Family Law Bench Trials in 2026
Category: On Demand
Member Price: $140
Non-Member Price: $175
Product Code: ON171926
Areas of Law: Family
CLE Credits
| NJ CLE: | NJ CLE information: This program has been approved by the Board on Continuing Legal Education of the Supreme Court of New Jersey for 3 hours of total CLE credit (Full Credits Available: NJ General: 3.0, NJ New Admit Family Law: 3.0). |
| NY CLE (t&nt): | NY Professional Practice Transitional: 3.0 |
| PA CLE: | PA Substantive Credit: 2.5
New: No PACLE fee is required for this program. To earn PA CLE credits, a valid PA Bar ID number must be entered into the CLE form provided after attending the program. |
Faculty
Keynote
Moderator
- LaDonna M. Cousins, Esq.
- Williams Law Group, LLC, Short Hills
Presenters
- Hon. Lisa F. Chrystal, P.J.F.P. (Ret.)
- Brach Eichler LLCis counsel to Brach Eichler, LLC in Roseland, New Jersey, where she concentrates her practice in alternative dispute resolution, mediation and arbitration, and discovery management. She is a former Presiding Judge, Family Division, Union County, and sat in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Appointed to the bench in 2000 by Governor Christine Todd Whitman, she also sat in the Civil Division.
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nPrior to her appointment to the bench, Judge Chrystal maintained a solo litigation practice in Scotch Plains, New Jersey. She also served as Assistant Union County Counsel and was a civil litigator for two law firms before opening her own office. Judge Chrystal served on the Supreme Court Model Jury Charge Committee and is a former Co-Chair of the Union County Minority Concerns Committee. A former Trustee of the Union County Bar Association, she is a member of the Supreme Court Committee on Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement, and the Supreme Court Family Practice Committee, where she serves on the FM/FD Subcommittee. Judge Chrystal is a member of the New Jersey State and Union County Bar Associations, and serves on the Executive Committee of the NJSBA Family Law Section. She has also served on the Family Subcommittee on Mentoring of New Judges.
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nA former Master of the Richard J. Hughes American Inn of Court, Judge Chrystal is a member of the Barry I. Croland American Inn of Court and The Justice Virginia Long Hudson County American Inn of Court. She has trained newly-appointed judges and those transferring to the Family Division in the Comprehensive Judicial Orientation Program (C.J.O.P.) and co-authored the judges’ “Dissolution Manual.” Judge Chrystal has taught CLE classes for the Union County Bar Association and Ethics for Trial Attorneys for ICLE, and was an Adjunct Legal Writing Instructor at Seton Hall Law School. In 2022 she was the recipient of the prestigious William J. McCloud Award bestowed by the Union County Bar Association, which recognizes significant contributions to the administration of justice in the Family Part.
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nJudge Chrystal is a graduate of Syracuse University and a cum laude graduate of Seton Hall University School of Law. - Hon. Frank D. DeRienzo, J.S.C.
- Judge in Morris County
- Leonard B. Cohen, Esq.
- Dunne, Dunne & Cohen, LLC, Hoboken
- W. Lois Kahagi, Esq.
- W.Lois Kahagi Family Law Services, Iselin
- Sarah O'Connor, Esq.
- O'Connor Family Law, LLC, Scotch Plains
- Harriet E. Raghnal, Esq.
- Raghnal Burroughs LLC, Livingston
When it comes to trial, an audience is everything. Join our expert-led program on how to prepare different family law cases for trial. Dive deep into the essentials of bench trial skills and gain the insights needed to present your case with confidence. Don't miss out on this opportunity to refine your bench trial strategy and skills!
You will learn
- Trial versus settlement
- Trial briefs:
- Relevant dates
- Stipulations
- Issues settled, previously decided, or withdrawn
- Unresolved issues
- Brief statement of the case
- Legal argument
- Custody/parenting time
- Child support
- Alimony
- Equitable distribution
- Counsel fees - How to give persuasive opening and closing statements
- Direct examination
- Cross examination
- Witness preparation
- How to effectively use expert testimony
- Marking exhibits and moving exhibits into evidence