New Jersey Family Law

NEW JERSEY DIVORCE GROUNDS

Proposed New Jersey legislation [S-1467/A-483] adds a new cause of action for a New Jersey divorce based on "irreconcilable differences". A-483 has passed in the Assembly Judiciary Committee. S-1467 has unanimously passed in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Both bills require a 6 month waiting period and are now poised for vote by the full Senate and General Assembly. This may happen on December 4, 2006, which is when the Senate and General Assembly are next scheduled to meet.    New Jersey Family Law Committee, November 3, 2006

NEW JERSEY CUSTODY LITIGATION

Judgment ordering the father of a child to return the child to her mother in Poland after the mother brought a suit under the Hague Convention is affirmed where an Illinois custody grant was irrelevant and unenforceable since the child's habitual residence was Poland and Poland awards custody to unwed mothers. Thus, any custody dispute must proceed under the laws of that country.      Kijowska v. Haines, U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, September 8, 2006

http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data2/circs/7th/062424p.pdf

NEW GROUNDS FOR DIVORCE IN NEW JERSEY

The legislature has introduced a bill that would amend the New Jersey divorce statute to include a cause of action for divorce based on "irreconcilable differences". The proposed legislation provides that a divorce will be granted on grounds of "irreconcilable differences which have caused the breakdown of the marriage for a period of six months and which make it appear that the marriage should be dissolved and that there is no reasonable prospect of reconciliation."    Assembly Bill A-580, 211th Legislature, January 24, 2006

Living Wills

The New Jersey legislature is addressing the thorny issue of a person’s involvement with a spouse’s living will, a focal point of the Terri Schiavo case. Two bills are being considered. S-2519 would require marriage license issuers to give applicants a state-prepared booklet about advance directives. S-2520 would require judges in divorce and termination of domestic partnership actions to ask whether the parties want to change their advance directives. New Jersey Lawyer, June 8, 2005

Recent Bills Introduced

S-2143/A-3317 revises experience rquirements for eligibility to be licensed as a marriage and family therapist. S-2161 provides that violation of a domestic violence order issued in another jurisdiction would constitute contempt of a domestic violence order in New Jersey. New Jersey Lawyer, January 10, 2005