Family court

Kent County Family Court in Warwick Rhode Island

Kent County Judicial Complex (Noel Judicial Complex)
222 Quaker Lane
Warwick‚ RI 02886 [Driving directions- Google Maps™]
Court Clerk: 401–822–6725

Clerk’s Office, Third Floor, Suite 310, Room 3019
(401) 822-6728 (TTY)
Facsimile (401) 822-6730

Parking garage available with plenty of parking. The Family Court is located on the 3rd floor. There are currently two Justices sitting in Kent: Justice Lanni and Justice Disegna.

website
RI Family Court forms

Hours: 

Is there a cafeteria?

No. Previously there was a small cafeteria but it shut down in all likelihood for lack of business.

Is there free parking at the Kent County Family Court?

Yes. There is free parking at the Kent County Family Court. There is a 4 level parking garage at Kent County Family Court. The parking garage has an elevator.  In the event of rain, bring an umbrella if you park on the top floor (4th floor) of the garage, There is a covered walkway from the parking garage to the Courthouse entrance.

Are there supervised visits or drug testing facilities at Kent County Family Court?

No. Judges send litigants to Providence County Family Court for drug testing and/ or supervised visits.

This information is Provided by Rhode Island Family Court lawyer, David Slepkow 401-437-1100.

City in Kent County , Rhode Island and Providence Plantations

• Warwick

Towns in Kent County, Rhode island

• Coventry
• East Greenwich
• West Greenwich
• West Warwick

Census-designated place in Kent County RI

• Greene

Other villages in Kent County

All the Judges and lawyers who practice in family court know who you are. You’re the guy who cites the constitutional amendments in Kent County Family Court. You are the guy who everyone including the judge rolls their eyes when you open your mouth.  Here comes the Constitutional Amendment guy!  Let’s all crowd into court to get a few laughs in and pull the clown car up to the judicial bench.

If your Citing Constitutional Amendments in RI Family Court you have LOST THE CASE!

I am going to say it once…. LOUDLY and clearly- If your Citing Constitutional Amendments in RI Family Court you have LOST THE CASE! LOST! You have lost your credibility and lost any chance to get what you are looking for in your RI Divorce, Custody or Visitation Case.

The only constitutional amendment that may gain you any traction in Providence Family Court is the 5th Amendment when you have a pending criminal case or you risk criminal sanctions for your testimony! The 5th amendment is the right not to incriminate yourself with your testimony and is often utilized in Rhode Island divorce, custody, restraining order and complaint protection for abuse cases.

None of the amendments will help you!

The US constitution is a wonderful document but when you say anything related to the United States Constitution in Domestic Court, the judge immediately shuts her ears and thinks of some way to shut you down. The 2nd amendment will not help you unless you want your wife to get a restraining order for fear of your guns. None of the amendments will help you! Not the 1st, 4th or 14th. NONE OF THE AMENDMENTS! When the clerk sees the Constitutional amendment guy, he or she immediately finds some way to put this guy last on the calendar.

Dear Mr. Constitutional Amendment Guy:

You have no rights. You’re not the first clown to take such a stand in family court.  You will not be the last. It will never work. It Never has worked and never will. In Rhode Island Family Court you have few rights (and they are not related to the United States Constitution) and you have mostly obligations: obligations to play by the rules, obligations to support your child, obligations to foster a relationship between your children and the other parents. YOU DO have the right to a RI Divorce or Custody Attorney and I strongly suggest that you stop making a fool of yourself and get yourself legal counsel!

Rhode Island Family Court lawyers and RI Associate Justices, Magistrates and members of the bar are so well versed in the bizarre and sometimes anachronistic calendar call it, has become nearly normal. The key word here is “nearly.”  Lets call it what it is: The calendar call is  RI judiciary, “inside baseball”, gobbledygook.

2024 update- The calendar call has changed greatly in the post covid world. The ready subject calendar call has gone the way of the 8 track tape. It seems like there are only four calendar calls utilized in the Providence Family Court: ready, hold, formal and ready nominal.

Few outsiders or pro-se litigants can truly understand this RI judiciary, quasi foreign language. Without years on the Rhode Island Family Court battlefield, it is nearly impossible to understand what this all means. A Rhode Island divorce attorney describes, in great detail,what various calendar calls actually mean in Providence Family Court.

rijudiciary

Rhode Island Family Court and the RI Judiciary – Inside baseball

One retired judge became so frustrated by these conflicting and confusing calendar calls, she decided there would only be two calls “ready” and “not ready.” Genius! That made a lot of sense!  Another retired judge decided that ready subject calls would not be allowed anymore. These ready subject calls have gone the way of the 8-track tape and are currently disfavored for whatever reason. The “ready subject” call is really a relic of the past that the old timers may look back at fondly. Newer divorce lawyers in RI utilize the more modern phrase of “hold.”

“The Calendar call” – a moment of time which is normal for divorce lawyers and nonsense to everyone else

The calendar call occurs when the Rhode Island Family Court Judge takes the bench and after everyone rises and pays their respect to the Judge and the RI judiciary in general. The first order of business is the calendar call, when the clerk calls the calendar and the RI divorce lawyers report the status of the case to the Court. The main purpose of the calendar is for the RI Associate Justice or General Magistrate to control their calendar case flow and determine which cases are going forward that day and the status of those cases.

The general rule is that settled cases are heard first. Conferences are determined 2nd and hotly contested matters last. This is the carrot and the stick mentality.  If you settle, you get out of court quickly (the carrot) and if you want to fight you have to wait until the end (the proverbial stick). Nominal divorce hearings when they are ready are also given some priority on the calendar.

Here are some of the assorted calendar calls used by divorce and custody lawyers in Providence Family Court:

Calendar call: “Ready”

This typically may indicate that both lawyers are ready for a hearing or hearing with testimony. But in reality, it does not actually mean that the lawyers are actually “ready” to t-up the cause of action at that moment in time. In some cases, the lawyers call it “ready” because they know the judge isn’t ready for the case and they hope that the RI divorce attorneys will be ready when the judge is ready. This can cause some consternation if the judge is ready too soon but the lawyers are not ready.

The confusing part of the “ready” call is what are the Providence child custody attorneys ready for? If the judge is familiar with the case and the intricacies of the case, the judge will know what the cause of action is ready for. It will be an unspoken assumption. A case could be ready for:

• a conference, (In this case it should have been called “ready conference”)
• a hearing without testimony,
• a testimonial hearing
• a trial  (A better call would be ready trial.)
• a conference (This should be ready conference)
• In many cases, a ready call without more information imparted to the judge means that the Rhode Island divorce lawyers or RI child custody attorneys will use the waiting time to figure out what they are ready for. It is often best practice to provide more information to the Family Court Justice such as:
• “ready trial”
• “ready for a conference”
• “ready hearing”
• “ready when the opposing lawyer arrives in court after the traffic jam and her Dunkin Doughnut coffee stop” (Don’t actually state this.)

What could be the cause of a Providence custody lawyer calling a case ready but not being ready?

1. There is a quick loose end that the RI child support lawyer has to hash out with opposing counsel or their client in the infamous hallways of the  Providence Garrahy Judicial Complex.
2. The client changes their mind about something agreed to.
3. One of the litigant chimes in “one last thing” and a brouhaha erupts.
4. Another Providence Family Court judge needs one of the divorce attorneys for another case.
5. One of the litigants needs to put money in the meter or an ill timed bathroom stop.
6. The lawyers were not ready in the first instance and were just hoping they would be ready when the judge was ready so they could get out of court.

“Ready formal”

This means that the parties have resolved all of the issues and controversies that were before the RI Family Court on that date. The attorneys will read the agreement on the record. The judge will usually immediately prioritizes this on the calendar. The Judges reward litigants who settle by allowing them to leave Court early. An equivalent calendar call would be “formal.”

“Ready Hold”

This means the RI child custody lawyers are ready but not ready at the same time. The ultimate oxymoron. This appears to be a workaround concerning the above mentioned “ready” call when you are not ready. Therefore, “ready hold” means you are ready but you need to work out one of the bullet-ed issues set forth above. “Ready hold” certainly addresses any misrepresentation that a “ready” call when the lawyers are not close to ready could cause. Best practice is not to use the “ready hold” call but just hold the case.

If a case is called “ready hold” and this call is premised on an anticipatory readiness, it is imperative that both lawyers exit the court room immediately! The reason for this is the fundamental assumption that if both lawyers are sitting in the courtroom that this is an indirect representation that the matter is no longer held and is ready now. So if the RI divorce iscalled “ready hold” and not “ready” the Providence Family Court lawyers must hide.

How do lawyers remove the hold from a “ready hold”  or “hold” to a “ready” calendar call?

• Sit quietly in the court looking at the judge with furloughed eyes and the judge will believe that the matter is ready now. The RI Family Court justice will say something like “Mr.  Slepkow are you ready to go” or “Mr. Slepkow is the Johnson divorce ready?”
• Notify the judge’s clerk by approaching the clerk, by making eye contact or a hand gesture to the clerk that the hold is removed.
• Jumping up when there is a pause between cases and stating your honor “the Johnson case is now ready” or “Johnson is a nominal now.”

Calendar call: “Ready nominal”

This means that the case is ready for a nominal trial. A nominal trial occurs when all issues in a divorce in RI have been resolved and the parties are ready for a perfunctory short divorce trial / hearing with testimony.

Calendar call: “track change”

The case was originally scheduled for a nominal hearing pursuant to the divorce summons but the case is not ready for a nominal divorce trial. If the divorce is on the calendar for the first scheduled nominal hearing, this call is somewhat unnecessary. If no one is present or no one says anything, the case will be automatically track changed to a new date for a case management conference.

Calendar call: Hold

This could be the same call as “ready hold” but it it might not be. It could also mean the case is not ready but  time is needed to negotiate in the hallway to see if the case will become ready. It could mean the lawyers have no clue who will show up, why the case is on the calendar or a plethora of reasons. It could mean that one of the RI Family lawyers is ready but has to go handle another case with another judge which is also ready. Hold could mean that the attorney has no idea why opposing counsel is not present and needs to figure it out. In most cases, hold means that the attorneys need to negotiate and figure out what to do about the case.

Calendar call: “Ready conference”

This means that the attorneys want a meeting with the judge to discuss the case off the record.  Conferences are not transcribed by the court reporter. Discussions could revolve around the following:

• case scheduling and trial scheduling
• settlement negotiations
• disputing the merits of the case, issues and arguments

“Ready bench conference”

This means that the conference will be at the bench within the courtroom. These conferences are less private then in chamber conferences and clients and other Court observers can often hear what is being said.

“Ready chambers conference”

These conferences between the lawyers and the judge are held in the backroom and litigants cannot hear. Chambers conferences are usually for more sensitive, confidential and private matters or intense settlement negotiations. Chambers conferences have become more disfavored in the modern day Family Court.

“Ready trial”

This means that the parties are ready for the previously scheduled trial.

“Ready hearing”

This is a confusing calendar call to say the least. It usually means that the lawyers want to argue a procedural or short matter that does not require testimony.

“Hold that for a conference later”

The RI divorce lawyers well versed in the RI judiciary are not ready for a conference or want to see if they can settle the case before the necessity of a conference.

Pro-se calendar calls:

“waiting for my lawyer”

“here”

“ready”

“Ready nominal hold”

‘were trying to work it’ out type call

freelancing calender call

jokester call –

the reverse a contested calender call

“Formal”

“Formal hold”

Ready hearing

Ready trial

Ready trial conference

formal and ready

silence

“can we get a continuance”

Important Family Court Tips:

• keep your child out of the  divorce or custody case as much as possible.
• Do not  fight or yell at each other in front of your children.
• Do not make negative remarks about the other parent in front of your children.
• Do not make the mistake of attempting to get your children to take your side.
• Give the children as little  information as is necessary. Getting your kids involved in your Family Court Dispute can be emotionally damaging to your child.
• Never coach your children what to say to the judge, Guardian Ad Litem or investigator.
• Do everything to  encourage your child’s relationship with the other parent!
• If you are married and you feel it absolutely necessary to start dating while the divorce is still pending, do not introduce your new paramour to your child. This introduction is potentially damaging to your child. This is unfair to the other parent. It is also unfair to your new love interest who may become involved in the custody feud.

1. “Do show a willingness to work with your ex. Some parents have actually lost child custody because of their demonstrated unwillingness to collaborate with the other parent. So remember that while you may not like your ex, he or she is a part of your kids’ lives, and you need to show the family court that you’re willing to work together. Source
2. Do exercise your parental rights. If you’ve been granted visitation rights with your kids, take advantage of it. Spend as much time with them as you can, and make sure that you’re doing regular, everyday things—including homework and chores.
3. Do request an in-home custody evaluation. This can be extremely helpful, especially if you’re concerned that your ex will try to present a negative impression of your home life.
4. Do be aware that perception is everything.  One of the hardest things to grasp in a custody battle is the fact that it doesn’t really matter if what is being said about you is true or not; what matters is whether the court believes they’re true. Do everything you can to present yourself to the court as a competent, involved, loving parent. This includes arriving on time, dressing for court, and demonstrating proper courtroom etiquette in front of the judge.” very well family 

How Social Media Can Hurt You in Divorce and Child Custody Battles

Divorce and Child Custody Proceedings-Top 10 List of What Not to Post on Social Networking Sites

Rhode Island divorce attorney, David Slepkow answers some important questions concerning divorce law in Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. David is an experienced RI Family law and child custody lawyer with 25 plus years of experience in Providence Family Court. These RI divorce FAQS should be very informative to litigants going through the divorce process.

Why is there a three-month waiting period in RI family law?

The intent of the law in Rhode Island is that parties may reconcile during the 3 months and decide to remain married.

Is a court hearing required or can I just sign papers to get a divorce?

In order to obtain a divorce in Rhode Island, a divorce hearing in open court called a “nominal trial” is required.  The legal mandate for a nominal trial in RI is RI law 15-5-22.

A “nominal” is a short perfunctory hearing in which all agreements and all necessary elements that need to be established are put on the record. Both parties are required to testify.

If there is a property settlement agreement, the RI Family Court justice makes certain findings and approves the marital settlement agreement. This is an oversimplification of what occurs at a nominal divorce. It is a wise idea to consult with a Rhode Island divorce attorney about your marriage dissolution proceeding.  A RI divorce lawyer will make sure that everything goes smoothly in your RI divorce and that your legal rights are protected.

• 15-5-22 Trial required – Collusion.  No divorce from the bond of marriage shall be granted solely upon default nor solely upon admissions by the pleadings, except upon trial before the court in open session; nor shall the divorce be granted where the court is satisfied that there has been any collusion or corrupt conduct by the parties, or either of them, in regard to the proceedings to obtain the divorce.  History of Section. (G.L. 1896, ch. 195, § 18; P.L. 1902, ch. 971, § 6; G.L. 1909, ch. 247, § 18; G.L. 1923, ch. 291, § 18; G.L. 1938, ch. 416, § 18; G.L. 1956, § 15-5-22; P.L. 2004, ch. 6, § 25.)

Question: Is there any way to shorten the three-month waiting period after the nominal RI Divorce hearing?

The  month waiting period is mandated by Rhode Island Law. A Final Judgment of Divorce cannot be granted by a Family Court Judge until 3 months after the nominal divorce hearing. There is one exception to this rule.  Divorce complaints granted based on the grounds of living separate and apart for a space of 3 years, have a substantially lesser waiting period.

• 15-5-23 Final judgment – Remarriage. (a) No judgment for a divorce shall become final and operative until three (3) months after the trial and decision. Final decree from the bond of marriage may be entered ex parte and in chambers on the suggestion of the prevailing party at any time within one hundred eighty (180) days next after the expiration of three (3) months from the date of decision. After the expiration of the one hundred eighty (180) days, final decrees may be entered only in open court and on motion or upon written consent of the attorneys or parties. Notice of the filing of the motion shall not be required in cases in which the original complaint is unanswered. (b) After entry of the final judgment for a divorce from the bond of marriage, either party may marry again.  History of Section. (G.L. 1896, ch. 195, § 19; P.L. 1902, ch. 971, § 6; G.L. 1909, ch. 247, § 19; G.L. 1923, ch. 291, § 19; G.L. 1938, ch. 416, § 19; P.L. 1939, ch. 707, § 3; P.L. 1940, ch. 945, § 1; G.L. 1956, § 15-5-23; P.L. 1976, ch. 338, § 1; P.L. 2016, ch. 13, § 1; P.L. 2016, ch. 14, § 1.)

• I am in a hurry to dissolve my marriage, do I have wait until the nominal divorce hearing which is typically 65 – 70 days after filing?

The RI legislature changed the law in Rhode Island and there is no longer a mandatory 60 day waiting period before the nominal divorce hearing. However, in cases designated on the “nominal track”, the clerk of the Rhode Island Family Court typically schedules the nominal 65- 70 days after the filing of the complaint for divorce..

Can I file for an absolute divorce if we do not satisfy the one year residency requirement?

No. Until either party satisfies the one-year residency requirement, the only option is a divorce from bed and board, complaint for separate maintenance or a miscellaneous petition for custody, placement or child support.

Do mothers automatically get custody of young children?

No. Providence Family Court and the other Counties such as Kent County Family Court use the best interest of the child standard in determining custody of a child. Practical Tip: A mother who is a fit and proper person has a significant advantage in obtaining custody of a young child in RI Family Court.

What is the required child support arrears interest in Rhode Island?

Twelve (12) percent

What is a Divorce from Bed and Board and Future Cohabitation?

It is something that should almost never be filed. In this type of case, the parties go through the entire divorce process, but they remain legally married and do not obtain an absolute divorce. This is an outdated law that originated because RI is a heavily catholic state.

Why would a husband or wife select a divorce from Bed and Board in Rhode Island?

That’s a very good question. The prime rationale for this would be religious reasons or perhaps health insurance reasons.

Will the State of RI Child Support Enforcement waive interest owed to the State for child support or cash medical contributions?

The State of Rhode Island will only consider waive the amount of interest owed to Rhode Island and Providence Plantations for child support or cash medical contributions after the principal amount has been paid in full.

Can I get a divorce in Rhode Island by signing papers?

No. A nominal hearing / trial is required by statute to obtain a divorce in Rhode Island