Some people think there are no winners in divorce court. While I like to have a more optimistic outlook, it goes without saying that family law cases sometimes yield unhappy litigants. With emotions running high and issues so personal in nature, it is common to have one, or both, parties unhappy with a decision of
How to Spring Clean Your Old Divorce Files
Ahhh, April. This month always feels like a fresh start for me. The sun emerges and it starts to truly feel like spring. April also happens to be my birth month, so I can’t help but feel refreshed and energized at the start of this season.
There’s a reason why “spring cleaning” is a thing,
Terms Reached in Mediation Are Not Enforceable Without a Signed Agreement
In the recent unpublished (non-precedential) decision of Mathurin v. Matrhurin, the Appellate Division again confirmed that (1) agreements reached in mediation are not binding unless the terms are reduced to a writing signed by the parties and, ostensibly, their attorneys if present, and (2) absent such a writing, the court cannot consider discussions, unsigned
Opposing an Application to Modify or Terminate Alimony Upon Retirement? Be Ready to Address Your Ability to Have Saved Adequately for Retirement.
In the wake of the September 10, 2014 amendments to N.J.S.A. 2A:34-23, the legislature clarified the circumstances under which an alimony payor’s obligation can be modified or terminated due to the obligor’s intended or actual retirement. Under the statute as amended, when faced with an obligor’s application to modify or terminate alimony due to good
What Does Your Divorce Have in Common with Halloween? A SPOOOOOOOOOOKY Comparison.
All Hallow’s Eve is upon us. All month long, I have watched my favorite Halloween movies (Hocus Pocus, anyone?), visited haunted houses, carved my Jack-O-Lantern, and engaged in all the usual Halloween festivities. But it occurred to me: the scariest thing that many of my clients will go through in their lives is their divorce.
Should You Settle Your Retirement Alimony Case?
There has been much ado about the new alimony statute. Obligors believe they are now in the driver’s seat when it comes to disposing of their alimony obligations. After all, the statute sends a message that alimony should at least be modified upon reaching full retirement age. Doesn’t it?
On the other hand, recipients believe
Credibility is Always Key
A few months ago, I posted a blog “Mind Your Manners” about how a party’s attitude may play a role in a judicial determination. This issue arises again in the recent unpublished decision of Sahai v. Sahai, confirming again that credibility is key in litigation.
In Sahai, the appellant/ex-husband appealed a trial court orders
A Checklist for Your Custody and Parenting Time Wish List
A judge’s favorite line when custody is an issue is some variation of the following: No one is better equipped to make decisions about your children than their two parents, and certainly not the judge who does not know your family from the next family in line. They are not wrong, and they will do
Parenting Time: Who Drives the Kids for Visitation?
Once a parenting time schedule is established, parents’ next concern is the logistics with pick-up and drop-off. Even with a parenting time schedule memorialized issues arise: lateness, inconvenient locations, interference with children’s activities, etc. Most times these issues can be resolved amicably without judicial intervention. But occasionally an application must be filed with the Court
Appellate Division Reverses Trial Court’s Denial of Payor’s Motion to Terminate Alimony in Unique Cohabitation Scenario
Demonstrating yet again that cohabitation cases are almost always a creature of their specific facts and circumstances, the Appellate Division in the recently unpublished, Salvatore v. Salvatore, reversed a trial court’s decision denying a payor former husband’s motion to terminate his alimony obligation based on his payee former wife’s cohabitation in a manner defined