As I’ve mentioned previously, judge shortages in NJ Superior Courts plus COVID delays have created significant backlogs in cases. In seven NJ counties (Cumberland, Salem, Gloucester, Somerset, Hunterdon, Warren, and Passaic) the judge shortages were so severe that the court was not holding any matrimonial or civil trials. Criminal trials, which have constitutional guarantees of
Matrimonial Trials Resume in Somerset, Hunterdon and Warren Counties
As I’ve mentioned previously, judge shortages in NJ Superior Courts plus COVID delays have created significant backlogs in cases. In seven NJ counties (Cumberland, Salem, Gloucester, Somerset, Hunterdon, Warren, and Passaic) the judge shortages were so severe that the court was not holding any matrimonial or civil trials. Criminal trials, which have constitutional guarantees of…
Honored to Speak to Employment and ADR Inns of Court
On Tuesday, I was honored to speak to a joint meeting of the Reitman Employment Inn of Court and the Garibaldi ADR (alternative dispute resolution) Inn of Court. Inns of Court are statewide groups with members from the bar (lawyers) and bench (judges). The Inns act as a more social way to have conversations between…
Religious Upbringing of Children in Divorce
I’ve spoken before about religious issues in divorces. They can be contentious. What about religious issues regarding children in divorces (or when a child is born to unwed parents)? Parents from different religions or even different religious traditions within the same religion often agree upon how the children will be raised. But what happens when…
Why You Should Settle A Fee Shifting Case
Fee shifting is permitted when a statute or contractual provision provides for the loser of a lawsuit to pay the winner’s legal costs. Generally in the United States, we follow the “American Rule” where each party in a lawsuit pays for their own legal costs. There are some public policy issues where the legislature wants…
NJ Supreme Court Clarifies Cohabitation and Alimony Termination
I’ve written before about NJ law around cohabitation and ending alimony. Basically, if a recipient of alimony enters into a relationship that looks like marriage but isn’t formalized into a marriage — cohabitation — alimony can be terminated. The court laid out factors it would look at in a case called Konzelman v. Konzelman,…
ChatGPT is Not Your Lawyer
ChatGPT is all the rage these days. Ask it a question and it gives you an answer. But use it at your own risk, as some New York attorneys recently discovered.
If you are unfamiliar, ChatGPT is an artificial intelligence that is largely free to use. It is still a work in progress. Many people…
Are Divorces in Arranged Marriages Different?
Most marriages in the U.S. are “for love.” meaning that the couple has chosen each other to marry. Presumably, they met, dated, fell in love, and then decided to marry. In contrast, many cultures have arranged marriages where the parents of the children think their kids would be compatible as spouses. Sometimes the children have…
What is a Get in a Jewish Divorce?
Gotta get a get? What exactly is a get? In a divorce involving a Jewish couple, a get is the document that grants the Jewish part of the divorce. Marriages can be both civil and religious even though we tend to conflate them by having a religious official perform the ceremony. A civil marriage means…
Divorce, Houses and Higher Interest Rates
The Federal Reserve has been raising interest rates recently to counter the higher inflation the economy has seen over the past few years. How does this impact divorcing couples? The impact that most comes to mind is refinancing the marital home.
One of the options couples have when divorcing is to “sell” the marital home…