Generally, an Arizona divorce court determines custody issues if the children are before the court. What if the children are only before the court because they were abducted by a noncustodial parent? The Arizona Court of...

In a dissolution of marriage proceeding, some custody and support orders are temporary. They are only effective during the divorce. The custody and support orders in the dissolution decree are more permanent. The terms cannot...

Arizona law only allows an actual parent to file custody and visitation actions. Can a stepmother seek custody when she has been the primary caregiver for years? The Court of Appeals considered this issue in Olvera v....

Arizona courts allow non-parents to petition for visitation rights in certain cases. The statutes were largely intended to allow grandparent visitation. How do they apply to a same-sex couple when one partner was the mother...

Arizona law recognizes a parent’s fundamental right to raise his or her children. When a grandparent refuses to return a child to the custodial parent, the parent can file a habeas corpus petition. Can the judge hear...

The Arizona Court of Appeals issued a decision in Depasquale v. Superior Court regarding a judge’s discretion to defer a judicial decision to an expert witness. The evidence at trial established that Mother and...

Under Arizona law, a dependent child is one whose parents are not taking appropriate care of him/her. It includes a child who is destitute or not provided with the necessities of life. It also includes a child whose home is...

Meaning of Home State Child Custody Jurisdiction in Arizona The meaning of home state child custody jurisdiction in Arizona is defined by the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (“UCCJEA”). This...

Severing Parental Rights Due to Mental Illness in Arizona Under Arizona law, a child can be declared dependent if her parent or parents are unable to parent. The court can also sever parental rights to allow for a permanent...

The Arizona Court of Appeals in the unpublished case of McGinnis v. D’Alton reviewed a trial judge’s ruling granting Mother sole legal decision making of the parties’ children. The father was also ordered to...