Maryland Family Law Attorney in Towson
Custody, child support, alimony, and modification of existing orders in Baltimore County.
Family law covers the legal relationships that continue after a marriage or a relationship ends: who makes decisions for the children, where the children live, who pays support and how much, and what happens when circumstances change years later. The Law Office of Thomas K. Mallon, LLC handles these matters for clients in Towson and throughout Baltimore County.
Divorce is often the entry point, but family law issues arise for parents who were never married, and they frequently return long after a case is closed.
Custody and parenting time
Maryland separates two different questions. Legal custody is the authority to make long term decisions about education, religious training, discipline and non emergency medical care. Physical custody is where the child actually lives and who handles day to day care. Either can be sole or shared, and the two do not have to match.
Courts decide custody on the best interests of the child. There is no presumption in favor of either parent and no single factor controls. See legal custody, physical custody, parenting plans and visitation, or our child custody practice page.
Child support
Maryland uses an income shares model that combines both parents’ adjusted actual incomes and accounts for health insurance for the child, work related child care and extraordinary medical expenses. The guidelines are presumed correct, and a party who wants a different number has to show the guideline amount would be unjust and inappropriate.
Read more about child support in Maryland.
Alimony and spousal support
Alimony is not automatic and there is no formula. A court weighs twelve statutory factors, and indefinite alimony is limited to narrow circumstances. Most awards are rehabilitative, meaning they run for a defined period while the receiving spouse becomes self supporting. See alimony and spousal support.
Changing or enforcing an order
Custody and child support orders can be revisited when there is a material change in circumstances. Enforcement is a different question from modification, and the remedy depends on which one you actually need. See enforcing or modifying a divorce, custody or support order.
Adoption and premarital agreements
- Step-parent adoption, where consent from the child’s other legal parent is usually the deciding issue.
- Prenuptial agreements, what they can settle in advance and what Maryland will not let them decide.
Related divorce topics
- Divorce overview
- The Maryland divorce process step by step
- Temporary orders while a case is pending
- Property and debt division
- Mediation and negotiated settlement
Official Maryland resources
- Maryland Parenting Plan Tool and instructions
- Maryland People’s Law Library, child custody
- Maryland People’s Law Library, calculating child support
Talk with a Towson family law attorney
Every divorce and custody matter turns on its own facts. The Law Office of Thomas K. Mallon, LLC offers a free consultation so you can get straight answers about your situation before you decide what to do next.
Call (410) 847-9075 or request a consultation online. The office is at 1107 Kenilworth Drive, Suite 305, Towson, MD 21204.
This page provides general information about Maryland law. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Maryland law changes, and how it applies depends on the facts of your case.