Articles Posted in Uncategorized

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Few people have direct contact with the court system beyond jury duty or possibly some experience in a municipal court.  Therefore, what little they know about courtroom behavior is usually derived from what they have see on television, which is not necessarily an accurate depiction of courtroom etiquette.   Therefore, litigants often either have questions or need some kind of instruction before appearing in court about what to expect and how to behave in a courtroom setting.   It is an important consideration.  After all, you want to create the best impression you can on the judge who may be making important decisions affecting your life. Continue reading ›

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Saint Valentine was a third-century Roman saint  associated since the High Middle Ages with a tradition of courtly love. Although not much is known about the patron saint of Valentine’s Day as there happen to have been various Saint Valentines, one Saint Valentine was sentenced to death for performing marriage ceremonies in secret after Emperor Claudius II banned marriage for young Roman soldiers, believing that single men made better soldiers.   Continue reading ›

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NBC News anchor Brian Williams’ purported false memories of being shot down in a helicopter with his news crew more than a decade ago in Iraq is being spoken of everywhere in American news this week. Williams, to the shock of many, did not respond to the revelation that his story was untrue with contrition and admission of the lie, nor did he seek true forgiveness for what was, to many, a failed attempt at self aggrandizement. Rather, Williams’ response was the much more surreal and perhaps less believable, “I don’t know how I got this wrong”. Continue reading ›

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Most people are aware that communications between a lawyer and client are generally considered to be confidential or “privileged” and may not be disclosed to anyone without their consent. The same is true in regards to discussions between a physician or psychologist and his/her patient. However, most people are not aware that communications between spouses (or partners in a civil union) enjoy the same type of “privilege’ and were generally protected from disclosure absent mutual consent. Continue reading ›

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The Appellate Division this past week approved another decision by family court judge, Hon. Lawrence R. Jones, J.S.C., this time in the matter of Groh-v-Groh, which was decided back in March, 2014.  The parties in this case are a same sex couple who entered into a civil union in 2008, which they wished to end by 2014.   With the advice of independent matrimonial counsel, they entered into a written settlement agreement of their issues, and submitted a dual judgment of dissolution that would end their civil union on the grounds of irreconcilable differences.   Continue reading ›

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On January 12th 2015, the Appellate Division published its opinion in the case of Costa v. Costa.  In Costa, the parties were married in 1994 and divorced in 2006.  They had two children together, one being born in 1997 and the other in 2000.  By way of settlement agreement entered into at the time of the divorce, the parties agreed the mother would be the primary residential custodian and that they would share joint legal custody of the children. Continue reading ›

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As the landscape of the “traditional family” continues to evolve, children are being born into multiple families requiring innovation in calculating child support obligations on behalf of children in these families. In  a previous blog entitled “Calculating Child Support for Multiple Families”, we outlined the procedure for properly calculating child support on behalf of children of multiple families pursuant to the Appellate Division decision in Harte v. Hand, 433 N.J Super. 457 (App. Div. 2013). Continue reading ›

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We all look forward to the holiday season. Traditions developed around holidays build a collective family memory that binds us together uniquely and permanently. We bring the traditions we learn in our childhoods into our marriages and incorporate them with our spouse’s traditions into a new hybrid tradition. We do this generation to generation creating traditions and cementing the family across generations. Continue reading ›

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Several blog posts have been written here by my colleagues with regard to the subject of domestic violence and the application of New Jersey’s Prevention of Domestic Violence Act to protect victims of domestic violence in New Jersey.  There are, however, other laws that attempt to protect victims of domestic violence.  For instance, in certain instances, not only may a domestic violence restraining order be obtained under the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act, but there are criminal laws in place that protect victims from violent activity such as assault, terroristic threats, harassment, et cetera.   What about federal protections? Continue reading ›

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Prolific jurist, Honorable Lawrence R. Jones, J.S.C. in the family part in Ocean County, New Jersey, issued another published decision in the matter of J.C. v. M.C., decided on November 6, 2014.  This time, Judge Jones addressed the obligation of a plaintiff seeking a divorce to make a “diligent inquiry” as to the defendant’s whereabouts in order to serve a complaint for divorce when there is an active domestic violence restraining order against the plaintiff. Judge Jones’ decision gave priority to the right of a domestic violence victim to confidentiality of his or her location. Continue reading ›