New Jersey Domestic Violence Legal Questions

THis is not an easy question to answer. There are many factors to discuss. The nature of the domestic violence charge. The police can 'look through the expungement'. We have had good success being straightforward and open. We use a retired state trooper. We work clo0sely with the police to 'educate' them about you and what took place. Please call to discuss. Ed Dimon, Esq. 732-797-1600 ext 235... Read More

We do many domestic violence cases. We are available to discuss what happened on the day in question and in court. If the matter has been adjudicated, you should obtain the court transcript for us to review. As such, there would be no conjecture as to what was said in court. Please call. Ed Dimon, Esq. 732-797-1600 ext 235... Read More

We have a unique apprach to these cases whereby we put in place a 'plan of action' beforehand which addresses the concerns of both the prosecutor and judge. By way of example, we will have the perosn take 'anger management couseling' to address 'anger' issues. We will have the person join AA if alcohol is the issue. We are proactive. Please call immediately to discuss. Ed Dimon, Esq. 732-797-1600 ext 235... Read More

I don't think that this will come as a surprise to you but my suggestion is that you meet with a family law specialist in advance of the return date of your final hearing to go over the allegations in your complaint and to determine if you should amend the complaint to add or clarify one or more of your claims. Please understand that in the courtroom setting for a final hearing ( different than what you experienced in getting the temporary restraining order), your testimony is limited to the specific claims in your complaint. If it is not sufficiently pled in the complaint, the court cannot allow you to testify as to something, not in the complaint or he will allow you to testify as to the additional item but then give your boyfriend sufficient time to prepare a defense to the new information. Too many times, people have reached out to us after failing to get the court to grant them a final restraining order to explore their options, and most of those times, they lost because they were not properly educated on what proofs they needed to present or how to properly present their proofs.  Even if you plan to represent yourself, it is worthwhile to spend the money for a consultation to review the complaint, your proofs, and how to properly present the material to give you a better chance of success or to explore alternate ways of protection. ... Read More

I am guessing that you have a domestic violence matter in Middlesex County and are asking for recommendations for the name[s] of lawyers who handle domestic violence matters and who are respected by the family part judges in that county. Let's start off with this firm and its managing partner Richard Diamond. Our managing partner is a certified divorce and family law trial lawyer by the New Jersey Supreme Court - meaning that he is one of the 4% of all family law attorneys in this state who are certified as a family law trial lawyer, handling domestic violence matters, divorces, etc. While many lawyers advertise that they handle domestic violence matters, you want to focus on those who are "certified matrimonial trial lawyers by the NJ Supreme Court" since that designation focuses on their specific trial skills as opposed to a million other types of designations that have nothing to do with trial or courtroom skills. ... Read More

The key is preparation. We would submit the proper documentation setting forth the relationship between the parties. We would provide sworn statements. We would provide proper background documentation. We would provide character letters. We would have you receive anger management counseling if appropriate. The key is being proactive and addressing all issues before one goes to court. We are immediately available to discuss. Please call asap. Ed Dimon, Esq. 732-797-1600 ext 235... Read More

Below are 3 good sources to contact for assistance in finding a lawyer to represent you in the domestic violence hearing and to assist you in finding a lawyer to represent you in your "Tevis" claim against your boyfriend for damages. You may also ask the court in the domestic violence matter for the award of fees connected to your injuries, but again you need assistance from a lawyer to ensure that you present your matter/request correctly.  https://www.nj.gov/dcf/women/domestic/ https://www.nj.gov/dcf/women/hotlines/ https://www.womenslaw.org/find-help/nj... Read More

95% of all domestic violence (DV) complaints in NJ are based on harassment or terroristic threats - not physical injury. DV is not simply putting your hands on your partner but is the threat of violence, the fear caused by punching your fist through the wall & engaging in behavior designed to alarm or intimidate her. Your inquiry though asks whether you can move to have her restraining order vacated because you never physically touched her.    It sounds like you appeared before the court without a proper education on what proofs were needed to enter an order against you. So, the idea of filing an application with the court to suggest that the entry of that order was wrong because you didn’t physically touch her does not sound like it has any likelihood of success. But there is another potential option available. You can file an application with the court to vacate the order if your ex does not oppose it. You need to obtain a copy of the transcript of the original court proceeding & the complaint filed against you. You need to provide that information to the court & you need to show the court why it is safe to vacate the order - starting with your ex acknowledging that she is no longer afraid of you. If she is not willing to do so,  then you will need to wait a number of years to file it; which application needs to show that you have gone on with your life, there have been no incidents between the 2 of you, you have no other complaints against you by anyone else & that you no longer pose any danger to your ex. & again, you need to supply the court with the original transcript of the court proceeding & the complaint.    ... Read More

I am going to guess that you represented yourself at a domestic violence final restraining order hearing and during the course of that hearing, the other side sought to introduce what she claimed were text message material from communications between the 2 of you. There is a reported trial division decision on the admissibilty of the text message material writting by retired Judge Jones. In that decision, he lays out how text message material should be presented to the court for authentication purposes. The problem is that you represented yourself and  I dont know if the judge hearing your matter, afforded you the opportunity to review and object to the courts consideration of that material. I also dont know if you properly objected to the courts consideration of that material when presented or whether you objected after your ex had already testified as to the contents of same.  If you would like, contact my office to schedule a consultation for us to review the materials presented and the court order entered against you. You have a very limited window of time available for purposes of filing an appeal so whether you contact our office or another family law firm, you need to move quickly. If you are planning to contact my office, call my paralegal Angela at 973-379-9292 or email the office at NJDivorcelawyer@aol.com to schedule it. ... Read More

I am not sure if criminal charges were filed against you or whether your girlfriend filed a domestic violence complaint against you based on terrorist threats, etc or whether your girlfriend  filed a domestic violence complaint and separate criminal charges against you for those actions but you need to meet with a family law specialist immediately. This is not a setting where you want to go to court to try and defend yourself without understanding the legal consequences of the charges against you. In retaining a family law attorney, he needs to review the actual complaints filed against you and read the underlying incident report[s] to know what you are up against and what is the best course of action for you to take. But, please do not ignore the seriousness of the charges against you and do not wait for the court to contact you. It is your responsibilty to contact the court to find out when the matter will be on before the court, so that you can be properly prepared. ... Read More

If you want to dismiss the current domestic violence complaint against your former boyfreind, you can do so by contacting the domestic violence intake office in the county where the complaint is returnable ( on the complaint form, it will tell you where and when the complaint is returnable) and tell them that you want to appear before the court to dismiss it. The intake office will then schedule a time for you to meet with a crisis counselor who will review with you the "cycles of abuse" to ensure that you understand how and what is abuse and to ensure that you know that there are resources availlble to you for counselling purposes ( if you want) and to make sure that the decision to dismiss the complaint is a voluntary action instead of an action driven by fear ( of reprisal, cut off of support, etc). You will then sign forms acknowledging your understanding of your rights and then you will appear before a superior court judge who will also ask you a series of questions to confirm for the record that your decision to dismiss the complaint is a voluntary action and to ensure that you know that if it ever happens again, you can file a new complaint and the decision to dismiss this complaint cannot be held against you. Good luck and my suggestion is that you and your boyfreind consider availing yourselves of parenting counseling services available so that each of you will know how to back off when a particular conversation gets heated.... so that it does not become confrontational again. ... Read More

Thank you for your question. If you have a temporary or final restraining order in place, read the order over to see if it provides instructions on how to retrieve personal belongings. Most do have some language about how to go about this. For example, the order might state that you should contact your local police department to coordinate retrieval of your belongings. If there are items in dispute, legal options include negotiating ownership (through lawyers if you have a no contact order) or you could go to small claims court to prove ownership, depending on your situation. If you are married and getting a divorce, you would go through asset division to settle your issues. It would be helpful for you to collect documentation (receipts, etc.) that shows ownership. For more specific feedback, I encourage you to schedule a free consultation with an attorney. ... Read More

Thank you for your question. I understand how worried you must be about your children. The short answer is that an emergency Motion may be required to prevent her from leaving the State with your daughter.  I understand that you need answers and need to protect yourself and your daughter. I strongly suggest that you schedule a consultation with a family law attorney who has experience addressing child custody matters as soon as possible, so that you can understand the implications for you and your daughter in the event she tries to leave the State. ... Read More

Thank you for your question.Termination of parental rights must be based on what is in the best interest of a child. Generally, a party cannot terminate their rights as a parent to avoid the payment of child support. In the event it is determined that it is in the best interest of the children to terminate a parent’s rights then that parent will no longer have any legal ties to the children, including their obligation to support the children. Based on your circumstances, it would be best to contact an experienced family law attorney to address your specific concerns.  I hope this information was helpful to you.... Read More

If your husband is alcoholic, I am not sure if he has steady income, pension or other assets. You can definitely file for divorce and seek support or have him removed and try and get a final restraining order. Then you can file for temporary support pending a judgment of final divorce. He is your spouse and certainly after 32 years of marriage you are entitled to alimony and equitable distribution of property which would include the home if it is owned not rented.... Read More

I am having a hard time making sense of this question. Why would there be a TRO hearing in NJ for offenses from a NY court? But in general, whatever the facts of your case are, if you can prove that whatever accusations against you are either false or do not rise to the level of harassment or assault as defined under NJ's Domestic Violence statute, then the case can be dismissed. But you have to do more than simply say that the case was brought as reprisal for the other person's arrest. I think you need to speak with an attorney who handles these types of cases.... Read More

If you are convicted of violating a restraining order, there are a number of penalties you may face, including, but not limited to having a criminal record, paying a variety of fines, probation, imprisonment and/or jail time of not less than 30 days.  Since this is a first violation, the prosecutor may consider downgrading the offense to a disorderly persons offense.  The attorneys at Weinberger Law Group offer a free initial one-hour consultation.  Should you have additional questions or desire representation in Court, call today to schedule your appointment.... Read More

Hello,   You won't be able to postpone the Final Restraining Order hearing indefinitely. Perhaps you will get one week, but probably not more. The FRO hearing is supposed to occur withint 10 days of the TRO.   Please call if you are interested in representation. Edward Zohn, Attorney at Law 908.791.0312... Read More