A serious problem exists in many family law courts in New Jersey that needs to be addressed at the earliest practicable time. We refer to the unconscionable delays that exist in such things as the determination of various motions, decisions on discovery issues, and the scheduling of trials. We are not referring to all judges in this area of the law, because indeed there are some whose reputations for promptly resolving matters are well known. But all too often, litigants find themselves entangled in cases that go on for months and even years and without any satisfactory explanation for why. We understand that it is not unusual to have to wait a year or two, or even more, before trials are scheduled. And then there is the problem that commonly long periods elapse after the trials, as the parties await decisions from the courts.
In a number of instances, litigants increasingly are turning to retired matrimonial judges for mediation and/or arbitration. Often the litigants find that, whereas their matters have been languishing in court, resorting to a retired judge for alternative dispute resolution results in conclusion in a matter of days or a few weeks. It cannot be that cases that mediators or arbitrators find resolvable in a short time should be dragging on in the courts as the seasons change.
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