Family Court - Washington County

Filing Requirements       Orders

Hearings
Scheduling     Settlement Conferences 
Length of Wait Before Hearing
Emergency Hearings     Who Will Hear the Case

Scheduling
You must request a hearing. 

To request a hearing: 
Use form 51 for uncontested cases.
Use form 52 for contested cases.

Settlement Conferences
It is unusual for the Court to hold settlement conferences when one or both parties are pro se.

Length of Time to Get a Hearing
It takes a month or more to get a hearing in front of a master and longer to get one before a judge.

Emergency Hearings - Pro Se Litigants
There is no set procedure to request an emergency hearing. It is strongly suggested that you see an attorney. It is possible to see the judge the same day you make your request if your attorney makes a strong enough case that your case is an emergency.

Who Will Hear The Case
Masters can hear any domestic case.

Cases usually go to a master unless they are especially long or contested. Then they go to a judge.


Source: A joint project of the Women's Law Center and MLAN, along with interviews conducted with Family Law Court Coordinators, court clerks and local advocates practicing in this county.  Updated by the Maryland State Law Library (MSLL).


Date of Last Review: 10/2/08 (PLL/M.A.J.)

Is this legal advice? This site offers legal information, not legal advice.  We make every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information and to clearly explain your options.  However we do not provide legal advice - the application of the law to your individual circumstances. For legal advice, you should consult an attorney.  See our section on Finding Legal Help.

About this website. The Maryland State Law Library, a court-related agency of the Maryland Judiciary, sponsors this site. The website was developed (1999-2007) as part of an access to justice initiative by the Maryland Legal Assistance Network (MLAN) in collaboration with a number of legal services providers serving low and moderate income Marylanders.  In the absence of file-specific attribution or copyright, the Maryland State Law Library may hold the copyright to parts of this website. You are free to copy the information for your own use or for other non-commercial purposes with the following language “Source: Maryland's People’s Law Library – www.peoples-law.org. © Maryland State Law Library, 2007.”

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