CSHO Standard 7 (amendments underlined)

CSHO Standard 7 (amendments underlined)

A. InorderfortheFamilyDivisiontobetterservevictimsofdomesticviolenceand to provide expedited process, vicinages may schedule, child support modifications in domestic violence cases before the Child Support Hearing Officers (CSHOs). The CSHOs may hear child support modification motions in domestic violence cases under the conditions set forth herein. In addition the CSHO may hear FD cases where there is a restraining order in effect when filed by the Board of Social Services to establish child support. The CSHO, at all times, will address only the child support aspects (civil enforcement and modification and TANF establishments) of the case before them. The following conditions will be observed:

1. Both parties must be amenable to appearing before the CSHO. 2. The CSHO may hear child support modifications in matters established under an “FV” docket; matters with active restraints filed by the Board of Social Services under an “FD” docket; or interstate matters filed pursuant to the

Uniform Interstate Family Support Act. (UIFSA). 3. The restraining order must be in effect for six (6) months without further

activity before the case may be placed before a CSHO for modification of child support; otherwise, the modification shall be scheduled before a judge. This six month requirement does not apply to FD establishments filed by the Board of Social Services.

4. The matter cannot be scheduled before the CSHO if the case raises any issues other than child support.

5. The matter should go before a judge, where other factors or concerns exist that make the matter complex, e.g. indication of ongoing inappropriate behavior by the batterer toward the victim or behavior that occurs while waiting to be heard or during the hearing.

6. The action must be a Title IV-D case, i.e. the child support is payable through Probation.

B. PriortothevicinageschedulingthesecasesbeforetheCSHOs,awrittensecurityplan for these hearings must be developed and approved by the Assignment Judge; taking into account the recommended standards set forth in Section A Security and Facilities, of the Commentary.

C. All CSHOs, Supervisors and Chief of the Program shall be required to participate in the mandatory training for domestic violence staff in addition to receiving training as to the dynamics of families with domestic violence issues before the vicinage may schedule matters to the CSHO. To the extent that FD or FM staff will be screening these cases, the Team Leaders in these docket types should also receive training regarding domestic violence issues.

2D. Because of the volatile nature of these cases, appeals and referrals from the CSHO should be heard by a judge as promptly as possible, and in any event on the same day as the CSHO hearing (see Commentary, Section C).

Commentary:

A. Security and Facilities

Child support modification hearings arising out of domestic violence cases raise particularly serious security concerns. While initial TRO hearings in domestic violence matters are heard ex parte, with only the plaintiff present, child support modification hearings are likely to be held in the presence of both the plaintiff and the defendant. Because emotions often run high between these parties, security needs must be anticipated and planned for. In developing a security plan for child support hearings in domestic violence cases, the following recommended standards (which are generally addressed in courtroom) should be taken into account:

1. Provide an armed Sheriff’s Officer for each CSHO proceeding. 2. Provide duress alarms for the CSHO. 3. Restrict access to light controls. 4. Provide the hearing officer with an egress route to a safe location. 5. Utilize a command and control center to monitor alarms and CCTV. 6 Utilize two-way radios to maintain communications and coordinate

emergency responses. 7. Provide emergency back-up power for the lighting and security system.

In addition to these general recommended standards, the following specific provisions should be addressed in the security plan for child support hearings in DV cases:

8. Schedule modification cases in a courtroom or in a room of comparable size and formality. The room should be large enough so that the victim is not required to sit in close proximity to the defendant either while waiting for the case to be heard or during the conduct of the hearing. The parties should not be seated at the same table under any circumstances.

9. If a facility does not offer two separate waiting areas to keep the victim and defendant apart from each other prior to the hearing, a second Sheriff’s Officer should be assigned to the waiting area to insure the safety of litigants.

10. In vicinages where the CSHO hearing facility is located in a separate building from the courthouse where the appeal will be heard, the vicinage should have appropriate security arrangements in place for the parties to be

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escorted to the courtroom of the judge who will hear the appeal. The parties are not to be left unattended while the appeal is pending.

When an appeal is taken, it poses a particularly critical time because the plaintiff is vulnerable to coercion and intimidation regarding the recommendation being appealed. The defendant’s emotions may be running high since the stakes are usually whether to increase or decrease an order of child support. A higher rate of appeal is anticipated on these child support modifications than is generally the case on CSHO calendars (about 3-4%).

In developing security plans for child support hearings in domestic violence cases, as in all other security matters, technical assistance will be available from the Court Access Services Unit at the Administrative Office of the Courts.

B. Case Types

1. Both parties must be amenable to appearing before the CSHO. The CSHO should explain to parties what the CSHO’s role is in the proceeding and what will occur during the hearing as well as explaining the use of the Guidelines and their individual right to appeal the recommendation of the CSHO and obtain an immediate hearing before a judge. Either party may request to have the matter heard by a judge. This is similar to DVHO Standard 5, which indicates that appearance before the DVHO is voluntary and permits the plaintiff the option of appearing instead before a judge.

2. The CSHO may hear child support modifications in matters established under an “FV” docket; establishment of support matters under an “FD” docket filed by the Board of Social Services even with companion restraints; or interstate matters filed under the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA).

3. The restraining order must be in effect for six (6) months without further activity before the case may be placed before the CSHO for modification of child support; otherwise, the modification shall be scheduled before a judge. This six month requirement does not apply to FD establishment of support cases in the presence of active restraints if it is filed by the Board of Social Services.

4. When there are other pending actions or outstanding issues such as contempt or enforcement of other provisions of the restraining order including custody or parenting time or pending FM with other outstanding issues, the matter shall not be scheduled before the CSHO for establishment, enforcement or modification of child support. This is currently a standard established in the Manual applicable to civil enforcement in domestic violence matters before the CSHO.

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5. The matter should go before the judge, where other factors or concerns exist, that make the matter complex, e.g. indication of ongoing inappropriate behavior by the batterer toward the victim or behavior that occurs while waiting to be heard or during the hearing.

6. The action must be a Title IV-D case, i.e. the child support is payable through Probation (Centralized Collections) and a county Probation Division is responsible for the collection and enforcement of the child support provisions. Direct pay matters or matters ordered paid to a third party, shall not be scheduled before the CSHO.

7. If the issue involves provisions other than child support, e.g. rent or mortgage payments, parenting time, monetary compensation, counseling and temporary possession of specified personal property, the matter shall not be placed before the CSHO and shall be scheduled before a judge. The CSHO shall only address the support establishment, modification or civil enforcement of the child support provisions since the CSHO’s jurisdiction per R. 5:25-3 is in the Title IV-D matters.

C. Appeals and Referrals to a Judge

1. The CSHO shall exercise judgment in determining the appropriateness of the forum and shall be permitted to refer the matter to a judge as a complex case. There are many factors in play in domestic violence cases. The CSHO must be alert to the total picture in determining whether it is appropriate for a hearing officer to proceed with the hearing. The CSHO must observe the interaction of the parties with the CSHO, with each other, as well as verbal and non-verbal cues to assess if the dynamics between the parties point to a requirement for judicial attention. We cannot detail all the possible scenarios that call into question if the case may be heard by the CSHO, keeping in mind that the imbalance of power may manifest in observable behavior. Training will help the CSHO develop further the skills needed to recognize the dynamics in play. The CSHO shall not permit, when the parties are before the CSHO, any opportunity for coercion or intimidation of the victim. All referrals of complex cases must have a brief written statement from the CSHO to the judge stating the details that render the matter complex in nature.

2. Appeals of either party from the CSHO’s recommendation shall be treated as emergent matters. Appeals from the CSHO calendar are not to be continued. In the domestic violence cases, the appeal not only should be heard the same day, but also should not be held for so long that the long wait may indeed contribute to inappropriate behavior from the batterer.

3. In accordance with R. 5:7-4 (b), the CSHO shall record the case disposition (establishment, modification or civil enforcement) using the Uniform Order for Summary Support. Parties must be given an unsigned copy of the order resulting from the CSHO proceeding and a signed copy of the order if they are before a judge. The CSHO shall insure that the order does not contain any confidential information such as the address of the victim or other information

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of a confidential nature. A signed copy of the order will be mailed to the parties by Family Intake staff in the vicinage, once the judge signs the order. If a Guidelines calculation was done, the parties shall be provided with a copy of the Guidelines. This is also in accord with CSHOP standards 3 and 4.

D. Training of Staff

All CSHOP staff and relevant FD and FM Team Leaders shall receive training regarding the dynamics of families with domestic violence issues prior to a vicinage being approved to schedule child support modifications before the CSHO. Thereafter, they shall participate in training that is mandatory for all domestic violence personnel.

The proposed standard represents a departure from the prior Domestic Violence ProceduresManual. TheManualisissuedundertheauthorityoftheSupremeCourtofNew Jersey and the Office of the Attorney General. It sets forth the uniform standards and procedures to be followed by those responsible for handling domestic violence matters and to provide a unified approach intended to assure prompt assistance to the victims of domestic violence.

This proposed standard is the result of a debate that predates 1992, when the Manual was amended to allow CSHOs to hear civil enforcement motions in domestic violence cases. In 1992 the State Domestic Violence Work Group considered whether to amend the Manual additionally and permit the CSHOs to hear the modification of the child support provisions of domestic violence matters. Ultimately the amendment permitted solely the civil enforcement of litigant’s rights motions to be calendared before the CSHO under specific conditions detailed in the in Section III of the Manual. Civil enforcement refers to those matters that are Title IV-D, i.e. the order is payable through a Probation Division and the case is thus supervised by county Probation Division staff responsible for the filing of the enforcement motion.

The experience of the CSHOP with the civil enforcement in domestic violence matters indicates that in general it works well. There is concern expressed by CSHOs themselves that the specific conditions set forth in the Manual have not been consistently enforced. One example given was the lack of the presence of an on-site Sheriff’s Officer during the hearing because the Sheriff’s Officer was responsible for covering the waiting area and/or other hearings in progress. Concern was also expressed for the delays in hearing the appeals resulting from the enforcement hearing before the CSHO. The strict implementation of the conditions and requirements is crucial to the ability to delivery of expedited process to the victims of domestic violence. Such service however should not be at the cost of the safety of the victim, the defendant, the hearing officer, or any other staff or litigants.

Currently, judges are responsible for hearing the child support establishments and modifications in the domestic violence matters despite the fact that most other non-

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dissolution (FD) applications to modify are routinely scheduled before the CSHO. The CSHOs have the expertise as to the child support modification issues and as to the application of the Guidelines that comes from having primary responsibility for the disposition of Title IV-D child support cases.

The Manual states that modifications are inherently complex and provides that they be heard by a judge. Historically, this has raised issues for the Judiciary. Since Family handles ten (10) docket types, there is tremendous demand for judge time to address the cases requiring the attention of a judge. Expedited process is premised on the concept of diverting appropriate matters from the judge in order to resolve them in an expedited manner. Requiring that all modification of support cases go to a judge unduly delays their resolution because they are segregated from the expedited process B the process of child support matters going first to a CSHO. The laudable intent of providing the attention of a judge to hear these cases inadvertently subjects the victim to less timely service due to the demands placed on the available judge time. The expedited process places summary child support matters before the CSHO normally, but the domestic violence cases have been historically been diverted from the expedited process. DV cases are by no means routine, but the adoption of R.5:6A Child Support Guidelines by NJ has contributed to standardization of the issue of child support. Expedited process means that child support issues in some domestic violence cases will be better served before the CSHO. This would permit the judge to devote time to the domestic violence cases requiring judicial attention.

The July 2004 Manual incorporates the CSHO Program Standard 7 as Appendix 20. Standard 7 clearly provides specific and necessary security and facilities conditions that should be met in order to place the civil enforcement before a CSHO. In expanding to allow CSHOs to hear establishments, modifications and enforcements with domestic violence restraints, these conditions and even increased safety measures would have to be in place for any vicinage seeking to calendar child support modifications in domestic violence cases before the CSHO. Indeed, the proposed standard requires that the security issues be addressed in advance, prior to a county scheduling these cases before the CSHO, to insure that the requirements as to security and facilities are met and to insure that the other conditions are understood in terms of proper implementation.

http://www.judiciary.state.nj.us/family/dvprcman.pdf