There are several ways a NJ divorce case can get resolved. The parties can reach an agreement between themselves or with the assistance of their attorneys. The Court system offers custody and parenting time mediation and the Early Settlement Panel Program. Litigants can utilize mediation, arbitration or collaborative divorce. In certain cases, the matter is litigated at a trial and the judge will render a decision. There are pro’s and con’s of each approach and the the purpose of this post is to to compare the various resolution methods. That will be a topic for future posts. At present, arbitration is avoluntary process and outside the court system. This means the parties must agree to participate. A proposed new rule seeks to better integrate the arbitration process into the court system.
PROPOSED NEW RULE WOULD CREATE ARBITRATION TRACK IN FAMILY CASES
The state Supreme Court’s Family Practice Committee is recommending rule changes to establish an arbitration track for family cases for certain family court matters. Many litigants in family cases already make use of arbitration but the suggested rule changes would expedite the process and better integrate it into the court case. The parties would get a year to resolve matters through arbitration, unless they could show “good cause” to extend the period and during that time, they would be entitled to scheduling consideration.
