Divorce Guide for Men and Fathers in New Jersey

These are third party evaluations used to estimate the value of different assets such as real estate, business interests, stocks, bank account, antiques, artwork and collectables and other investments.

This is an informal real estate appraisal commonly used in place of a formal appraisal. The market analysis is usually conducted by a real estate agent who first identifies properties of similar location and size and then compares them to recent homes sold. This information is the basis for estimating the likely sales price of a piece of real estate involved in litigation.

Depositions are face-to-face questioning, taken under oath by the opposing party outside of court. The answers are transcribed by a stenographer and may be used in court if the person being deposed gives different information or testimony at a later hearing.

Also known as a Request for Further Information, this is a set of written questions posed to the opposite party that must be answered truthfully, in writing, under the penalty of perjury. The answers must be returned within 60 days of when your wife or her attorney received them.

This is a written request to provide the other party with specific documents regarding assets, debts and other issues of the case. The documents must be sent to the requesting party within 30 days of receiving notice.

These are written statements about certain facts of the case sent from one person seeking a divorce to the other. They are asked to admit or deny the statements.

These are formal requests, served by the attorney representing any of the parties involved. There are two kinds of subpoenas:

• Duces Tecum requires the other person to produce certain documents at a certain time, such as credit card statements, bank accounts and tax returns.
• Ad Testificadum requires someone to come and testify under oath at a certain time and place.

This affidavit requires the person to inform the court about all of the insurance policies they have. The person must also certify that they have not and will not change insurance coverage without the court’s permission while the case is pending.

This is a response to a complaint. It is usually a general denial of most of the statements set forth in the complaint.

This refers to the plaintiff’s answer to the defendant’s counterclaim. It is usually a general denial of most of the statements made by the defendant in the defendant’s counterclaim.

This document contains all of the financial facts for each party. It must be filed with the court when there is an issue of alimony, child support or equitable distribution. (See alimony, child support, and equitable distribution below.)

A complaint is the first pleading filed in a lawsuit.

A counterclaim is filed by the defendant and is part of the defendant’s answer.

When the defendant receives a copy of the plaintiff’s complaint but does not file an answer or counterclaim 35 days after receiving it, the defendant is considered to have defaulted. The plaintiff’s attorney can then file an entry of default.

A Motion is a written request from one of the parties in a lawsuit asking the court to give that person something by entering an order against the other person.

The purpose of this type of motion is to enforce an earlier court order. It typically comes into play when one party did not do something they were ordered to by the court.

This pleading, filed by the plaintiff in a divorce case, asks the court for everything the plaintiff wants the judge to give the plaintiff when the judge grants the divorce. It is filed when the Defendant does not answer the Plaintiff’s complaint.

This pleading tells the judge what kind of parenting time or visitation you want to have with your children as well as what kind of parenting time or visitation you want the other party to have with your children.

These papers, filed by the attorneys before a trial, tell the judge how you want the case to be decided, what the facts of the case are, the documents you will be presenting at trial, and the witnesses who will be called to trial.

This details the agreement between the husband and wife when they have worked out issues such as distribution of property, parenting, child support and spousal support. It gets filed with the court. The court does not determine whether or not the agreement is fair. It only decides whether both people agree to and understand the agreement.

This pleading is filed with a panel of attorneys that the court assigns to hold an early settlement panel or ESP. (See ESP below.) The statement of issues sets forth all the issues of a case and states your position for how they should be resolved.

This document is submitted by the lawyers before a trial date and indicates the facts of the case, the position of each party and the law that will be used to support their respective positions.

These conferences are scheduled throughout the litigation process. The purpose is for the court to determine what issues have been resolved, what issues are outstanding and what court hearings are necessary to resolve these issues prior to trial. The court will use that information to establish time frames, schedule upcoming hearings and select a trial date.

The four people attending this conference include the plaintiff, the defendant, and each of their lawyers. The meeting is held at one of the attorney’s offices with the purpose of discussing a settlement.

Contempt proceedings take place if one of the parties does not do something the court ordered them to do. Punishment for contempt can include arrest, financial sanctions, additional orders for relief or other forms of court ordered sanctions.

These hearings are scheduled once a defendant has failed to file an answer to the divorce complaint within the specified time frame. A default hearing closes out the defendant’s ability to file an answer and allows the plaintiff to go forward with the divorce to request alimony, child support or equitable distribution on terms that they propose to the judge.

This is a confidential settlement conference where the court brings in local attorneys who are experienced in family law cases. You and your wife write how you each want the case to be settled and give that information to the attorneys on the panel. The attorneys review the submissions and make a recommendation for how the case should be settled. If both people accept the panel’s recommendation, the case is settled and the parties are divorced. If the parties do not accept the recommendation, the case continues and all information from the hearing is confidential. This hearing only occurs in divorce cases.

The purpose of this hearing is to resolve the economic issues in the case such as equitable distribution of marital property and support. You and your spouse choose a lawyer who you work with to create your own mutually acceptable agreement. This option follows the early settlement panel and only takes place if the early settlement panel is unsuccessful.

In family court, a final hearing may be scheduled to address two situations.

• It may take place after the entry of a default pleading (when a defendant does not respond to a complaint). At such a hearing, the judge decides whether or not to award alimony, child support or equitable distribution.
• A final hearing may also take place when cases are settled. In that instance, the court’s role is to determine that the agreement is reasonable and not the result of undue pressure or coercion. The court does not decide whether the settlement was fair, only that both parties freely agreed to it.

This process provides you and your wife with an opportunity to resolve your differences and reach an agreement outside of the courtroom. With the help of a trained mediator, families are encouraged to resolve as many of the economic and custody issues possible. Family mediation is mandatory, but participants can use their own discretion as to whether they accept an agreement or not. All discussions are confidential and cannot be used later in court.

This is a court ordered meeting held at the courthouse. Participants include the plaintiff, the defendant and attorneys for both. All the participants are required to spend most if not all of the day in settlement discussions. The judge does not attend but will meet with the attorneys to provide guidance during the day if requested. New Jersey requires at least one intensive settlement conference before a trial can be held.

A court may encourage opposing parties in a lawsuit to resolve their issues themselves by ordering mediation. In these cases, a trained mediator is brought in to facilitate a meeting between both parties in the hopes of reaching a settlement outside of court. There are two types of mediation the court can order:

• Family mediation and
• Mediation for custody.

Both forms are usually directed by the court unless there is a final restraining order.

These hearings take place when a lawyer asks a court judge to review a case and then decides based on the evidence presented to them. Attorneys can also request a case be dismissed. Motion hearings are granted at the discretion of the judge after a motion has been filed. Oral argument or motion hearings are held only if the judge believes that additional information or clarification is necessary.

When an attorney speaks before a judge in a courtroom and presents the legal reasons to support his/her case, it is called an oral argument.

This is a court-ordered mediation session that is required at the beginning of all divorce cases in an attempt to remove custody issues from a judge’s decision. The purpose is to encourage the parties to discuss and set a parenting schedule themselves.

When children are involved in a divorce case, often the court’s first step is to order both parties to participate in this workshop. During the workshop, the parents view a videotape discussing the types of issues they will likely face as they litigate their divorce case. The intent is to encourage both parents to take an amicable approach as they discuss issues such as parenting time and custody, and do so in a way that does not hurt their child in the process. This is because New Jersey divorce law puts the best interests of the children above all other issues in terms of importance.

This is a short but complete trial. Witnesses are called to testify and trial briefs are normally submitted but it does not last as long as a traditional trial. These trials are held when only a few issues need to be resolved.

These meetings are usually held outside of the courthouse by you and your wife and the attorneys in an attempt to resolve issues, reach a settlement and thereby avoid going to court.

When a case management conference is held in the middle or end of a case, it may be called a status conference. As with the case management conference, the purpose is for the court to identify the remaining issues and schedule the actions necessary to resolve these issues.

These are final hearings in which opposing parties testify to the issues of the case and the judge makes the final decision.