When you’re going through a divorce, and especially if children are involved, there are a lot of elements you may not be familiar with. A family law and divorce attorney can help you understand these things, especially since they can vary depending on the state you’re in.
One area of confusion for some people is temporary orders.
Typically, a civil case can take months or potentially years to go to court. When you’re going through a divorce, you do tend to need a fast decision on certain things as you wait for your case to go to court.
For example, there need to be decisions on how to deal with the money you have in your bank accounts and how you’ll share time with your children.
This is where temporary orders are relevant. The following are things to know.
A General Overview of Temporary Orders
When you first separate from your spouse, then temporary orders may be made by a family court at a hearing. In some states, even before you file for separation, you can request a temporary order. Then within a few days or weeks at the most, you’ll get a hearing.
Temporary orders focus on decisions that need to be made quickly until a formal divorce hearing can take place or until you can agree on these things in mediation or negotiations.
Temporary orders are often part of the decision-making in a formal family court decision as well.
If you have a hearing for temporary orders, it tends to be short and not as formal as what you’ll face down the road with your family court hearing.
The goal of temporary orders is to provide clarity in otherwise ambiguous areas of your divorce while the legal process continues.
What Issues Are Covered with Temporary Orders?
There are some key issues that may be covered by temporary orders, including:
- Child custody and visitation
- Spousal support, also known as alimony
- Child support payments
- Orders not to sell assets
- Giving possession of the family home to one spouse
A temporary order will typically be valid until another hearing is held or until you settle things with your former spouse.
How to Request a Temporary Order
If one spouse decides they’re going to move out of your shared home, you can either agree on your own to things like how you’ll share expenses, or you can ask a judge to decide for you.
If you can come to an agreement on your own, you can create a temporary agreement for the most pressing issues and then work on solving everything else later.
If you can’t agree, then that’s when you might ask for a temporary order.
You’ll have to complete paperwork, and you may need an attorney’s help.
The specific process to request a temporary order does depend on your state.
In a lot of states, you might have to complete what’s called an Application for Order to Show Cause and an Order to Show Cause.
These documents when they’re filed, then order your spouse to come on a specific date and show the court why your requests shouldn’t be granted.
You may also need a written statement, called a supporting declaration. This outlines the facts that you see as lending to the justification for a temporary order.
You may have a proposed temporary order, that if your request is granted, can then be signed by a family court judge.
In some states, you can’t file paperwork for a brief hearing until you actually file for divorce, but you can do both simultaneously.
What Happens at the Hearing?
The next step in the temporary orders process is going to a court hearing. A judge will listen to your request, and unless there’s an emergency situation, your hearing may take a few weeks to schedule.
You might go to your hearing in the courtroom, or you could go to the judge’s office.
You’ll speak for a few minutes as will your spouse and maybe other witnesses. Sometimes the judge will just take written evidence.
You may have to show some financial information if you’re asking for temporary child support.
The judge will go over the details of your request, ask questions, and ask for your spouses’ input on their side of the story.
You can expect this type of hearing will take no more than 20 minutes.
A judge tends to make an immediate ruling in these situations, which might mean issuing a temporary order or issuing an order with modifications.
