Putative means presumed, reputed, or supposed: generally accepted but not established.
Putative class actions are representative lawsuits filed by named plaintiffs on behalf of a class seeking class certification under Rule 23 of the...marriage
putative spouse doctrine
The putative spouse doctrine protects the financial and property interests of a putative spouse. A putative spouse is a person who unknowingly entered into an invalid marriage, believing in good faith that it is a valid marriage. The putative...
QDRO
QDRO is an abbreviation for qualified domestic relations order, which is a domestic relations order, i.e., a judgment, order, or decree for alimony, support, or marital property rights, and the domestic relations order must transfer all or...
qualified domestic trust
A qualified domestic trust (QDOT) is a trust created for a surviving spouse who is a non-U.S. citizen to qualify for the marital deduction. It allows a non-U.S. citizen married to a U.S. citizen to be eligible for an unlimited marital...
qualified terminable interest property (QTIP) trust
Qualified terminable interest trusts (QTIP trusts) are an estate planning tool used to maximize a couple’s applicable exclusion amounts while qualifying for the marital deduction. Full property interest transfers to spouses do not trigger...
same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage is marriage between partners of the same sex and/or gender identity. For example, a marriage between two men or two women.
In 2003, Massachusetts became the first state in the U.S. to legalize same-sex...
separate property
Separate property is property that is owned by one spouse and not the other. There are two categories of marital property; community property, and separate property. Community property is when spouses share all property equally. However, even...
separation
In general, the termination of any contractual relationship (e.g., a contract for employment).
In family law, a situation in which spouses live apart from each other because of a judicial decree or voluntary mutual decision.
solemnization of marriage
The formal requirement of the performance of a marriage ceremony and the professional class that may marry a couple. Who may perform such a ceremony varies depending on the particular laws of the state. For example, in one state, a mayor, magistrate,...
spousal privilege
Spousal privilege, also known as marital privilege and husband-wife privilege, includes two types of privileges: the spousal communications privilege and the spousal testimonial privilege.
The spousal communications...