CHATHAM TOWNSHIP NEW JERSEY MORRIS COUNTY DIVORCE ATTORNEY

He filed a New York complaint for divorce from defendant. Believing he was divorced, he moved to New Jersey and married another woman, Lopez . He had 2 children with Lopez and remains with her. When applying for immigration status, plaintiff was told the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not recognize his marriage to Lopez because his New York divorce was dismissed. Because he remains married to defendant, his marriage to Lopez was invalid. So he filed a new complaint for divorce in New Jersey, ultimately granted. However, the Bureau began deportation proceedings, still claiming his marriage to Lopez was invalid, having occurred while he was still married to defendant. He tried to amend the New Jersey judgment of divorce to a claim for annulment. The judge properly denied this request. Not only was his request untimely, filed 5 years after the divorce judgment, but his alleged mistake of filing for a divorce instead of an annulment was not a permissible ground for relief.    Melendez, etc. v. Calim, New Jersey App. Div., October 19, 2007