Understanding Family Law Hearings and Legal Terms at the Maryland Courts

Family law matters can be overwhelming to say the least, but all the legal jargon can often feel like a completely different language (and in a lot of cases, it is!). Whether you’ve just had your first meeting with an attorney, or you’re nearing the final stages of your case, check out this list of common family law definitions to decode all the terms you may hear in the context of your legal proceedings in the Maryland court system.

• Judge: A judge is an appointed official who presides over hearings and trials in Criminal, Civil, Family, and Juvenile cases. They maintain order in the courtroom, rule upon the admissibility of evidence, determine the facts of the case, and make a ruling based on those facts. 

• Magistrate: A Magistrate is a person appointed by the Court to preside over certain Family Law hearings. A Magistrate has the authority to regulate all proceedings in the hearing, rule upon the admissibility of evidence, examine witnesses, and recommend findings of fact and conclusions of law to the Court. Unlike a Judge, a Magistrate cannot give rulings, they give recommendations. 

• Evidentiary Hearing: A hearing that can take place before a Judge or a Magistrate in which testimony from witnesses will be presented to the court. Evidence in the form of documents may also be presented.

• Non-Evidentiary Hearing: A hearing or conference that can take place before a Judge or a Magistrate where there will be no oral/written testimony or documentary evidence provided. 

• Voir Dire (Vwar Deer): A French term meaning “to speak the truth”, voir dire may be done at a hearing or conference where an agreement has been made by the parties as to one or more issues and consists of a short series of questions asked by either the Judge, Magistrate, or your attorney. This process is done to ensure both parties came to the agreement of their own volition. 

• Pendente Lite (Pen-den-tay Lee-tay): A Latin term meaning “Pending Litigation”. A Pendente Lite hearing is an optional hearing in any case in which there may be issues that need a temporary resolution from the Judge between the Scheduling hearing and the first evidentiary hearing. 

• Ruling: A ruling is made by a Judge at the end of an evidentiary hearing that was presented before the Court. Following this, an Order will be signed by the Judge detailing the terms of their ruling. In the event of a long or heavy evidence-based trial, the Judge may defer their ruling and either issue it in writing or set an additional hearing to read it on the record. 

• Oral Recommendations: Oral recommendations are made at the end of an evidentiary hearing set before a Magistrate. The recommendations of the Magistrate will be held as a proposed order for ten days to allow either party to file exceptions. At the end of ten days, if there are no exceptions filed, the proposed order will go before a Judge for final signature. 

• Exceptions: If a party does not agree with a Magistrate’s recommendation, exceptions may be filed with the Court. They must be filed within ten days from when the recommendations are placed on the record, they must be in writing, and they must detail the errors of the Magistrate’s recommendations. 

• Post-Judgment: Post-Judgment refers to any case that already has a Judgment of Absolute Divorce entered (in divorce and/or custody cases) or a final Custody Order entered (in custody-only cases). 

• Contempt: A party is in contempt if they are found to be willfully disobedient of a Court order. A party may be found in non-willful contempt if they are found to be disobeying an order of Court through an extenuating circumstance. 
  
  

Montgomery County Court Tracks

• Track 1 Case: There are no issues to be heard by the Court and an Uncontested Divorce Hearing will be set. 

• Track 2 Case: There are issues related to legal custody, property, or support. A Settlement/Pretrial hearing and a Merits trial will be set. If needed, there could also be a Pendente Lite hearing set for any issues that require interim decisions to be made by the Court. 

• Track 3 Case: There are issues related to physical custody. Track 3 cases include divorce but can also be custody only. A Settlement/Status hearing, Settlement/Pretrial hearing, and Custody Merits trial will be set. If there are property issues, a Merits trial will also be set. Like Track 2 cases, a Pendente Lite hearing can be set for any issues that require interim decisions to be made by the Court. 
  
  

Hearings

• Scheduling Conference: A Scheduling Conference is a quick (typically), non-evidentiary hearing usually set before a Magistrate. During the scheduling conference your attorney, along with Opposing Counsel or Party, will inform the Court what issues are present in your case, such as physical custody, legal custody, support, etc. Different hearings will then be set based on the presented issues, including, but not limited to, Pendente Lite, Settlement/Status, Merits, and Custody Merits. In addition to hearings, a scheduling conference is also where certain services can be ordered by the Court, including a custody evaluation, mediation, and/or ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution).

• Pendente Lite Hearing:  A Pendente Lite Hearing is an evidentiary hearing, usually held before a Magistrate, that is used to determine temporary resolutions to issues such as Child Support, Spousal Support, Use and Possession, Attorney’s Fees, and Access. It can be up to three hours long and each party will present their side of the issues in the case. At the conclusion, the Judge or Magistrate will provide their ruling or oral recommendations.

• Settlement/Status Hearing: A Settlement/Status Hearing will be set in any Track 3 case or a case where a custody evaluation was ordered. In the case of a custody evaluation, this is where the evaluator will read their report on the record to the Court and parties. Settlement/Status Hearings will always take place on Thursday and Friday afternoons. 

• Settlement/Pretrial Hearing: A Settlement/Pretrial will be scheduled in any Track 3 case where the Merits Trial is expected to last longer than three hours. The hearing will be before a Magistrate and attorneys will state how long they anticipate the Merits Trial to last and the trial will then be set. Settlement/Pretrial Hearings will always take place on Friday mornings.

• Custody Merits: A Custody Merits trial will be scheduled in any case where physical custody is at issue. It will be held after any Pendente Lite hearing and/or Settlement/Status hearing and will usually be before a Judge. Custody Merits trials can be a few hours in length or held over multiple days. 

• Merits: A Merits Trial will be scheduled in any contested divorce case and any issues other than physical custody will be heard at this time. Like Custody Merits trials, they can be anywhere from an hour to multiple days in length.
  
  

Post-Judgment Hearings

• Modification Hearing: A Modification hearing is a hearing that is held in a post-judgment case where a material change in circumstance has occurred to warrant a change to physical custody, legal custody, child support, or any other issues that were ruled on by the Court in a case. A Scheduling hearing will also be held. 

• Contempt Hearing: A Contempt hearing is a hearing that is held in a post-judgment case when one or both parties are alleged to be in violation of a Court’s order. This can be regarding support, custody, access, or any other issue outlined in the order. A scheduling hearing will be held, and a Show-Cause order will be issued to the party alleged to be in violation. A contempt hearing will be set for the party accused of contempt to show cause why they should not be found to be in violation of the Court’s order and held in contempt of Court. 

• Post-Judgment Settlement Conference: A conference with parties and counsel before a senior Judge to attempt a resolution in some or all of the issues in a post-judgment case. 
  
  

If you have any questions about your case, what a specific legal term means, or just want to better understand the family law process, Z Family Law is here to help! Give us a call at 301-388-5528 to learn more.