Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Fall 2012

Abstract

The United States’ immigration legal framework regulates the flow of people into the country by generally requiring some type of connection between the intending immigrant and an individual or business already present in the United States. One of the primary features of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) is that the individual or business must “petition” for the intending immigrant’s admission into the country as a lawful permanent resident. In the case of an individual petitioner, the petition must be predicated on a preexisting familial relationship. However, the INA strictly limits the universe of family members who may petition for an intending immigrant through its definition of the concepts of “family” and “spouse.” This Article will focus exclusively on the “spouse” category and the interpretation of “marriage” within the immigration legal framework, including how the term has been defined and limited throughout time, as well as the legal effects of those limitations.

Publication Title

Law Journal for Social Justice

Volume

3

First Page

47

Last Page

76

Subjects - Topical (LCSH)

Emigration and immigration law--Australia; Marriage law--Australia

Geographic Coverage

Australia

Genre/Form

essays

Type

Text

Rights

Copying of this document in whole or in part is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood, however, that any copying or publication of this document for commercial purposes, or for financial gain, shall not be allowed without the author’s written permission.

Language

English

Format

application/pdf

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