Divorce is, at its heart, the end of a marriage, although recently in the state of New Jersey the real conflict seems to begin with the commencement of the divorce procedure. Multiple noticeable instances in New Jersey divorce laws and proceedings have reached the news recently and have garnered heated debate between those involved in the states family court process, as well as the families who have been directly affected by it.
Protesting the Superior Courts
On December 1st in Monmouth County, New Jersey groups of women have continued their protest of rulings made by a Superior Court Judge, Paul X. Escandon. The women accuse Escandon of having a bias against female litigants in divorce cases. They claim that he has repeatedly made decisions in favor of the male litigants in many divorce cases heard in Monmouth County. This marks the second time and a few short months that Judge Escandon’s decisions have been publicly contested and protested. A September ruling was protested by 40 women outside the Superior Court. This is after numerous women expressed their concerns at a town hall meeting where Governor Chris Christie even voiced his concerns and frustrations with the current judicial system in dealing with divorce.
Underwater alimony mandate
In another part of New Jersey, in the borough of Flemington , a man has recently been jailed for over 7 weeks because of non-support, in keeping with his alimony payments. John Waldorf claims he has become a victim of he says is the state’s flawed alimony system. This ruling has also brought about protests outside the courts. Waldorf, who divorced his wife in 2011, was ordered to pay $2,000 a week in alimony, which amounts to $104,000 a year. In addition to alimony, Waldorf was ordered to pay $3,300 in child support. The discrepancy is that Waldorf’s annual income, dating back to the year 2000, has been on average about $90,000. To add to this vast bill is the $100,000 in legal fees from the divorce process.
Since the decree Waldorf has been jailed, lost his job because of the jailing, and meanwhile his wife, who is disabled, has been receiving no payment of support of any kind. Not to mention that the taxpayers are paying the bill to house and feed Waldorf while he remains in jail.
A group, NJ Alimony Reform, is currently lobbying to change the alimony rules in New Jersey. At the beginning of 2012 the state Senate and Assembly voted down bills that would potentially modify alimony and child support payments based on real-life circumstances, mainly unemployment, disability, etc. Change is always slow in coming when it affects large number of people.
A contested divorce can lead to precarious situations, like those stated above, regardless of the laws and regulations regarding the divorce process. For couples who can amicably split ways, an uncontested divorce is by far the best choice in path. At MyDivorcePapers.com we can help those couples pursuing an easy and quick divorce with our online divorce forms. Following a simple interview and questionnaire process couples can have all their agreements laid out and proceed with the divorce process in no time, saving money and any chance of a long and drawn out process. Visit www.mydivorcepapers.com and learn about all your state’s laws on the divorce process.
What about 7-8 different judges that hear your visition cases. Each judge denies your request but ups your child support. Even worse they won’t even let you talk. I pay 277.00 a week and have not been able to see me son in over ten years. I have called politicians and nobody wants to get involved. I feel someone knows someone and the judges are bias against me. I need help and there is no help. I even had a lawyer drain my bank account and then after six court appearances he says. It ain’t worth going anymore. I know that I should pay but me son is in a residential hospital permanently and I am still paying. I don’t understand this. My son doesn’t reside with my x anymore and before trying to reunite me with him, he puts him in a hospital and pockets my money.
Oh! That’s terrible and unfortunate! I wish the system will really change. I wonder how many individuals are in the same situation suffering from this kind of system too.
Thanks for sharing this information. This is really interesting and informative. Nice posting!
Thanks for reading! If you want to read about another divorce topic (legal or otherwise), just send us a comment and we’ll get on it.
It seems that they have a terrible divorce process. How could the couple trust a system like that? And could the decision of Judge Escandon be considered as gender discrimination?
It’s agreed that we have our eye on New Jersey and are hoping for some change in their divorce laws. We’ll see what we can dig up in the news about anything in the works for New Jersey divorce.