Divorce

Butler Divorce Lawyer

At the Butler, New Jersey, law firm of I. Jacob Weingarten, I represent clients with divorce matters. As a divorce lawyer, I represent clients throughout New Jersey, including Morris, Sussex, and Passaic counties, which include the communities of Butler, Bloomingdale, Riverdale, Wayne, West Milford, Kinnelon, and Pompton Lakes. Contact my firm today to work with an experienced divorce attorney.

Grounds for Divorce

During my thirty-plus years of practice, divorce in New Jersey has undergone some sweeping changes. The good news is that it is much easier to get a divorce than it was not too many years ago.

New Jersey recognizes four grounds for divorce: extreme cruelty, adultery, desertion, and no-fault. For a no-fault divorce, you and your spouse must live separate and apart continuously for eighteen months with no sexual relations during that time. Desertion involves one spouse leaving the home over the objection of the other spouse for a period of one year. Extreme cruelty is almost any type of conduct that upsets you or your spouse. As one judge put it, if eating crackers in bed drives your wife crazy, then eating crackers in bed is extreme cruelty. Generally, who did what to whom during the marriage has little or no effect on alimony, custody, visitation, child support or division of property.

Children

The court will decide where the children will live (custody). This will be based on what is in the child’s best interests, physically, emotionally, and economically. Where the parents have already separated, if the child is doing well it’s unlikely that custody will change. Most of the time, the children will live primarily with one parent (sole custody). On rare occasions, the children will spend roughly the same amount of time with each parent (joint custody). Usually, this requires that both parents live in the same or nearby towns. It always requires co-operation between both parents.

In cases of sole custody, the other parent enjoys liberal and reasonable visitation. This may be spelled out in great detail by the court or by the parties themselves or it can be left to the parents to set visitation on a more flexible basis. The courts are very supportive of visitation. It will not be limited unless it is in the child’s best interest to do so.

Both parties must contribute to the financial support of the children (child support). In New Jersey, child support, in most cases, is determined based upon the income of the parents. The courts use a mathematical formula (the child support guidelines) to determine child support. Only in rare cases may the court deviate from the guidelines. If one or both parents are unemployed or underemployed, the court will base child support on what that parent is capable of earning. In addition to child support, provision must be made for other needs, including medical insurance, uncovered medical expenses, work-related day care and college.

Child support is usually paid through Probation by deducting the necessary payments from the paycheck of the supporting parent. Child support will be reviewed by Probation periodically to track the parties’ financial situation.

Alimony

Alimony is support for a spouse. Unlike child support, there is no formula for spousal support. Alimony is based upon the length of the marriage and the potential of each spouse. The longer the marriage and the greater the difference in the parties’ earning potential, the greater the likelihood that alimony will be awarded. Alimony may be permanent (until the death of either party or the remarriage of the spouse receiving alimony). Permanent alimony may also end if the spouse receiving alimony enters into a relationship that is tantamount to marriage. Alimony may also be for a shorter, stated period of time, as, for example, where one spouse needs to go back to school to acquire skills to enter the job market.

Change in Circumstances

After a divorce is finalized, alimony, child support, custody, and visitation may be changed if there is a significant change in circumstances of one or both of the parties. The maturation of the children is a change which may result in an increase in child support. Changes in employment, finances and health of the parties are changes which may result in a reconsideration of these issues.

Division of Property

The court will divide up property acquired during the marriage (equitable distribution). This includes real estate, bank accounts, stocks, furniture, jewelry, motor vehicles… in fact just about everything you own. It also includes employment benefits, pensions, 401K plans, profit sharing plans, etc. Generally, all marital assets are divided equally, especially in the case of a marriage of ten or more years. However, there are expectations and each case must be evaluated on its own facts. Assets acquired during the marriage by gift or inheritance are not subject to equitable distribution unless they are merged with jointly held assets, such as depositing an inheritance into a joint bank account. Assets acquired during the marriage are subject to equitable distribution even if they are owned in the name of one party and not the other.

Counsel Fees

Divorce cases are one of the rare areas in New Jersey law where one side may end up paying for the other side’s lawyer. The court looks to each party’s ability to pay for their own and/or their spouse’s counsel fees. The court also looks to which of the parties has been acting in good faith. If you try to make your spouse suffer by “playing hardball” you may end up paying for his or her lawyer, as well as for your own.

Procedures

Most lawyers try to settle a case before they take it to court. It is almost always cheaper to settle a case early. A settlement can be made to meet the unique demands of the individuals involved. Sometimes, a settlement can accomplish things a court may not do.

If an early settlement is not in the cards, the formal divorce proceedings are started by one side filing a complaint with the court, demanding a divorce and a resolution of all the divorce-related issues outlined above. A case may settle even after the complaint is filed and the good news is that most of them do. If not, it takes, on average, a year to two years for a case to reach the top of the trial list. A settled case must still be heard by a judge, but that can be arranged within a few days after settlement. Prior to settlement, the parties will go to court frequently. There will be status (case management) conferences, and settlement conferences, including an appearance before the early settlement panel, two or three divorce attorneys who will hear the matter informally and render a non-binding suggestion on how to resolve the issues fairly. Either party may go into court for interim relief, such as payment of temporary child support or alimony or to enforce visitation. These interim applications are called motions. If all else fails and a case does not settle, a judge will hear all the evidence and will decide whether a divorce should be granted as well as custody, visitation, child support, alimony, equitable distribution, etc.

Contact me today for an experienced divorce lawyer.

I. Jacob Weingarten
P.O. Box 251
10 Park Place
Butler, NJ 07405
Phone: (973) 838-4898
Fax: (973) 838-5245
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