FAMILY LAW

Perhaps there is no more emotionally charged field of law than Family Law. Experience over the years clearly indicates that when an individual, even the paralegal student, hears the words "family law" he or she, generally, and quite automatically thinks in terms of a dissolution of marriage. However, nothing could be farther from the truth.

Although a major portion of a family law practice involves the dissolution of marriages, the field of family law begins with a child at conception and follows that child through puberty, adulthood, and finally death. Perhaps no other field crosses so many other legal disciplines, both civil and criminal. The family unit, and rules governing the family unit go back in history tens of thousands of years.

The course taught by Paul Casbarian while including the history, theory, and statutory base of Family Law in general and specifically the State of Illinois, the course emphasizes the practical aspects of the family law process including litigation. The student will learn to analyze and utilize the Illinois Statutes and the Illinois Court Rules relating to the subject. Due to the nature of the subject matter, current Federal Law especially as handed down by the Supreme Court of the United States will be discussed. Local Rules of Illinois Circuit Courts will also be reviewed.

The paralegal student will receive instruction in the preparation of various documents used in Family Law, both in litigation and non-litigation situations. The student will be versed in motion practice, discovery, and evidence.