HOW LONG
WILL MY CASE TAKE?
Good question. As we've said elsewhere, cases that start
out simple can fall apart and sometimes the most difficult matters surprise us by becoming
resolved more quickly than anybody ever imagined. When it happens it is usually the
product of good lawyering, cooperative clients, reason, and a court system running on all
fours. Reality, however, lies somewhere in between.
A non-contested matter without anyone getting hysterical,
and by diligently preparing the necessary pleadings, obtaining the signatures on
agreements and conducting the hearing at which the Judgment is entered (called a prove-up)
can occur within 90 days from the start (and much quicker if necessary, but inevitably at
greater expense). At the other extreme, the system itself will impose trial upon
those cases that have not ended by settlement, somewhere between one and two years after
commencement. The time table to trial will, of course, vary with the complexity of the
case, emotional issues, custody evaluations, and a host of other factors.
Every family law attorney is inescapably faced with a
client who asks, "how come my case is taking so long?" The client must be
reminded that it takes two to tango and that one attorney is not in control of the entire
process. It is for this reason we say that two good lawyers can often bring about a much
quicker settlement at a more reasonable cost than when at least one attorney is
dysfunctional, inexperienced or unprofessional and, likewise, where one or more of the
clients are, in fact, unreasonable.
The court systems in Cook, Will, Lake and DuPage
Counties, where we practice, have made significant efforts to provide access to the
courts, to set up case management procedures and to otherwise enable parties to reach
resolution promptly. But the court can only hear what is presented to them according to
the time table it is presented, so that generally speaking, delay in the outcome of the
case is not occasioned by the court system. On the other hand rarely are we able to
schedule hearings on temporary or interim issues that arise during the course of the case
as promptly as we would like). There are many reasons for this which must be explained on
a case by case basis.
The bottom line is that it is in every good lawyer's
interest to move a case along expeditiously so that a prompt and reasonable outcome leaves
a happy client. While the outcome may not be everything we wished, it is every lawyer's
goal to have a client who understands and believes that their attorney did the best job
that could be done given the circumstances. A judge I know often says: "if both
clients are unhappy, there must have been justice". We would rather achieve a more
positive result for our clients, but it is illustrative of the frustration of the process. |
