Divorce Law
FAQs About Divorce

Marital Separation Agreements Explained
 

Marriage and Living Together Law
District of Columbia Marriage License Law

Child Support Enforcement: Supportkids.com

Child Custody and Visitation Law
Child Custody Resources
FAQs on Child custody and Visitation
The legal standard in deciding who will get custody is what is in the best interest of the children. There is a presumption of joint custody. Although there used to be a presumption that the mother would be the preferred custodian for the child, that is no longer the case. The law presumes that joint custody is in the child's best interest, except in certain circumstances involving abuse or kidnapping. Therefore, it is not unusual, and no longer rare for a a father to be awarded custody.

Property Division
Washington D.C. is an "equitable distribution" jurisdiction. If there is no valid property distribution agreement, each spouse retains his or her separate property (acquired before the marriage or acquired during the marriage by gift or inheritance) and any increase in such separate property and any property acquired in exchange for such separate property. The court can take fault of a party, such as adultery, into consideration in allocating property (although it is certainly never the most important factor the court considers when distributing property.)   See Murville v. Murville, 433 A2d 1106 (D.C. 1981).  [District of Columbia Code Annotated; Title 16, Chapter 9, Section 910].

To determine who gets what marital property, the court will consider: 

(1) Duration of the marriage; (2)  Prior marriages; (3)  Age;  (4)  Health; (5) Occupations;  (6) Income; (7) Vocational skills;  (8) Employability; (9) Non-marital assets; (10)  Debts; (11)  Needs; (12) Custody; (13)  Is distribution in lieu of alimony; (14)  Future opportunity to acquire assets and income. (15) Contribution (up or down) to value of assets; (16)  Contributions to the family unit (e.g., as homemaker);  (17) Other relevant factors that the court considers appropriate.