Norwalk, Connecticut, Family Law and Divorce Lawyer
At the law office of Carl Ferraro, Attorney at Law, we believe in empowering our clients by providing them with the information they need to fully understand the legal process. If you are considering a divorce, contact us today to discuss your concerns with a knowledgeable attorney who will explain how the law applies to your individual situation.
Here are some divorce terms that you should be familiar with:
- Alimony: money a court requires one spouse to pay the other spouse for support before and/or after the divorce is granted. If you do not ask for alimony at the final hearing, you can never get it in the future.
- Annulment: a court order declaring that the marriage is invalid.
- Arrearages: money for court ordered alimony and/or child support which is overdue and unpaid.
- Automatic Court Orders: court orders that take effect when the divorce process begins.
- Broken Down Irretrievably: the most common reason for granting a divorce--it means there is no hope of the husband and wife reconciling.
- Child Support: money paid by a parent to help meet the financial needs of a child.
- Complaint: the legal paper that starts your case and tells the court what you want.
- Child Custody: court order deciding where a child will live and how decisions about the child will be made. Parents may ask for any custody arrangement that they believe is in the best interest of their child.
- Defendant: the person who is served with divorce papers.
- Dissolution: the legal end of a marriage, also called a divorce.
- Docket Number: a unique number the court clerk assigns to a case. It must be used on all future papers filed in the court case.
- Giving the court clerk your legal papers is called a Filing.
- Financial Affidavit: a sworn statement of income, expenses, property (called assets) and debts (called liabilities).
- Garnishment: a court order to deduct child support or alimony payments from someone’s income.
- Judgment File: a permanent court record of the court’s final decision.
- Judgment: a court order describing the conditions under which two married people will live separately.
- No Fault Divorce: most common kind of divorce, where no one needs to prove that the husband or wife caused the marriage to end.
- Parties: the people named as "plaintiff" and "defendant" on legal papers.
- Paternity: legal fatherhood.
- Pendente Lite: a court order made before a divorce is granted.
- Plaintiff: person who starts the divorce.
- Pro Se: "for yourself".
- Pro Se Divorce: do it yourself divorce.
- Restraining Order: court order to protect someone from physical abuse or the threat of physical abuse.
- Return Date: always on a Tuesday, the date the divorce action starts in court and the beginning of the 90 day waiting period. The defendant should file an appearance on or before the second day after this date.
- Service: legal method for giving your spouse a copy of the court papers being filed, or notice that court action is being or has been taken.
- Visitation: also called parenting time or access, is a court order deciding the amount of time a non-custodial parent may spend with his or her child.
To get a divorce, you will need to speak with many people who work in the court system. You will know what to expect from each of them after you review the following descriptions below.
- Caseflow Coordinator: keeps track of your case and manages the scheduling of hearings and trials.
- Court Clerk: maintains the official court record of your case. The clerk’s office receives all court papers and may assign hearing dates.
- Court Interpreter: translates court hearings from English to another language. You must provide your own interpreter in a divorce; however, one may be provided at state expense for cases enforcing child support orders, if requested.
- Court Monitor: types everything said during the court hearing and prepares a written record of the hearing for a fee, if requested.
- Family Relations Counselor: works in the Judicial Branch’s CSSD Family Services Office, mediating disagreements and negotiating agreements in divorce cases. At the request of the judge, a family relations counselor may evaluate a family situation by interviewing each parent and the children in the family and writing a report for the judge, making recommendations about custody and visitation.
- Judge: hears and decides cases for the courts.
- Law Librarian: maintains legal reference and research materials for public use.
The legal process can be complex and confusing if you do not have an attentive attorney to guide you through the process. It can be especially daunting if you are facing an emotional legal dispute, such as a divorce or child custody case. Contact us today to discuss your questions and concerns with a knowledgeable, attentive, and supportive divorce lawyer. Please call (203) 866-6503 or (203) 247-1495.
|
