It’s a phone call or email that no family law attorney wants to hear in a divorce case—that the custodial parent has passed away in a case where the noncustodial parent had supervised parenting time. Apart from your own personal reaction there are questions whirling through your mind—does custody automatically transfer to the other parent?

There is no statutory definition of “next friend” in Indiana, but the common law definition is “[an] individual who acts on behalf of another individual who does not have the legal capacity to act on his or her own behalf.” Many states no longer use the term “next friend”, and instead have adopted the term “guardian ad litem."

The Domestic Relations Committee of the Judicial Conference of Indiana seeks public comments on proposed changes to Indiana's Child Support Guidelines, which are used to make decisions about child support in dissolutions of marriage, legal separations, paternity cases, Title IV-D proceedings, and all other actions for child support.

Governor Holcomb has signed House Enrolled Act 1520 a new law which affects people with child support orders for children who turn 19 before graduating from secondary school, i.e. high school. House Enrolled Act 1520 of the 2019 session amends the child support law as it applies to emancipation for child support for children who are 19 years old.

The IndyBar Legislative Committee is currently monitoring the following family law related legislation.

Judges who perform marriages may not refuse to perform them for same-sex couples, according to a Formal Ethics Opinion from the ABA’s Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility released Feb. 14. Judges not only must follow the law but also must act impartially and free from bias or prejudice, the opinion explains.

Two recent rulings concerning the fate of frozen embryos are raising questions about the rights of egg and sperm donors, the interpretation of unclear contracts and implications in the abortion debate.

The IndyBar Legislative Committee is currently monitoring the following family law related legislation.

The IndyBar Legislative Committee is currently monitoring the following family law related legislation.

Being the best parent you can be involves taking steps to strengthen your family and finding support when you need it. Parenting isn't something you have to do alone.