Family law is a very pleading-oriented and procedurally driven practice. The first impression our courts and adversaries form of us comes from the quality of our letters and pleadings. Do not delegate proofreading to support staff. Thoroughly read all documents and correct all errors. Careful proofreading will also enable you to double-check the content of your document to ensure the clear expression of argument. Make sure that the facts pled are sufficient to plead a cause of action and carry your burden of proof. 

Prior to filing any pleading, one should understand the appropriate procedures to follow in each matter. Consult the local rules for the parish of filing. For example, some districts or judges allow “mail in” divorces (with the requisite affidavits, etc.) while others require a court appearance, two witnesses, etc. Another issue may involve casting of costs to plaintiffs who are paupers. While the general rule is paupers may not have to pay advanced court costs, some may agree to absorb some or all of the costs, typically to “speed up” the process. Consult the district to ask these and other procedural questions. 

The Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure and Title 9 of the Revised Statutes (the Civil Code Ancillaries) contain a wealth of information that is often overlooked by practitioners. All too often, attorneys file for relief to which their clients are not entitled or that cannot be obtained by the process selected by the attorney. If a family law statute does not address a specific process, then look at Local Court Rules,1 Uniform Family Court Rules, Uniform District Court Rules, or the Code of Civil Procedure. Be sure your adversary is using procedure correctly. If not, file the proper exception(s) and a supporting memorandum as required by court rules. The exception may provide you with extra time or a strategic advantage. 

Too many attorneys do not have a working knowledge of the contents of the Code of Civil Procedure. It is a magical book! It is filled with content that can help you speed up your case or slow it down—whatever suits your needs. Sometimes, it can make a difficult case become a case that is much easier to resolve. In a legal services practice, one juggles cases to meet as much of the need for legal assistance as possible. The Code of Civil Procedure can provide practitioners with legitimate ways to delay one matter so the attorney can address another that may be more critical. 

Family courts may look at the larger picture and may excuse some procedural mistakes either because nobody “did it that way” or for reasons of judicial economy. Depending on where you are in the case, choose your battles in deciding how hard you need to press on the issue in order to win the war. 

Common mistakes include the improper cumulation of actions, failure to join parties needed for just adjudication, improper venue, failure to state a cause of action, improper service, and seeking a result over which the court does not have jurisdiction. Thus, a good starting point is to review the Code of Civil Procedure. Pay particular attention to the articles on venue, exceptions, written motions, and discovery. Read the articles particularly relevant to family law. For example, Title 4 of Book VII provides specific rules for ex parte orders of custody, Article 102 divorces, and other issues. 

An example of an improper cumulation of actions occurs when a reconventional demand to a summary proceeding requests relief that must be instituted by ordinary proceeding. For example, a client may file for a protective order pursuant to La. R.S. 46:2131–2143. The defendant may then file an Answer and Reconventional Demand wherein he not only answers the protective order petition but also reconvenes against the client for divorce. Insofar as the divorce action must be by an ordinary proceeding and the protective order by a summary proceeding, the reconventional demand may be improper because the delays for these hearings differ. Under La. C.C.P. arts. 464–465, courts have some discretion in these situations. Remind the court that the summary proceeding must be heard within the statutory delays and not simply continued to accommodate the delays for the ordinary proceeding. 

Another example is knowing the result of your client “agreeing” to a protective order or injunction and what that may do to later proceedings relating to divorce, custody, spousal support, and even community property.2 It would be malpractice not to know and understand the impact of agreeing to something that may negatively impact your client’s future litigation. This is particularly important in cases involving domestic violence, where distinct statutory regimes may apply and where the appropriate end goals of litigation may be different from those prevailing in family law cases where domestic violence is not an issue. Thus, an attorney should be familiar with the general statutory framework for domestic violence cases3 and be ready to involve the assistance of a specialist when taking on such cases.

The law in this area is fluid and is different across districts. Be sure that you review recent developments, attend CLEs regarding both substantive law and best practices, and consult with other attorneys for novel cases. It is essential and part of your obligation as a lawyer to know the law. Failure to do so may result in malpractice. 

To summarize: (1) know the Code of Civil Procedure and Civil Code as it pertains to your cause of action; (2) know and understand local rules, and, if something seems ambiguous, call someone (judge’s staff, the Hearing Officer, etc.); and (3) proofread all pleadings and letters before they are sent. Our courts are very quick to pass judgment based upon their perception of an attorney’s competence and attention to detail. Thus, it is important that you know what to file and how, when, and where to file it. With the advent of technology, there is no reason why you should not be able to access relevant law and practice information with the click of a mouse.

We can all agree that all lawyers, family lawyers included, have demanding and challenging workloads. It is the nature of our career choice. At least 50% of all case filings (a conservative estimate) in most of our state district courts are in family law and that percentage keeps rising. Many, if not most, of these cases involve self-represented litigants; in some courts, 70% of family cases have a self-represented litigant on one or both sides. Family law also makes up over 50% of all cases cumulatively handled by our Louisiana legal services programs. As family law changes and expands every year, it is crucial to maintain the highest standards of representation for our clients. 

• 1These rules are available at the website of the Louisiana Supreme Court and are currently found here.
• 2For a more detailed discussion of some of these issues, Section 3.5 of this manual’s chapter on representing survivors of domestic violence.
• 3To that end, an attorney representing family law clients pro bono or through legal services should be familiar with the contents of this manual’s chapter on Louisiana domestic violence law.

It is as important to know the people who can help you present your case as it is to know the law. There is an old saying, “a good lawyer knows the law, a great lawyer knows how the judge thinks.” That truism can be extended to: “a great lawyer knows and is friendly with the staff of the clerk’s office, the judges, the district attorney, and DCFS/Support Enforcement Services.” Some attorneys are amazingly rude to employees of these offices. It takes no additional time to be cordial and friendly, and they may be of tremendous help to you and your clients. If an opportunity to help them presents itself, you should do so. Particularly in less populous rural parishes, what “goes around, will come around.” 

The clerk of court is not a part of the judge’s office. In most state courts, the clerk’s office and the judges’ chambers cannot share information in real time. This is especially true in judicial district courts that cover more than one parish. As a result of these limitations, the judge’s law clerk may not have the entire suit record when reviewing the most recent motion that you filed. 

Family court practice varies from parish to parish. About 70% of Louisiana’s district courts have Hearing Officers who help their district judges with their overwhelming family law dockets. In districts with Hearing Officers, the court order will typically require you to attend a Hearing Officer Conference (called an Intake Conference in some jurisdictions) before appearing before the judge. In courts without Hearing Officers, the district judge hears the entire case. The authorization for the use of Hearing Officers can be found at La. R.S. 46:236.5, et seq. 

It is important to consult the local rules of court to familiarize yourself with the process followed in each judicial district. Hearing Officers’ duties can vary significantly from parish to parish and can affect the how the attorney presents and ultimately litigates a family law case. For example, some districts allow Hearing Officers to take testimony for confirmations of divorce; some do not. Some districts use their Hearing Officers for child support enforcement hearings, and some use them for protective orders. Hearing Officer conference procedures (especially the requirement to exchange specific information by certain deadlines prior to the hearing officer conference) may also vary. It is important to know and understand these procedures because the Hearing Officer is usually the first person your client will encounter regarding their family law case. In some rural parishes, the Hearing Officer may be the only judicial staff your client sees. Thus, it is essential to be prepared, cordial, and communicative with Hearing Officers.