Margaret Mahoney

Professor Emerita of Law

Biography

With her 1994 treatise, Stepfamilies and the Law (University of Michigan Press, 1994), Professor Mahoney distinguished herself as one of the country's leading experts on the legal issues surrounding nontraditional families. She has written extensively on this subject and on other family law issues, including numerous articles analyzing the property and economic issues associated with family relationships. Her work has been published in Cornell Law Review, Journal of Family Law, and Notre Dame Lawyer, among others.

A member of the Pitt law faculty since 1978, Professor Mahoney was the first woman to earn tenure at the Law School. She served as associate dean for academic affairs from 1986-1993. Before entering legal academia, Professor Mahoney was a legal services attorney in upstate New York. She continues be involved in public interest law as a member of the Board of Directors of Neighborhood Legal Services of Western Pennsylvania.

Key/Recent Publications

Books:

  • Margaret Mahoney, Stepfamilies and the Law (1994).

Book Chapters:

  • Margaret M. Mahoney, The Law of Divorce and Relationship Dissolution in The Handbook of Divorce and Relationship Dissolution (Mark A. Fine & John H. Harvey eds., 2006). Available on SSRN.
  • Margaret M. Mahoney, The Economic Rights and Responsibilities of Unmarried Cohabitants in Just Living Together (Alan Booth & Ann C. Crouter eds., 2002). Available on SSRN.

Scholarly Articles:

  • Margaret M. Mahoney, The Equitable Distribution of Marital Debts, 79 U. Mo.-Kansas City L. Rev. 445 (2010). Available on SSRN
  • Margaret M. Mahoney, Permanence and Parenthood: The Case for Abolishing the Annulment Doctrine, 42 Indiana Law Review 639, 2009. Available on SSRN.
  • Margaret M. Mahoney, Stepparents as Third Parties in Relation to Their Stepchildren, in Family Boundaries:  Symposium on Third-Party Rights and Obligations with Respect to Children, 40 Fam. L. Q. 81 (2006). Available on SSRN.
  • Margaret M. Mahoney, Forces Shaping the Law of Cohabitation for Opposite Sex Couples, 7 J. L. & Fam. Studies 135 (2005). Available on SSRN.
  • Margaret M. Mahoney, Debts, Divorce, and Disarray in Bankruptcy, 73 U. Mo.-Kansas City L. Rev. 83 (2004). Available on SSRN.