How does domestic violence affect children? Violence and trauma can have long-lasting effects on children who witness or experience violent events.

About DHHS and Child Abuse and Neglect DHHS Child Protective Services investigates reports of child abuse. There are 5 different things that DHHS can do:

What is the Maine Home Court Act?  The Home Court Act is a Maine law passed in 2016. It is meant to prevent more than one case about the same child from happening in different courts. Courts use a “Jurisdictional Affidavit” to find out about all of the cases involving a child and determine where your case should be addressed.  

We offer age-appropriate information to help kids, teens and parents deal with a family break up. Justice Education Society of British Columbia (link is external) and Pine Tree Legal Assistance collaborated to create this Maine version of "Families Change." Along the way, family counselors, guidance counselors, psychologists, lawyers, parents,… More

Introduction This guide covers many family law topics with information specific to LGBTQ people and families. We also link to other helpful resources. Contents

In 2015 Maine updated its laws about families. This law is called the Maine Parentage Act. It took effect on July 1, 2016. “Parentage” is a legal word. It means the legal relationship between a child and a parent. So, to “establish parentage” means to prove that someone is the legal parent of a child. A child's parents have legal rights and… More

Divorce or separation can mean big changes on your taxes. Spousal support, also called alimony, and a name change are just a few things you may need to consider. Here are some tax tips to keep in mind if you are recently divorced or separated.

Updated information about how the Social Security Administration treats same-sex marriages.

You can file a Three-Person Petition (also called a Three-Party Petition) in District Court. Under the Maine Child Protection laws, three or more people can file a Child Protection petition, asking the Court to order DHHS or a third party like a relative to take custody of and provide services to a youth...

Federal and State Law Federal and state law allow money from military retirement pay to be withheld to meet most child support and spousal support (alimony) obligations.