Since 1971, Nolo's goal has been simple: Make America's legal system accessible to everyone. Our website, books, software, online legal forms and lawyer directory help millions of individuals, businesses and nonprofits solve their legal problems each year.
Divorce is the legal term for ending a marriage (or domestic partnership or civil union, in some states). Issues that can arise in a divorce case include division of marital property, alimony (also called spousal support), child support, and child custody. More on Divorce >
Divorce is the legal term for ending a marriage (or domestic partnership or civil union, in some states). In some places, the legal process is called "dissolution of marriage" instead of divorce. But even in those states, lawyers who help people end their marriages are usually called divorce attorneys.
The issues that can arise in a divorce case include division of marital property, alimony (also called spousal support), child support, and child custody. Divorce is a very specialized area of law, and most divorce lawyers practice family law exclusively. Some divorce attorneys are also mediators, which means they work with two spouses together to resolve the divorce and reach a settlement. And some divorce lawyers practice "collaborative divorce," which means that both spouses and their attorneys agree to resolve the divorce outside of court by meeting together in four-way meetings and, often, by involving other professionals such as child custody evaluators, financial planners, and therapists, to help work things out.
Divorce cases usually go to a special court, often called Family or Domestic Relations Court, where they're heard by judges who work solely on family cases.
