Dr. Alan Reifman's Family Policy Course

Today, we'll be continuing with our topic of divorce. Our focus now, however, will shift to how courts decide issues involving children (e.g., child support, custody).

This June 13, 2008 article on the finalization of Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe's divorce describes how a case can be separated into the divorce itself (i.e., the ending of the marriage) and the often more complex issues involving children and other matters. Quoting from the article:

Back in October, 2007, the pair were divorced (both became legally single again) - but the court reserved all other issues in the case for future ruling. This meant that there was no finalization of child custody, child support, spousal support or division of property. This is a process called bifurcation - used sometimes when financial and other issues are complex.