Most North Carolina family law litigants are familiar with the North Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure, which set forth the procedures and requirements for filing a lawsuit, service of process, discovery, evidence, and a multitude of other areas. These Rules apply to all 100 counties in North Carolina. Did you know there are another set of rules which regulate the trial procedure in each judicial districts of North Carolina?
North Carolina is broken into 30 distinct Judicial Districts. Each Judicial District has enacted their own set of rules, procedures, and guidelines for operating within that particular District Court. These items are known as “Local Rules”.
Local Rules are set by the Chief Judge of the Judicial District and are available online on your local court’s page at nccourts.org. Most Local Rules are procedural, but these regulations can have a significant impact on how your case is brought and, ultimately, decided by the Court. For example, the Local Rules can direct litigants to use a specific Affidavit of Financial Standing to determine a proper amount of child support, post separation support, or alimony. The Local Rules may also set forth a specific deadline for filing and service of the Affidavit of Financial Standing. Because each Judicial District has their own Local Rules, these forms and deadlines often differ from one another.
Because the Local Rules very from district to district, you must always be aware and knowledgeable of the Local Rules of the district in which your case is set.
As Charlotte Family Law Attorneys, the lawyers at Miller Cushing Holladay are well-versed in Mecklenburg County’s Local Rules as well as the Local Rules of the surrounding districts in which we practice, like Cabarrus, Union, Gaston, Iredell, and Catawba counties. If you questions about the Local Rules in your district, please call us today at (704) 810-1400 to schedule a consultation.