Saving Time and Money in Family Court
Thomas F. McDow May 8, 2026
Ben Franklin is credited with popularizing the expression “Time is Money.” The truth of this saying is demonstrated in family court where wasted time explains why domestic litigation frequently runs from $50,000 to $100,000 or more. How can the family court save time for the litigants and the court and thus reduce the cost?
Most lawyers charge by the hour for most family court work with most charging $350 to $450 per hour, 48 to 62 times the federal minimum wage. What can the courts do to reduce the time required for domestic litigation? The short answer is to issue strict scheduling orders at the outset of litigation, and then strictly enforce that schedule.
Temporary Hearing Affidavits. Rule 21, SCRFC was recently amended to avoid trial by ambush and to provide page limits on documents. For a fifteen-minute hearing, each party is limited to ten pages of affidavits with up to thirty pages of supporting documents. Studies show that the average judge can read a double-spaced single page in two minutes. This means the judge may be confronted with twenty pages of affidavits and sixty pages of supporting documents requiring forty minutes just to read the affidavits even without the supporting documents. If it takes the judge forty minutes to read the affidavits, consider how long it must take for the lawyers to prepare those affidavits.
Multiple Affidavits Many lawyers encourage clients to have their family and friends prepare multiple affidavits. As a practicing lawyer, I almost always limit my case to one affidavit limited to two or three pages. My experience is that many judges will carefully read shorter affidavits but will at best skim longer affidavits. Limiting the number and length of affidavits saves time and money.
Temporary Hearings. Many lawyers seem to think that every new case should require a temporary hearing. This is wrong. Temporary hearings should be limited to cases in which the litigant is faced with irreparable harm without an adequate remedy at law. This should be limited unless there is an imminent threat of harm or danger to a spouse or child. Temporary hearings should be discouraged in modification cases in which the prior order was the result of a settlement or trial.
Scheduling Orders. A court order requires cases to have a final hearing requested with 365 days of the filing of the summons. The court frequently extends this requirement to two, three, four, or even five years. There is no limit on the time for service of discovery, but responses are due in thirty days. The opposing party may consent to one thirty-day extension of time to respond, but the lawyers often extend thee for months and even years. If the court required lawyers to serve discovery within sixty days of the filing of the case, and answered thirty days after service, one of the most severe wastes of time would be avoided. Mediation is required before a [party may request a final hearing. Requiring parties to mediate within 120 days of filing would avoid another huge delay.
Discovery. Discovery served and answered in good faith would do much to speed up the litigation process while avoiding trial by ambush. The first problem is that parties serving discovery make unreasonable and burdensome requests. The second problem is that the recipient of discovery does not answer in good faith. If the recipient receives unreasonable and burdensome requests, he or she should have fifteen days to file an objection. The motion with the objection should allow ten days for the recipient to file a return. A family court judge should rule on the objection within five days of filing.
Guardians ad Litem. Many family court lawyers and judges believe that a guardian ad litem must be appointed in every custody or visitation case. Not so. S. C. Code Ann. § 63-3-810 provides for the appointment of a guardian under two circumstances: the court will not be fully informed about the facts of the case without a guardian or when both parties consent to the guardian. If a guardian is appointed, it should be at the temporary hearing and the guardian’s report should be required within sixty days of the appointment. Many lawyers depend upon the guardian to conduct the investigation that the lawyers should conduct.
This post only addresses some, but not all, the financial costs of delays in family court. It does not address the enormous stress delay places on the litigants and their families. Truly justice delayed is justice denied.
What do you suggest to save time and money in family court?
