A mother’s inability to remedy a breakdown in her relationship with her 14-year-old child was not a sufficient basis for a finding of parental unfitness, the Massachusetts Appeals Court has ruled. The child nominated her maternal grandmother and uncle as ...

RICHMOND, Va. — Where the only discernible claim in a pro se complaint was for alimony and child support, the federal courts are divested “of power to issue divorce, alimony, and child custody decrees,”  a federal judge in West Virginia ...

Is “just a hand pop” OK for a child in foster care? How about “run 100 laps?” “Do 20 pushups?” “Do 20 squats?” “Write ‘I will do better’ 50 times?” Is that OK? What about “No dinner for you tonight. ...

In the United States, the national conference of Catholic bishops rejects the concept of gender transition, leaving many transgender Catholics feeling excluded. Last week the Vatican made public a sharply contrasting statement, saying it’s permissible, under certain circumstances, for trans ...

Some are orphans, others seized from their parents. Many are older and have overwhelming needs or disabilities. Most bear the scars of trauma from being hauled between foster homes, torn from siblings or sexually and physically abused. Child protective services ...

Adoption is one way LGBTQ+ people can fulfill their dreams of becoming a parent. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, same-sex couples were four times more likely than opposite-sex couples to adopt a child in 2019. While LGBTQ+ prospective parents ...

RICHMOND, VA — There was sufficient support for the circuit court “to deviate from the child support guidelines to include the cost of the child’s private school tuition[.]” and to require the mother must abide by her previous agreement to ...

Louisiana officials have launched a new website that allows the public to file complaints related to the state’s child welfare system or any other agency that provides services to children. The website, www.Kids4.La, is for the state’s child ombudsman, recently ...

RICHMOND, Va. — Where the decedent died intestate, the disposition of real estate he owned in Maryland is governed by Maryland law, a Fairfax County judge has ruled. Fairfax Circuit Court Judge Richard E. Gardner issued the ruling in In ...

Beginning in July 2026, applicants seeking admission to the Maryland bar will take a new exam that will include an added focus on family law, the Maryland Supreme Court announced in an administrative order filed today. Maryland, alongside four other ...