Informal trials speed up family law cases in Iowa

Iowa courts now have a time- and cost-savings option of an informal trial process for individuals who can’t or don’t want to hire a lawyer for a divorce or for a paternity or child-custody issue.

The Informal Family Law Trial program was “born out of necessity” because more people are representing themselves in family law cases, said 6th Judicial District Judge Fae Hoover, who regularly helps pro se litigants — parties representing themselves — maneuver their way through the sometimes complicated court system rules and procedures.

“Most don’t have an attorney because of the expense and others because they don’t feel it’s necessary for their situations,” Hoover said. “This process funnels the self-represented people with fewer complicated issues to resolve disputes quickly and simply.”

The Iowa Supreme Court directed the court districts to start offering the informal trials earlier this year to meet the demand of more people representing themselves, which has doubled in the last year or so.

Hoover said unmarried parents who have custody issues, those wanting a divorce — with or without children — and individuals with paternity issues can opt for this type of trial.

The process has less formal rules than a traditional trial, which still is available to those with attorneys.

How it works

Self-represented individuals are identified by the court 45 days from when they file court papers, and then they are contacted to set up a time to talk about this option and what forms they need to fill out to get started, said Lori Schoon, case specialist with the 6th Judicial District court administration in Cedar Rapids.

Schoon said her job is to guide those individuals through the process and help them file the correct forms needed for each step before trial.

This frees up the judges’ time because previously they had to respond to the forms submitted, which most of the time were filed incorrectly or out of order. The judge would reject the forms, and people would have to start over, Schoon said — frustrating for people already in emotional and stressful situations,

Schoon prevents this from happening by shepherding people through the system.

No legal advice

Hoover said Schoon can’t offer legal advice but can explain the process and advise people on what forms they need to fill out and in what order, while providing “some consistency in the way it’s handled.”

“It has become my full-time job,” Schoon said. “I usually have anywhere from 35 to 56 (cases) a week,” which come from throughout the six-county judicial district.

Usually the biggest concern for those involved is time — wanting an immediate resolution And they want to decide their own child support, which isn’t up to them.

Most people choose to represent themselves because of money or out of respect for the other party, Schoon said. Some believe involving a lawyer would make their case more adversarial.

Judge decides

In the informal trials, judges will ask questions and guide the presentation of evidence based on the law, Hoover said. Each party is limited to having two witnesses, and they can submit up to five affidavits of testimony from others, and the judge will decide whether those should be considered.

If there is any need for experts, the litigants can ask for them to testify and be questioned by the judge or they can submit a report to be considered by the judge.

“The judge will decide what is relevant,” Hoover said.

“These are conducted sort of like small claims trials, where the judges do the questioning and knows what’s allowed in the law,” she said. “The judge remains neutral and is fair to both sides.”

The advantages

Hoover has been dealing with people who self-represent for many years.

One of the big benefits of choosing the informal trial option is that each person can speak directly to the judge, and no one has to worry about formal rules that in a traditional trial can limit what a person can say, Hoover said. Other benefits are time and money.

People typically can wait a year or so before having a traditional trial because civil matters are lower priority than criminal cases.

The informal trials take half a day or less, compared to the one to three days civil cases take in regular court, Hoover said. She had one earlier this year that was completed in less than two hours.

The judge may decide the case the same day or take long than that. But the entire process, including trial, could be wrapped up within three or four months.

‘Eye-opening’

Schoon said there have been seven informal trials since the 6th District — Benton, Iowa, Johnson, Jones, Linn and Tama counties — began the process in February. In other cases, she said, people agreed to settlements before the informal trial.

“It’s been an eye-opening, rewarding experience,” Schoon said. “I get more thank yous than I ever imagined.”

Comments: (319) 398-8318; trish.mehaffey@thegazette.com