Business Law, 8e (Cheeseman)
Chapter 53 Family Law
1) A person who backs out of a promise to marry can be liable for punitive damages under the
law.
2) According to the fault rule, if the person who gave the engagement ring breaks off the
engagement, then the other party can rightfully keep the engagement ring.
3) Under the objective rule, the person who was given the engagement ring must return the ring,
regardless of which party broke off the engagement.
4) A prenuptial agreement is a legal document issued by a state which certifies that two people
are married.
5) All states require a wedding ceremony to be held before the marriage license is given.
6) A common law marriage requires a marriage license to be considered valid.
7) Cohabitation is not sufficient in and of itself to establish a common law marriage.
8) A common law marriage does not require a court decree of divorce for termination.
9) Some states that do not permit gay partners to marry provide that they can enter into “civil
unions.”
10) The Defense of Marriage Act provides that same-sex marriages solemnized in one state must
be recognized in all other states.
11) Parents have the right to use corporal punishment as long as it does not rise to the level of
child abuse.
12) A parent’s refusal to obtain medical care for a child can be punished as a crime.
13) A couple that lives separated for a certain time is considered to be divorced.
14) A divorce is the only legal method of terminating a marriage.
15) A decree of divorce is an order of the court declaring that a marriage did not exist.
16) One of the parties being intoxicated at the time of marriage is grounds for a legal annulment.
17) The law considers children born of a marriage that is annulled to be legitimate.
18) In an at-fault divorce, neither party is considered to be at fault.
19) A spouse wishing to obtain a no-fault divorce merely has to assert irreconcilable differences
with his or her spouse.
20) A decree of divorce is only granted after division of property and other settlements are
finalized.
21) In a pro se divorce, the parties represent themselves in court for the divorce proceedings.
22) In mediation, the divorcing couple is asked to sort out their issues on their own without any
outside interference.
23) A mediator is allowed to make decisions for the divorcing couple.
24) If a settlement agreement is not reached after mediation, the divorce case goes to trial.
25) To be enforced, a prenuptial agreement must be in writing.
26) Separate property does not include property owned by a spouse prior to the marriage.
27) Separate property can be converted to marital property after marriage by placing the other
spouse’s name on title to the property.
28) Under the doctrine of community property, all property acquired during the marriage using
income earned during the marriage is considered marital property.
29) Joint marital debts are debts incurred by the spouses prior to the marriage.
30) If a debt is not paid by the spouse to whom the court has distributed the debt, the third-party
creditor may recover payment of the debt from the other spouse.
31) Alimony is the amount paid by both parties of a divorce to each other till the settlement
agreement is finalized.
32) Rehabilitation alimony is terminated upon the remarriage of the receiving party.
33) Child support money to be paid to the custodial parent by a noncustodial parent is a fixed
amount that cannot be modified with changing conditions.
34) The Family Support Act allows for automatic wage withholding from a noncustodial parent’s
income to pay for child support.
35) In all child custody cases, only the custodial parent has the right to make decisions on behalf
of the child.
36) The nature and duration of visitation rights is determined by the parent who has legal custody
without the involvement of the court.
37) Which of the following statements is true with regard to a breach of a promise to marry in
the United States?
A) It is considered an unlawful and serious breach of contract.
B) The person who initiates the breach is subjected to legal prosecution.
C) Most courts do not recognize a breach of a promise-to-marry lawsuit.
D) The person who backs out will have to pay permanent alimony.
38) Stan met Stella a month after his break-up with his ex-girlfriend, Nora. Stan and Stella fell in
love, promised to marry each other, and even signed a written contract stating their intentions to
marry in six months. Two months before their marriage, Stan met Nora accidentally and they
resolved their differences over a long conversation. Stan then informed Stella that he had patched
things up with Nora and broke his promise to marry her. Which of the following statements is
true in this situation?
A) Stan will have to pay temporary alimony to Stella for this breach.
B) The contract remains valid as Stan could only break the contract three months prior to the
marriage.
C) Stella can legally enforce Stan’s promise to marry her.
D) Stan is free to leave Stella even though he has broken the contract.
39) Stan and Stella had promised to marry each other and signed a written contract stating their
intentions. They planned to marry a year from the date of signing the contract. After the signing,
Stan proposed to Stella and presented her with an engagement ring. However, two months before
the marriage, Stan called off the engagement. If the state in which they reside follows the fault
rule for breaking engagements, which of the following would be true?
A) The ring will remain with Stella.
B) The ring will be returned to Stan.
C) The ring will be auctioned and the proceedings will be shared between the couple.
D) The ring will be owned by whoever marries first after the engagement.
40) The ________ is a rule which states that if an engagement is broken off, the person who was
given the engagement ring must return the ring, regardless of which party broke off the
engagement.
A) fault rule
B) objective rule
C) pro se rule
D) abatement
41) Which of the following statements is true of the fault rule of breaking engagements?
A) If the person who has accepted an engagement ring breaks off the engagement, the ring will
be owned by the person who marries first.
B) If the person who has accepted an engagement ring breaks off the engagement, that person
can retain the engagement ring.
C) If the person who gave the engagement ring breaks off the engagement, the other side can
rightfully keep the engagement ring.
D) If the person who gave the engagement ring breaks off the engagement, the ring is sold at an
auction and the proceeds are shared between both parties.
42) A minor’s act of legally separating from his or her parents and providing for himself or
herself is known as ________.
A) ademption
B) revocation
C) annulment
D) emancipation
43) Which of the following is a requirement for marriage?
A) Neither party can be currently married to someone else.
B) Neither party can be eligible to marry if they are emancipated.
C) Both parties have to be above 18 years to marry even if they are emancipated.
D) The marrying couple must be closely related by blood.
44) Which of the following is a requirement for an ordinary marriage in all states?
A) marriage license
B) marriage ceremony
C) prenuptial agreement
D) parental consent
45) ________ is a type of marriage some states recognize, in which a marriage license has not
been issued but certain requirements are met.
A) Emancipation
B) Common law marriage
C) Free union
D) Cohabitation
46) Which of the following is a requirement for a common law marriage to be valid?
A) that a marriage license was obtained
B) that there was a legal marriage ceremony
C) that the parties live together
D) that the parties have a valid prenuptial agreement
47) Which of the following is a misconception of a common law marriage?
A) that the parties have to voluntarily intend to be husband and wife in order to establish a
common law marriage
B) that only parties who have a marriage license can establish a common law marriage
C) that living together is necessary to establish a common law marriage
D) that cohabitation is sufficient in and of itself to establish a common law marriage
48) Which of the following is true of a common law marriage?
A) Both parties enjoy relaxations in the eligibility criteria in terms of minimum age and
emancipation when they marry.
B) All the rights and duties of a normal licensed marriage apply to a common law marriage.
C) A court decree of divorce is not required to end a common law marriage as there is no
marriage license or ceremony.
D) The parties involved need not provide proof of cohabitation to create a common law
marriage.
49) Which of the following legislations bars same-sex couples from enjoying federal benefits?
A) Defense of Marriage Act
B) Family Support Act
C) Equal Protection Clause
D) Marriage Protection Act
50) Which of the following is a provision of the Defense of Marriage Act?
A) that same-sex marriages are permissible for people who are legally eligible to marry
B) that states ban same-sex marriages and disallow civil unions between members of the same–
sex
C) that states cannot be forced to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states
D) that states cannot refuse to offer federal benefits like Social Security to couples in same-sex
marriages
51) ________ occurs when a parent fails to provide a child with the necessities of life or other
basic needs.
A) Child custody
B) Child neglect
C) Emancipation of a child
D) Annulment
52) An order of the court which declares that a marriage did not exist is known as a(n)
________.
A) divorce
B) arraignment
C) abatement
D) annulment
53) Which of the following can lead to an annulment?
A) if one of the parties has breached the promise to marry
B) if one or both parties were intoxicated at the time of the marriage
C) if one of the parties has children from a prior marriage that was legally terminated
D) if both parties failed to sign a prenuptial agreement in advance of their marriage
54) A divorce recognized by the law of a state whereby neither party is blamed for the divorce is
known as a(n) ________.
A) annulment
B) pro se divorce
C) no-fault divorce
D) at-fault divorce
55) To obtain a no-fault divorce, a couple has to mandatorily prove ________.
A) adultery
B) abandonment
C) substance abuse
D) irreconcilable differences
56) What is a decree of divorce?
A) a petition filed by the spouse seeking divorce
B) a court order that terminates a marriage
C) a set of rules on how assets are to be divided after divorce
D) a court order placing limitations on a dangerous partner to go near the other partner
57) When is a restraining order issued during a divorce?
A) when both partners have asked for divorce stating irreconcilable differences
B) when one of the partners is financially dependant on the other
C) when one of the partners is disabled and physically dependant on the other
D) when one of the partners is potentially dangerous to the other
58) ________ is a divorce proceeding in which the parties represent themselves in the divorce
action.
A) Pro se divorce
B) Settlement agreement
C) Emancipation
D) Prenuptial agreement
59) What kind of divorce would Sally seek to best represent her state?
A) emancipation
B) annulment
C) at-fault divorce
D) no-fault divorce
60) Which of the following can Sally obtain to protect herself from Colton after the divorce?
A) an annulment order
B) a restraining order
C) a postnuptial agreement
D) a divorce decree
61) Sally and Colton adopted a(n) ________ approach by choosing to represent themselves in
court.
A) settlement
B) pro se divorce
C) arraignment
D) annulment
62) What kind of financial recourse can Sally, who is now self-sufficient, claim from Colton?
A) annulment
B) child support
C) permanent alimony
D) rehabilitation alimony
63) In this situation, what kind of custody, if any, would Colton have on the child?
A) joint physical custody
B) joint custody
C) no custody; supervised visitation rights
D) no custody; ordinary visitation rights
64) The courts ordered Colton to pay 25 percent of his gross monthly income as child support.
Additionally, the court ordered Colton’s employer to automatically withhold 25 percent of his
wages and send it to Sally as a check. This mode of providing alimony to Sally is stipulated by
the ________.
A) Defense of Marriage Act
B) Marriage Protection Act
C) Equal Protection Clause
D) Family Support Act
65) A(n) ________ is a written document signed by divorcing parties that evidences their
agreement in the division of property, rights and duties, and other issues of their divorce.
A) settlement agreement
B) prenuptial agreement
C) decree of divorce
D) pro se divorce
66) Which of these legally binding documents are created before a marriage?
A) an annulment
B) a reciprocal will
C) a settlement agreement
D) a prenuptial agreement
67) Property owned by a spouse prior to marriage, as well as inheritances and gifts received by a
spouse during the marriage are referred to as ________.
A) separate property
B) marital property
C) community property
D) alimony
68) Upon the termination of a marriage, the separate property owned by spouses is ________.
A) equally divided between the spouses
B) retained by the respective spouses who owned it
C) shared using a fair distribution method for marital assets
D) co-owned by both spouses
69) In which of the following cases is separate property considered marital property?
A) if the separate property was owned by the spouse prior to the terminated marriage
B) if the separate property was an inheritance
C) if the owner transferred title to the separate property to the spouse’s name
D) if the separate property was a gift received during marriage
70) ________ is a law in which the court orders a fair sharing of marital property to the
divorcing spouses allowing that the fair share need not be an equal share.
A) Community property distribution
B) Equitable distribution
C) Equal asset distribution
D) Half-division distribution
71) ________ is a law used by some states in which the court orders an equal division of marital
property to the divorcing spouses.
A) Equitable distribution
B) Adjusted distribution
C) Community property distribution
D) Half-division distribution
72) In the event of Jane and Will opting for a divorce, ________ would be considered separate
property for Jane.
A) the ancestral home
B) the new car
C) the stocks and bonds
D) the farmhouse
73) In the event of Jane and Will opting for a divorce, Will’s stocks and bonds would be
considered to be a part of ________.
A) Jane’s separate property
B) the couple’s marital assets
C) Will’s separate property
D) the couple’s separate property
74) Payments made by one divorced spouse to the other divorced spouse are collectively referred
to as ________.
A) debt money
B) trust
C) estate
D) alimony
75) Alimony that is ordered by the court to be paid by one divorcing spouse to the other
divorcing spouse for a limited period of time is known as ________.
A) rehabilitation alimony
B) lifetime alimony
C) life estate
D) intestacy allowance
76) Na Li is a South-Asian immigrant in New Jersey who was divorced by her husband after 34
years of marriage. Na Li can proficiently converse in her native language only. She lacks any
employable skills and has been restricted to her home throughout her marriage and childbearing
years. She has two children who are employed in different cities. Na Li also suffers from a mild
but prolonged depressive disorder called dysphoria. Na Li is most likely to qualify for ________
considering her situation.
A) child support
B) temporary alimony
C) rehabilitation alimony
D) permanent alimony
77) The main objective of rehabilitation alimony is to provide ________.
A) permanent financial compensation to an elderly divorced spouse
B) temporary financial reprieve till the spouse can rejoin the workforce
C) financial support for the spouse till he or she dies
D) financial award for spouses who have no chance of rejoining the workforce
78) The ________ is a federal statute that provides for the automatic wage withholding of child
support payments from a noncustodial parent’s income.
A) Marriage Protection Act
B) Equal Protection Clause
C) Family Support Act
D) Defense of Marriage Act
79) A custody arrangement whereby the child of divorcing parents spends a certain amount of
time being raised by each parent is known as ________.
A) visitation rights custody
B) joint physical custody
C) arraignment
D) accommodation
80) Which of the following statements is true of the award of legal custody after a divorce?
A) The awarding of legal custody to a custodial parent is permanent.
B) The custodial parent only has physical custody because legal custody is always shared among
divorced parents of the child.
C) The wishes of the child in determining who receives legal custody is given increasing
consideration for older children.
D) The court cannot refuse to award custody to either parent under any extenuating
circumstances.
81) What are the parent’s rights and duties towards their children? What is child neglect?
82) What is an annulment? On what grounds are annulments provided?
83) How is the division of debt conducted after a divorce?
84) What is child support? How is it awarded?
85) How is child custody after a divorce dealt in the United States?