).
A.R.S. §25-402(2): Joint Legal Custody: “’joint legal custody’ means the condition under which both parents share legal custody and neither parent’s rights are superior…”
A.R.S. § 25-402(3): Joint Physical Custody: “’joint physical custody’ means the condition under which the physical residence of the child is shared by the parents in a manner that assures that the child has substantially equal time and contact with both parents.”
A.R.S. § 25-408(b): Rights of a noncustodial parent: “…both parents are entitled to custody or parenting time and both parents reside in the state, at least sixty days advance written notice shall be provided to the other parent before a parent may (1) relocate the child outside the state (2) relocate the child more than one hundred miles within the state.
Child Support: Financial support ordered to be paid by one parent to the other parent for support of a child. The amount is calculated by statutory guidelines, called “child support guidelines,” which calculated and reflected in a “child support worksheet.”
A.R.S. § 25-320: In a proceeding for dissolution of marriage, legal separation, maintenance or child support it may be ordered that either or both parents owing a duty of support to a child, pay an amount reasonable and necessary for support of the child, without regard to marital misconduct.
Community Property: The body of law in Arizona which creates a presumption that property and debt acquired during a marriage belongs to both parties and require such property and debt to be divided equitably during a divorce.
A.R.S. § 25-211: “All property acquired by either husband or wife during the marriage is the community property of the husband and wife except for property that is: (1) acquired by gift, devise or descent (2) acquired after service of a petition for dissolution…”
Dissolution: The present day term for a divorce, meaning to dissolve the marriage.
Dissolution Decree: The court order which dissolves a marriage and returns parties to the status of single persons and outlines the terms of the divorce, including custody, child support, spousal maintenance, and division of community assets. When the parties agree to all the terms of a divorce, they can submit a “consent decree” signed by each party to the court for the court’s approval.
A.R.S. § 25-312: A decree of dissolution of marriage shall be entered into if (1) one of the parties, at the time the action was commenced, was domiciled in this state, and that domicile has been maintained for ninety days, (2) the conciliation provisions of § 25-381.09 and the provisions of article 5 either do not apply or have not been met, and (3) the marriage is irretrievably broken.
Domestic Partnership: A non-marital relationship between two persons of the same or opposite sex who live together as a couple for a significant period of time.
Enforcement: The process of ordering a party to appear before the court for failing to make child support or spousal maintenance payments and requiring the party to pay “arrearages.”
Family Law Rules: The Arizona Rules of Family Law Procedure (ARFLP) are the procedure rules that guide family law litigation cases. Selecte family law rules referenced on this site can be found here.
Grandparent Visitation: In certain situation, grandparents and great-grandparents may be entitled to visitation or parenting time with their grandchild under A.R.S. 25-409.
A.R.S. § 25-409: Grandparents may be granted reasonable visitations to the child during the child’s minority on a finding that the visitation rights would be in the best interests of the child.
In loco parentis: [Latin "in the place of a parent"] When an individual acts as a guardian or caretaker of a child, taking on all or some of the responsibilities of a parent.
A.R.S. § 25-415: A child custody proceeding may be commenced by a person other than a legal parent. An award of custody shall be denied unless, (1) the non-parent stands in loco parentis to the child, (2) it would be detrimental to the child to remain or be placed in the custody of either the child’s living legal parents who seek custody, (3) an award of custody of the child has not been made within one year, unless there is reason to believe the child’s current environment present dangers to the child’s physical, mental, moral or emotional health, and (4) one of the legal parents is deceased, the child’s legal parents are not married to each other, or there is a pending dissolution of the legal parents.
Legal Separation: A partial or qualified divorce by which the community ends for purposes of community property, assets and debts are split, and child custody, parenting time and support is determined, but the parties remain technically married.
A.R.S. § 25-313: A decree of legal separation shall be entered into if: (1) one of the parties, at the time the action was commenced, was domiciled in this state, (2) the conciliation provisions of § 25-381.09 and the provisions of article 5 either do not apply or have not been met (3) the marriage is irretrievably broken or one of both of the parties desire to live separate and apart, and (4) the other party does not object to a decree of legal separation.
Modification: Making changes to a prior agreement, court order or decree.
A.R.S. § 25-411: A person shall not make a motion to modify a custody decree earlier than one year after its date, unless there is reason to believe the child’s present environment may seriously endanger the child’s physical, mental, moral or emotional health.
Parenting Plan: A plan that allocates custodial responsibility and decision-making authority for what serves the child’s best interests and that provides a mechanism for resolving any later disputes between parents.
A.R.S. § 25-403.02: Before joint custody is awarded, the parents shall submit a proposed parenting plan that includes: (1) each parent’s rights and responsibilities for the personal care of the child, such as education, health care and religious training, and (2) a schedule of the physical residence of the child, including holidays and school vacations.
Parenting Time: The present day term for visitation, during which one parent is awarded set time to have physical control and custody of a child.
A.R.S. § 25-402: The condition under which a parents has the right to have a child physical paced with the parent and the right and responsibility to make, during that placement, routine daily decisions regarding the child’s care consistent with the major decisions made by a person having legal custody.
Paternity: The determination of a child’s biological father.
A.R.S. § 25-803: Proceedings to establish the maternity or paternity of a child or children may be commenced by any of the following: (1) mother, (2) father, (3) guardian or conservator of a child born out of wedlock, (4) a public welfare official, or (5) the state pursuant to A.R.S. § 25-509.
A.R.S. § 25-806: Paternity proceedings are commenced by the filing of a verified petition.
Primarly Residential Parent: The parent with whom a child primarily resides when joint, equal physical custody is not awarded to both parents.
Property Settlement: A property settlement agreement divdes the marital, community, and/or partnership property and debt between parties to a dissolution, legal separation, or domestic partnership matter.
Separate Property: A property settlement agreement divdes the marital, community, and/or partnership property and debt between parties to a dissolution, legal separation, or domestic partnership matter.
A.R.S. § 25-213: “A spouse’s real and personal property that is owned by that spouse before marriage and that is acquired by that spouse during the marriage by gift, devise or descent…is the separate property of that spouse.”
Spousal Maintenance: Money paid by one married person to another for support after a divorce or legal separation.
A.R.S. § 25-500: “‘Support’ means the provision of maintenance or subsistence and includes medical insurance coverage, or cash medical support, and uncovered medical costs for the child, arrearages, interest on arrearages, past support, interest on past support and reimbursement for expended public assistance. In a title IV-D case, support includes spousal maintenance that is included in the same order that directs child support.”