Divorce Definitions

Annulment The legal dissolution of a marriage. In an annulment, the marriage is treated as though it never existed. Contested Divorce A divorce where the parties are unable or unwilling to come to a mutual agreement. Orders of Notice Notice ordered by the court requiring the party who filed for divorce to ensure that the other party is served by a sheriff with copies of the "Petition for Divorce". Lump-Sum Alimony Lump-sum alimony or alimony in gross refers to alimony that is a fixed payment that generally will be made regardless of circumstances that would be a basis for termination of other types of alimony. Supervised visitation A form of visitation in which an adult supervisor must be present when the child is visiting with the non-custodial parent. Paternity The determination of who the father of a child is in order to arrange child custody and child support in the event of a divorce. Buccal Swab A recognized form of genetic testing used to determine paternity, which involves a q-tip type instrument for collecting saliva from individuals submitting to testing. Residual Physical Custodial Rights A custody agreement when one parent is awarded visitation by a pre-arranged schedule worked out between the parents or the courts. Custodial parent The parent who has physical custody of the children. Age of Majority Attained upon one's eighteenth birthday. However, a child support order will remain in effect beyond attainment of eighteen as long as the child continuously attends an accredited high school on a full time basis, the child is determined to be mentally or physically disabled by the court, or both parents have agreed to continue support after the age of 18 and it is incorporated in a divorce decree.

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	Did You Know?
	In divorce actions, mediators often are involved in custody and visitation disputes. In some jurisdictions (particularly large urban areas), courts require mediation of custody and visitation disputes. The mother and father must talk with a court-appointed mediator to try to resolve the problem before putting their case before a judge. The mediator cannot force a resolution, but the parties can be told to try mediation before coming to court to ask a judge to decide the issue.