Additional Services

A legal marital separation is also known as a "separate maintenance" case and addresses most of the issues involved in a divorce; however, the greatest difference is that the parties do not legally terminate their marriage. Like a divorce, the parties will have final custody orders, support orders, and any other applicable orders at the end of their case and can pursue a divorce at any time.

When parents are married, paternity and custody issues are part of a divorce, separation, or annulment case. If parents are not or have never been married to each other, these issues become part of a custody or paternity case. For a Nevada court to make any child custody and visitation orders, Nevada must be the home state of the child(ren) for at least six months or from birth if the child is less than six months old.

An annulment voids a marriage; that means the marriage never occurred legally. A petitioner of an annulment must prove to the court that they are entitled to have their marriage annulled. The grounds for an annulment include but are not limited to one spouse already married, fraud, lack of consent for minors, or being mentally incapable of decision making.

A domestic partnership is a legally recognized relationship but not a marriage though partners share the same rights, protections, benefits, and responsibilities as married couples. If domestic partners want to terminate their partnership, the length of time and whether it's contested or not will determine if the partners can terminate through the Nevada Secretary of State or in family court.

Any person who wants to change their name can petition the court. There are different requirements for adults and minors. Adult name change applicants must disclose information, such as the reason for the name change and if they have any felony convictions. On the other hand, a minor's parent must apply for the name change, if older than 14 the minor must consent also. 

When an adult cannot care for himself or a child's parent(s) cannot care for them, guardianship may be needed. A guardian is granted the legal authority to make decisions for the "protected person." There are two classifications of guardianships, a "general guardianship" and a "limited guardianship" which encompass three types of guardianships: the person, their estate, or the person and their estate.