Reference
Glossary of North Carolina Family Law Terms
Fifty terms you are likely to meet in a North Carolina divorce, custody or support case, translated out of legalese.
Family law has its own vocabulary, and most of it is never explained to the people it applies to. Here are the terms you are most likely to encounter in a North Carolina case, in plain language.
A
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Absolute divorce | The court judgment that legally ends a marriage in North Carolina. Requires one year and a day of separation and six months of state residency. |
| Alienation of affection | A civil claim against a third party whose conduct destroyed the love and affection between spouses. Still recognized in North Carolina. |
| Alimony | Post-divorce spousal support paid by a supporting spouse to a dependent spouse, set by the court on statutory factors. |
| Answer | The written response to a complaint, generally due thirty days after service. |
B
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Best interests of the child | The single standard governing custody decisions in North Carolina. |
C
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Cohabitation | Two adults living together in a private, mutually supportive, intimate relationship. Terminates alimony. |
| Complaint | The document that starts a civil case and states the claims being asserted. |
| Consent order | Terms the parties agree to that are signed by a judge and entered as an order, enforceable by contempt. |
| Contempt | The remedy for violating a court order. Can be civil (to compel compliance) or criminal (to punish). |
| Criminal conversation | A civil claim against a third party based on sexual intercourse with a person married to the plaintiff. |
| Custodial parent | The parent with whom a child primarily resides, a description rather than a legal title in North Carolina. |
D
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Date of separation | The date the spouses began living in separate residences with at least one intending it to be permanent. Fixes property values and starts the one-year clock. |
| Dependent spouse | A spouse actually substantially dependent on the other for maintenance and support, or substantially in need of it. |
| Deposition | Sworn testimony taken out of court, recorded by a court reporter. |
| Discovery | The formal process of exchanging information: interrogatories, document requests, admissions and depositions. |
| Distributive award | A payment ordered from one spouse to the other to balance an equitable distribution. |
| Divisible property | Changes in the value of marital property between the date of separation and distribution, plus certain post-separation income and debt payments. |
| DVPO | Domestic violence protective order under Chapter 50B. A civil order enforceable by arrest. |
E
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Equitable distribution | The statutory process for dividing marital and divisible property and debt in North Carolina. |
| Ex parte | An order entered on the application of one party without the other present, used for emergencies. |
G
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Guardian ad litem | A person appointed to represent the best interests of a child or an incompetent party in a case. |
I
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Imputed income | Income attributed to a parent based on earning capacity when they are voluntarily unemployed or underemployed in bad faith. |
| Income shares model | The framework behind the North Carolina child support guidelines, which estimates what parents would have spent on the child together. |
| Incorporation | Making a separation agreement part of a court order, which changes how it is enforced and modified. |
| Interrogatories | Written questions one party must answer under oath during discovery. |
J
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Joint legal custody | Both parents share authority over major decisions for the child. |
L
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Legal custody | Decision-making authority over schooling, health care, religion and similar major matters. |
M
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Marital misconduct | Conduct during the marriage and before separation that the court considers in alimony, including illicit sexual behavior, abandonment, cruel treatment and reckless spending. |
| Marital property | Property acquired by either spouse during the marriage and before separation, presently owned, regardless of title. |
| Mediation | A confidential process in which a neutral third party helps the parties reach their own agreement. |
| Memorandum of judgment | Terms announced in open court and recorded, later reduced to a formal order. |
| Modification | Changing an existing order, which requires a substantial change in circumstances for custody and support. |
P
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Parenting coordinator | A court-appointed professional who helps high-conflict parents implement an existing custody order. |
| Parenting plan | The written document setting out the custody schedule, decision-making and related terms. |
| Physical custody | Where the child actually lives and who is responsible day to day. |
| Postseparation support | Temporary spousal support paid while the alimony claim is pending. |
| Pro se | Representing yourself without a lawyer. |
Q
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| QDRO | Qualified domestic relations order. The separate order used to divide an employer retirement plan. |
R
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Right of first refusal | A term requiring a parent to offer the other parent time with the child before arranging other care. |
S
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Separate property | Property owned before the marriage or acquired during it by inheritance or third-party gift. Not divided. |
| Separation agreement | A written, signed and notarized contract between spouses resolving property, debt and support. |
| Service of process | Formal delivery of the summons and complaint, which starts the response clock. |
| Spoliation | Destroying or altering evidence, which can result in serious sanctions. |
| Substantial change in circumstances | The threshold showing required to modify a custody or support order. |
| Summons | The formal notice accompanying a complaint that tells the defendant they must respond. |
| Supporting spouse | The spouse upon whom the other is actually substantially dependent. |
T
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Temporary order | An interim order controlling custody, support or possession while a case is pending. |
U
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| UCCJEA | The Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act, which decides which state has authority over a custody case. |
| Uncontested divorce | A divorce in which the defendant does not dispute the grounds, often resolved without a contested hearing. |
V
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Venue | The county in which a case is properly filed and heard. |
Definitions are simplified for general understanding and are not a substitute for how a term is defined in a particular statute, rule or order.
If a term in your order does not make sense, ask
Misreading one clause in a custody or property order can cost a great deal. Adkins Law will read it with you and tell you what it actually requires.
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This page provides general information about North Carolina law for educational purposes. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney–client relationship. Statutes, court rules and local practice change, and the outcome of any case depends on its own facts. Speak with a licensed North Carolina attorney about your situation. Written by Christopher Adkins, attorney at Adkins Law, PLLC, Huntersville, North Carolina.