Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Committee votes ITL on bill to move family-division cases back to superior court
Summary
The House Children and Family Law Committee voted to recommend ITL (inexpedient to legislate) on HB652-FN, rejecting a proposal to transfer family-division jurisdiction back to superior court. Committee members debated specialization, case volume and options for reform.
The New Hampshire House Children and Family Law Committee voted to recommend inexpedient to legislate (ITL) on HB652-FN, a bill that would have transferred jurisdiction over family matters from the family division of the circuit court back to the superior court.
Representative Pearson, chairman of the committee's subcommittee on the family division, argued that the family division was created and later extended because it addresses litigants' needs more effectively than superior court. "The family division operates in 32 locations across the state and handles over 18,000 cases annually," Pearson said, and he warned that moving those cases to superior court would overwhelm dockets and remove specialized expertise.
The bill drew sharp debate.…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
