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After you have presented all your witnesses (in divorce cases, it's often just you, your spouse, possibly your child's guardian ad litem, the court-appointed psychiatric evaluator, and expert witnesses such as an appraiser of real property or of a business), your side rests. It is now your spouse's turn to present his witnesses. The same questioning occurs, only the roles are reversed. Your spouse's lawyer conducts the direct questioning, and your lawyer cross-examines the witness. |
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After your spouse (in this case, the defendant) presents her witnesses, your lawyer can call witnesses to refute what's been said (called rebuttal witnesses). After you've called your rebuttal witnesses, your spouse can do the same. |
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When both sides have rested, the judge may allow each attorney to make a short, closing speech. Alternatively, he may ask that the attorneys submit memoranda to him by a certain deadline. Sometime later, he makes his decision, usually in writing. |
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If your trial was by jury, the jury decides the outcome after all the witnesses have testified, closing speeches have been made, and the judge has instructed the jurors about their responsibilities. |
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Some judges may give you a bench (oral) decision at the end of your motion or trial, just as though you had a jury. (Your lawyer should be able to find out, before the trial, if your judge makes bench decisions.) |
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Trials can be as short as half a day or as long as several months (although that would probably be unusual for a divorce trial). The length of a trial depends on the number of witnesses, how long each examination takes, and what motions are made during the course of the trial. The emotional and financial costs rapidly add up. |
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Do judges play favorites with lawyers? The answer is, probably not, but who knows? We like to think justice is blind, and hopefully it is; but there are some realities too. In some jurisdictions, the same judges tend to hear matrimonial cases, and the same lawyers tend to appear before them. Does that mean they're all buddies, and you had better find the lawyer the judge likes best? No. Cases are decided on their merits. It does mean, however, that if you've hired a well-respected attorney, the judge has probably already observed him at work and trusts his integrity. |
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Do some judges favor mothers over fathers in custody disputes? The answer to that question is probably yes. Even though custody determinations are supposed to be gender neutral, the reality for many fathers is that they go off to work while the mother stays home. Even if the mother does work, she is the one who probably did most of the child care. It follows that the mother has spent more time with the children, the main |
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