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).
Ratcliff is an unincorporated community in Houston County in east Texas, United States. Founded in the early 1900s, Ratliff had a population of more than five thousand, with most working at a sawmill operated by the Louisiana and Texas Lumber Company. This Four C Mill used the 45-acre (180,000 m) lake that is the heart of Ratcliff Lake Recreation Area as its millpond. The recreation area is located within the Davy Crockett National Forest. Ratcliff is named for an early settler, J.H. Ratcliff, who operated a smaller sawmill, which cut the timber for the larger Four C Mill.