Uncontested Divorce

An uncontested divorce takes about four months to complete from the time the papers are served.

There is a mandatory 90-day waiting period after the papers are served.

If it is uncontested, a final hearing is held shortly after the 90 days are up.

Contested Divorce

A contested divorce can take several years if custody or substantial property issues are involved.

If it is contested, a hearing on financial issues is held before a "Special Masters", a male and female lawyer team with many years experience in family law. They review your situation and make recommendations. If you can't come to an agreement after a meeting with the Special Masters, you will have another meeting, this time with a judge, who will also review your situation and make recommendations. If you don't accept the judge's recommendations you will be assigned a trial date. About 80% of the cases settle after a meeting with the Special Masters, and about 95% after a meeting with the judge. Almost all cases which actually go to trial end up with a decision very close to that recommended by the Special Masters and the judge. We can predict very accurately what the Special Masters and the judge will recommend.

Trials can be very expensive. Appraisals of property, pensions, alimony calculations, child custody evaluations and the like can be very expensive and time consuming. They generally are not necessary and are often counterproductive. We've done tons of them, and they are not a pretty picture.