Family law is an area of the law that deals with family-related issues and domestic relations including the nature of marriage, civil unions, and domestic partnerships; issues arising during marriage, including spousal abuse, legitimacy, adoption, surrogacy, child abuse, and child abduction; the termination of the relationship and ancillary matters including divorce, annulment, property settlements, alimony, and parental responsibility orders (in the United States, child custody and visitation, child support and alimony awards).
Columbus is a city in Lowndes County, Mississippi, United States on the Tombigbee River. It is approximately 282 kilometers (175 mi) northeast of Jackson, 193 kilometers (120 mi) north of Meridian, 102 kilometers (63 mi) south of Tupelo, 60 Miles Northwest of Tuscaloosa, AL, and 198 kilometers (123 mi) west of Birmingham, AL . The population was 25,944 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Lowndes County and the principal city of the Columbus Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is part of the larger Columbus-West Point Combined Statistical Area. Columbus is also part of the area of Northeast MS called The Golden Triangle, consisting of Columbus, West Point, and Starkville, in the counties of Lowndes, Clay, and Oktibbeha.