Legal Implications of Testing Family Bonds

When you think about the bonds between family members, you’re probably mostly going to think in terms of genetics and culture. But, in this day and age, there are certain legal implications of how family bonding works. And depending on what your status is in the country that you live in or the job that you work at, you may have to pay more close attention now than previously.

Because of immigration law changes and interpretations happening right now, family bonds are going to have to adapt and overcome concerning cultural integration, safe neighborhoods, and even generational differences that can span different time frames of laws being in place.

Immigration Law Changes and Interpretations

In some communities and within some cultures right now, immigration is being vilified. And that can change the lives of families that are being split apart through new interpretations of laws. If you are the head of household and you have to contact an immigration lawyer, be sure to illustrate correctly what the bonds are within your family unit. Immediate family will fit in one category. Distant relatives will fit in another. Marriages and adoptions change the equation. And when the law catches up with anyone in your family, it may require a lawyer to help sort everything out.

Cultural Integration

Concerning cultural integration, family bonds can be stressed in many different directions. If a mother and father are first-generation immigrants, their children may have very different upbringings and thus have very different ideas about the world. Legally, there may be new requirements for second-generation immigrants in a community, and there may be stress and tension between law enforcement officials and the members of the family in certain contexts.

Finding Neighborhoods Where You Feel Secure

Many times, family members will choose to live near each other geographically. They will also choose to live in culturally homogenous neighborhoods in many cases. It’s not uncommon to go through different sections of different cities and hear different languages or see different cultures represented in blocks. Sometimes it really is safer to live within the cultural framework you’re familiar with. Outside of that framework, the legal system may not offer you the same protection that your cultural identity will.

Generational Differences

Generationally, there can be differences in legal structures even when cultures aren’t necessarily matching. A mother and father may have grown up with certain social rules and obligations in place. As they have children, these social norms may change, and it can be surprising that laws often change along with the interpretation of where people fit into a cultural pattern. Adults may be understood to have specific protection under the law, whereas children may not. And the same instance may occur vice versa. Some family bonding when different sets of rules apply down the generational chain can be a complicated process.