Family relationships are extensively regulated by statute, judicial decision, and, to an increasing but still limited degree, by private contract as well. Yet in few other areas is there a wider gap between the written law and the informal rules by which family members govern themselves. The causes and consequences of that gap are a recurring theme throughout the course. The course also explores the process and consequences of the dissolution of marriage and alternative relationships, including procedural and economic aspects, as well as other consequences for the parties and their children. Contemporary issues in the division of property and allocation of support obligations and the rationales reflected in present practices are explored, as well as the tension between private ordering and state-imposed rules governing intimate relationships.
Students receive separate grades for course and clinical credits.