Knowledge is power, and this blog is dedicated to providing the most updated information on New Jersey Family Law, related topics, and family matters in general. It's our goal for you to use the information on this site, including the individual practice area pages, to help you understand your rights, obligations, and the best course of action for your New Jersey Family Law case.
Learning how to co-parent successfully during a pandemic is unquestionably challenging. A new Washington Post profile of different East Coast families who share co-parenting duties reports that most of them agree that the two biggest challenges in custody arrangements are: facing uncertainty when...
Many different factors may play into the unraveling of a marriage, not the least of which is the physical health of one or more of the partners. We don't generally like to think of illness or injury as being a deciding factor in divorce; after all, the marriage vows include the phrase, “In sickne...
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, New Jersey has one of the lowest rates of divorce in the country. People in New Jersey tend to marry later and have higher education rates—both factors that lead to more successful marriages. About 9-10% of adults in New Jersey are divorced, making divorce rea...
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused countless disruptions in the daily lives of many people, but for parents who share custody of their children, there may also be additional issues. In some instances, parents have refused to send their children to the other parent, citing concerns over coronavirus ...
Life during a pandemic is anxiety-inducing for everyone. For parents trying to balance work, school closures, and social distancing, life is stressful. But parents navigating custody agreements and visitations during quarantine may face what seems like an impossible task. It's the rare custody ag...
Recent stay-at-home and social distancing orders, intended to keep people safe, are causing new challenges for a growing number of families in recovery. Reports coming in from agencies across the country show that many parents are being denied supervised visits with their children in foster care ...
So many aspects of our lives have been pushed into uncharted territory during the pandemic, from how we interact with loved ones, to how we shop, work, and perform other commonplace actions. The COVID-19 crisis has seemed to upend the all usual workings. Courtrooms, including those in New Jersey,...
With the economy in shatters because of the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, many New Jersey families are having to adjust their routines, schedules, and priorities. Some divorced couples may even be dealing with the fact that one or both parents have lost their job or have had to accept a tra...
Here in New Jersey, the courts take child support very seriously. When parents of a child are no longer together as a couple, either because they have divorced or because they were never married and are no longer in a relationship together, both parents have a financial responsibility to provide ...
If you have been able to hang on to your employment during the COVID-19 pandemic while also trying to care for your children as part of your custody agreement, you have probably been struggling to find child care or alternative measures for watching the children while you try to do your job. Ther...
Coronavirus has led to 38 states to put stay-at-home mandates in place, which means restaurants, bars, fitness centers, theaters, and many more businesses have had to close their doors. Employers are having to cut or furlough staff during this pandemic. And the economic prognosis is bleak: for t...
At the time of this writing, New Jersey and 31 other states have all moved to a “lockdown” mode, meaning people are to stay at home as much as possible in an attempt to flatten the curve of the coronavirus spreading across the country. It is estimated that there are some 245 million Americans (th...
In a matter of days, the spread of COVID-19 (the novel coronavirus) changed the landscape of America as we know it. Multiple states, including New Jersey, have issued shelter-in-place mandates, meaning all residents are to stay at home and can only go out for essential errands, such as grocery sh...
Raising a child calls for parents to make numerous decisions on a daily basis. For both parents to come to a consensus is difficult enough in an intact family. After divorce, when most parents are the least amicable, deciding what's best for your child as a unit can feel like an impossible task. ...
Sit in on any New Jersey child custody proceeding and there's a high likelihood that you'll witness mudslinging on both sides. Despite how amicable parents claim to be before stepping into the courtroom, the nature of custody disputes often brings out the worst in people. In the most contentious ...
A huge dilemma that both family law attorneys and parents face in custody cases is whether a child should testify in custody proceedings. Some parents long to protect their child from the court process regardless of the circumstances, while others want their child's voice to be heard - particular...
In a previous article, we explored the intricacies of the “best interests” doctrine applied in child custody cases. We discovered that the way in which the best interest of a child is determined is a convolution beyond each parent's idealizations, or even what appears to be reasonable, so long as...
If you've been involved in a New Jersey child custody case, you've likely heard the phrase “best interests of the child.” A child's best interest is a doctrine that New Jersey courts utilize to justify family law decisions. Although this doctrine appears to be a relatively simple concept on the ...
Life after a divorce or separation can be complicated. When you throw children into the equation, emotions are high and the stakes are even higher. In most situations, parents in New Jersey are responsible for working out a co-parenting plan. Developing a plan is an uphill battle for parents in g...
Child custody courts have garnered quite the reputation over time. Whether the outcomes of custody cases detriment or benefit separating and divorcing families overall depends on who you ask. For years, disgruntled fathers have aired their grievances about the court system, and have even gone as ...
To create a parenting plan in which both parents can reach an agreement is a great feat within itself. But when parents live hundreds or thousands of miles apart - whether it be in different areas of the U.S. or across the globe - things can get much more complicated. The good news is that there ...
New Jersey's new impaired driving law takes a pragmatic approach to alcoholism and substance abuse by requiring most first offenders convicted of a DWI to install ignition interlock devices in their vehicles. Before the law took effect on December 1, many DWI offenders had their licenses suspende...
To say that parenthood is a monumental responsibility is an understatement. If you've had children, you understand the significance of being present and fulfilling the many needs that aid in their healthy development. But truly having the capacity to be your child's everything in the midst of a...
In child custody proceedings, the most influential consideration in a decision is the best interest of the child. Since psychologists and legal experts believe that it's in a child's best interest to maintain a healthy relationship with both parents, an ideal determination in most New Jersey cour...
Drafting a child custody arrangement that truly satisfies you and your child's other parent will be a challenge regardless of how cordial you both claim to be. When one or both you have a career that requires you to stay on the go, reaching an agreement that you'll be content with becomes even mo...
Attorney Joseph D. Lento has more than a decade of experience practicing Family Law in New Jersey. If you are having any uncertainties about what the future may hold for you and your family, contact our offices today. Family Law Attorney Joseph Lento will go above and beyond the needs for any client and fight for what is fair.