Family Court - Cecil County

Filing Requirements    Orders

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


Hearings
Scheduling
Family Court cases go through family services and are not primarily handled by the clerk’s or scheduling offices. Ninety percent of them are automatically scheduled for a hearing.

Settlement Conferences
The court holds settlement conferences whether parties are pro se or represented.

Length of Time to Get a Hearing
Depends on how busy the docket is and how long the case is expected to take.

Emergency Hearings – Pro Se Litigants
A pro se litigant should fill out the request for an emergency hearing form. If it is deemed an emergency situation, it is possible to see a judge the same day it is filed.

Who Will Hear The Case
The Divorce Examiners only hear divorce cases. All other family law cases go before 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 Legal Review: 10/6/08 (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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