Annulment process in Los Angeles

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Hello Forgetmenot, I haven’t forgotten you and you are in my prayers too that your husband gets better for the Holidays. I know it will maybe take months for your husband to get better from his illness. I am glad that you are getting a canon lawyer because they will make sure that the procedure is followed to the letter. I don’t think that people lose with a canon lawyer.

I just found out that the L.A. Tribunal Office was started in the 1970’s when the Pope decided he wanted to let each country have their own Tribunal Office to handle annulments.
You would think that after all these years the Tribunal Offices would be better prepared to handle our annulments in a timely manner and also be business like.

You are so right about how the memories come up later on after we have written our statements. I still have bad memories that surface up when I think about the reasons for my marriage and my divorce. It would be nice if I could erase those memories but they are in the archives of our brains and do surface up at times. We can’t change the past but we can change our future by taking more action with God’s help.

In America we believe in the fairy tale that once we get married we will live happliy ever after like a princess and prince do in the story books and movies. I was young and foolish to believe that. But I had a wicked mother who didn’t care about my life. I also had a father who was verbally mean and would hit me if my Mom would tell him to hit me. I grew up scared of him for many years even after I was married I was afraid of him. He and my Mom still had psychological control over me even when I became an adult. I was an obedient daughter who did whatever they wanted me to do. When I would complain about it my Mom would tell me she was going to tell my dad to beat me up.
When my dad died at the age of 97yrs.old I was relieved. It was like a monkey got off my back. I went for grief counseling and found out I didn’t have any grief. It was a strange experience. I never expected that to happen but it did.

On a happy note:
I am leaving on a cruise on the Carnival Splendor to the Mex-Riviera tomorrow. I know it will cheer me up a lot because I always get depressed during the winter months. I have so much fun when I go on a cruise ship.

Forgetmenot… enjoy your holidays and be happy that you have a wonderful husband to keep you company. Everybody is in a holiday mood including the L.A. Tribunal Office so we must wait until the Holidays are over to get back to attending to the business of our annulments. Talk to you later. PEACE & JOY! LaLucia
 
I hardly know where to begin because I am so upset at the moment.

My boyfriend finally got ahold of the Case Coordinator this week and they scheduled a new time to talk on the phone. She never acknowledged the fact that she missed their last scheduled time… They talked last night finally.

She started out telling him about all the things the ex had to say about him and their marriage. Probably the same as most people, she made many false statements…outright lies. But even that isn’t why I’m angry.

After the nun told her about that, she went into stuff from the psych evaluation. I cannot go into details as it is very private, but when my boyfriend was in the evaluation, at one point the Dr. asked a question to which he hesitated slightly…not because he had something to hide, but the question just kind of startled him. He answered the question but then the Dr. said “You hesitated. Why did you hesitate?” He explained that no, he wasn’t hesitating, but she said, Yes, you did. So he told her, he would tell her what crossed his mind, which is probably what made it seem like he hesitated, but would only tell her if it was off the record. He told her it could not leave those 4 walls. Whether or not she actually SAID the words, “Yes, it will be off the record”, he doesn’t recall… but she put her pen and paper down and he was under the full assumption that what he told her next was OFF the record.

So back to the conversation from last night… The nun starts to reference the psych eval and then brings up the specific information that he told the Dr. was strictly off the record! He was was shocked, stunned and angry that this doctor would completely betray his trust and divulge the information he specifically said was NOT to be shared. Again, I can’t go into the details (I know it would be helpful to all reading this to know what it was, but I just can’t do that), but the content of that particular part of the conversation had NOTHING to do with anything prior to, or during his marriage to his ex. But not only that, what the doctor wrote wasn’t even accurate. And the nun’s interpretation of it all was also grossly inaccurate.

My boyfriend is, rightfully so, very angry. At that point in the conversation with the nun, he really lost track of the questions that I had wanted answered (such as where are they at in the process, when will the case be heard, etc.). He told her that information was NOT something that was to be included and advised that her (the nun’s) interpretation was not accurate at all. He tried to set the information straight, but the conversation pretty much ended because he couldn’t even see straight. She just suggested that they talk again next week sometime.

He is so upset over this, and I don’t blame him. He stated to me that he will NEVER trust anyone (a “professonal”) again. (I had previously suggested he and I go to counseling to help us get through this trying time of being in a long distance relationship and to get us prepared for marriage…I’ve always lived alone (I am almost 40), or in earlier years, roommates, so getting married and living with someone else under the same roof will take some adjusting for me. We planned on me doing individual counseling and when he was in town visiting, we would have joint sessions.) So now with his complete distrust of professionals (doctors, pyschs, etc.), he will not go now…or if he does have to go for some other reason (like ordered by the church), he will just tell them what he thinks they want to hear, not the truth. I absolutely do not blame him, but am very saddened that this has occurred and destroyed his trust in others.

The nun tried to get around it all by saying that he signed a release when he went in for the evaluation. I understand the release, but I think that this doctor completely overstepped their bounds and completely misled my boyfriend into thinking that certain parts of the conversation were completely confidential. My first instinct is that this doctor needs to be reported to the state medical board, but when doing something like that, the details of that conversation will end up coming out and be documented in even more places. We are both concerned that the ex could see that evaluation. The nun “assured” him that the ex would never see it… like he should believe that. She also asked him why it was so important for him to get married in the church and he told her it was because it was something I really wanted. She basically told him that nothing was preventing him from getting married elsewhere.

Right now, I don’t really know where the case stands until he talks to her again. After reading through so many of these posts about annulments, it seems like we should contact a canon lawyer, but who knows how much that would cost. He nor I have the money for that. The “advocate”, never returned calls earlier in the process, so I have little faith that he would return calls now.

He is so hurt by all of this, as am I. He is doing it all for me and this is what he gets in return. He said he will still continue with the process because he knows how important it is to me to be married in the church. I cannot imagine not being validly married and not being able to participate fully in the church, but I feel betrayed by my own religion…

I need advice and a lot of prayers…
 
LaLucia - have a wonderful time, you deserve it.
JNo, I don’t know what I can tell you except for your boyfriend to get a canon lawyer now; find the money if you have to. Perhaps your tribunal has to supply one even without money. I’ve been told the only canon lawyers we have are with our Tribunals; I was also told to contact a local Catholic university, but we’re waiting for the next step down the road before we do anything. I don’t know the process out your way, I’m on the other side of the country, but from what everyone has recommended it’s get a canon lawyer fast. My spouse of 30 years (civil) finally agreed to get this done, and he basically did it for me. Along the way, he’s found his religion again, or at the very least, I should say most, Jesus. We thought it was just about a sure thing, and we discovered some last minute info we thought for sure would require a psych eval, but they never referred it. In addition, they wanted the x to testify, and she refused to cooperate. He asked for an advocate, and was told there was none. He just received his denial about 2-3 weeks ago now, and within the same week was given a C-diagnosis. We were advised by many people on this forum for him to get a lawyer and appeal, but it was just too much to handle at this time. He was told they are pretty liberal about accepting a reapplication, which hopefully he will do. The weird thing is that they want the application and then he can ask for help. This is half-a… backwards. We need the help to get the application off knowing it’s gonna make the grade. We had a deacon who helped him, and we were under the impression it was gonna fly, but it did not. Truly ridiculous. They want you to apply and yet they don’t give you adequate help. So I say to you this, get help now. Don’t wait. You need as much as you possibly can to get it through. I read so often about how many people get their annulments through, and hardly anything about those who have to fight for the truth to be told, which is all that we ask. I know it’s hard for you, and I feel your pain. My husband was allowed to go up to the Tribunal and read all the testimony from everyone. We didn’t have the psych eval, so I’m not sure who’d be allowed to read it. He was not allowed to make copies of any information submitted, but it was all his witness’ stuff anyway; he would’ve been able to make notes and submit more info, if warranted. I think this doc your boyfriend went to should be held accountable. But like you said, the feeling you get, and trust me we felt the same way, if you make any waves you feel like it’s gonna hurt the cause. You won’t get much about where they are in the process, etc… You just gotta hang in there and wait. That’s the least of your problems, believe me. Yeah, we’ve had a nun at the Tribunal basically state that my husband should’ve married me in the first place (long story - you’d have to go back to my old posts). But can you imagine that? We’ve had two people say the application was lookin’ good. I don’t want to scare you; everyone’s application is different. But it’s just the whole process that’s so secretive that’s bothersome to us. I can’t tell you how to live your life. This has been a very hurtful thing for me, particularly waiting for my spouse to finally get around to it, and now being angry that he didn’t do this sooner when it would have been easier for recall, and also because I’ve heard it was a lot easier years ago. I try not to blame my husband for this, but it’s hard. I know you want your Church’s blessing, and I pray you get it. Hang tight. My husband’s heart has broken for me cuz he knows how much it means to me. When all is said and done, my conscience and my husband’s is clear. I met a priest a few months ago who spoke at a Catholic retreat inside our Church (and I didn’t feel the walls shaking!). He said ‘God is not going to ask for your paperwork’ when you meet Him. I was told by a nice person at a diocesan parish house to “be strong”. I intend to. You and your boyfriend have to be strong. Sure, this all seems unfair, uncaring. But again, hang in there! My husband did it for me, too. I know what you’re saying about being “betrayed”. We both feel that way. My husband wanted to find another Church. But I won’t. I’ll fight this with him when he is out of the woods. You can send me private messages any time and I’ll respond. KEEP THE FAITH!
 
Hi Jen, what that therapist did by giving confidential information was TOTALLY WRONG to that Nun who is in charge of your case. I think your fiance should contact Msgr. Chaffman as soon as he is back from his trip and have a talk with him.

You have just given us new information about the doctor-therapist who decideD to slam dunk your fiance. What a pathetic doctor. I don’t think your fiance was treated fairly. It was more of a judgement against him.

Jen, I can tell you right now… that there is no way I will let a Nun decide if I should get an annulment. I will complain to Msgr. Chaffman about the procedure. Plus we have a family lawyer that I can hire to fight for me if I have to do that. It is not fair the way your annulment is being treated.

Licensed therapists are supposed to keep things confidential. But I am guessing that we signed some paper that gives the Tribunal permission to be able to read the report.

NO WAY WILL I SEE THEIR DOCTOR/THERAPIST if they ask me to do that.

Don’t waste your time with your assigned advocate because he is useless.

The annulment procedure is getting uglier and uglier… and we are getting angry enough to bring about the changes that need to be done at the Tribunals.

When my annulment judgement is over… I plan to write a letter to the Catholic newspaper my experience with my annulment. I have a right to complain about the proceedure.

Talk to you all later when I return from my cruise. Lucy
 
JNo - I just want to add that the nun at our Tribunal called my spouse in to give testimony that was recorded, so I guess this is not unusual. However, my spouse advised that she worked very well with him. The judge had questions that needed to be gone over, and my spouse’s responses were recorded. She made sure that he understood the questions and basically went over them before the recordings. I was not angry about the nun suggesting that we should’ve been married in the first place. I am just bothered by the fact that she understood where it was at and the judge didn’t get it. She may have overstepped her boundaries by what she said, and perhaps this is what the nun did to your boyfriend, though in a very negative way. I wish our nun had been the judge.
 
Here’s an instruction from Rome:

(vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/intrptxt/documents/rc_pc_intrptxt_doc_20050125_dignitas-connubii_en.html)

**
Art. 101
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– § 1. Without prejudice to the right of the parties to defend themselves personally, the tribunal is bound by the obligation to provide that each spouse is able to defend his rights with the help of a competent person, most especially when it concerns causes of a special difficulty.
§ 2. If in the judgement of the praeses the ministry of a procurator or advocate is necessary and the party has not so provided within a prescribed time limit, the* praeses is to name them, as the case requires, but they remain in function only as long as the party has not named others.
§ 3. If gratuitous legal assistance has been granted, it pertains to the tribunal praeses* himself to name the procurator or advocate.
§ 4. In any case, the appointment of a procurator or advocate by decree is to be communicated to the parties and the defender of the bond.

Art. 104 – § 1. The advocate and procurator are bound according to their function to protect the rights of the party and to keep the secret of office.
§ 2. It pertains to the procurator to represent the party, to present the libellus or recourses to the tribunal, to receive its notifications, and to inform the party of the state of the cause; but those things pertaining to defense are always reserved to the advocate.

**Art. 112 **– § 1. It pertains to the Bishop Moderator to publish an index or directory in which there are listed the advocates admitted before his tribunal and the procurators who usually represent parties there.
§ 2. The advocates inscribed in the directory are bound, by a mandate of the Judicial Vicar, to provide gratuitous legal assistance to those to whom the tribunal has granted this benefit (cf. art. 307).

Art. 113 – § 1. At every tribunal there is to be an office or a person available so that anyone can** freely and quickly obtain advice about the possibility of, and procedure for**, the introduction of their cause of nullity of marriage, if such should be the case.
§ 2. If this office should happen to be carried out by the ministers of the tribunal, they cannot have the part of judge or defender of the bond in the cause.
§ 3. In each tribunal, to the extent possible, there are to be stable advocates designated, receiving their salary from the tribunal itself, who can carry out the function described in § 1, and who are to exercise the function of advocate or proc- urator for the parties who prefer to choose them (cf. can. 1490).
§ 4. If the function described in § 1 is entrusted to a stable advocate, he cannot take on the defense of the cause except as a stable advocate.**

Being busy is one thing, not returning calls, missing appointments without explanation etc. is another, as is an advocate that doesn’t bother to keep in touch (or is prevented from it). Neglecting provisions that affect the rights of a party can lead to a null sentence. Try first writing to the tribunal (preferably via your priest and/or personally handing it in and getting a stamp with date and time on a copy) and requesting that your rights be respected (you means your boyfriend, it’s just easier talking) - politely and respectfully, but pointing out that those requirements are not optional. If that doesn’t work, write a complaint, possibly with the diocese - but via your priest if he will cooperate. If you lose the case and appeal against the verdict, don’t forget to mention in full detail how exactly you didn’t get account of your case, weren’t being given opportunity to say what you wanted to say and whatever else might apply. In extreme cases - that is, the right of defence being denied - it could make the sentence null (i.e. invalid, no sentence, case returns to tribunal). To be honest, I don’t know what exactly “defence” means here, i.e. if it’s more like criminal defence or just defence of someone’s rights or interests, that is possibility of pleading his case effectively. You’d need to ask a real canon lawyer or do some googling.
 
Hello to all,

I have some good news to report. I received a letter yesterday from the Tribunal which states they have reached a decision in the AFFIRMATIVE, i.e. your marriage has been declared null on the grounds of DEFECT OF CONSENT.

The bad news is that it still has to go to the Tribunal of the Diocese of Orange to the Court of Appeal. It states I may send any comments to the Judge assigned to my case before January 8, 2010, so I assume they aren’t going to send it to the appeal court until after that date.

It goes on to state that the Court of Appeal has asked to request that you not contact their office since they are unable to give status reports, and if the need arises, they will be in touch with me. It also says under no circumstances can a date for a new marriage be set at this time, not until the Court of Appeal issues a second affirmative decision.

There is another page included which is a statement of expenses. It says the ordinary expenses incurred are $500.00, and also states that services of a professional in the behavioral sicences may arise, and such experts are paid at the rate of $70.00 per hour. It says the total balance of case expenses will be reflected in the notification of the final decision (I haven’t had to see any “experts” so far).

It says our records indicate that you have already paid $100.00. The monsignor at my parish was very kind and generous when I came to him to ask him about getting my marriage annulled, and paid this initial fee for me when he turned in my original paperwork.

It has been almost one year since I turned in my annulment papers, so now I must just wait to see how long the appeals court takes for their decision. I will keep you posted of any more news in my case. God bless all and a Merry Christmas.
 
Hi Everybody! I am back from my cruise. I had a great time and it kept me from getting depressed.

CHRIS, Thank you so much for your information. It will help me a lot for my annulment.
I think my grounds will also be “Defect of Consent”… because my Mom made me get married before I could leave home at the age of 19yrs. old. My Mom wrote a letter to the
Judge stating that she pushed me into getting married.

I do like the idea of being able to write one last letter to the JUDGE. I will have my priests
sign the letter. I have two priests who know me well and can sign the letter. I will also submit a photo of my two priests with me in the middle. lol. I want to make sure the Judge knows something about me by looking at my photo.

I also plan to submit a letter mailed to me by Pope John Paul II… whom I took him a painting for him in 1996. The Pope was ill at the time I went to the Vatican and I am sure it made him very happy to get the painting that I painted for him of Blessed Mother with Baby JESUS in her arms. It doesn’t hurt to send as much info. and photos as I can.
I want to make sure I get this annulment.

My sister who is my last witness is in town now from her trip so I plan to have her send her witness papers to the Tribunal and that info. will help continue my process for my annulment. I have already paid $650. to the Tribunal for the process. I have used my retirement money and I plan to fight to get my annulment. I am not losing that money.

I plan to stay positive because sometimes I start getting angry with the process and I start thinking in negative ways. I have a lot of anger in me caused by my abusive childhood and things that go seriously wrong in my life… not caused by me.

Message to Jen and Forgetmenot… Please try to stay positive as I am trying to do myself.
It is only 10 days before Christmas Eve and we should all be thankful to God for what we have like our loved ones and for the joy in our hearts that God is always with us. PEACE & JOY! Your friend, Lucy R.
 
Forgetmenot - Peace to you too. I sent you a message on the other topic we post at.
I have to go to my Bible Class tonight. One of my favorite priest is going to give us an inspiring message/lecture. I better get going. See you later. LaLucia
 
Hi Everybody! My sister finnally signed and mailed her witness questionaire to the L.A. Tribunal. She was out of town working and when she returned she was too busy shopping
for Christmas gifts.

Yesterday I called her up and told her I was going to go meet her so she could get the questionaire notorized. She wanted to go to lunch first so we went and then we went to the UPS Store to get it notorized. There was just one customer in front of us so she decided to go back to her car to read her mail. I yelled at her to come back because the clerk was ready to notorize the papers. She came back and signed the paper…then she started to walk out again… I told her she had to be the one to sign the form for the next day UPS delivery of the letter. She came back and just signed her name and address…then she said, "my finger hurts you finish writing down the address. So I did.
I had to pay to have the paper notorized and also to mail it. “WHEW”! “YEAH”!!!

The SAD part of my experience with my sister is that she made it clear that she didn’t want to discuss my annulment so I had to keep quiet about it. It would have been nice if she cared but she doesn’t care. Oh well…

Now I have to most likely wait until after New Years to get a court date.

If some Nun calls me up to discuss my annulment… I plan to request an appointment to see the Judge Mon. Charles Chaffman since I live near their office. I feel a need to personally talk to him in person. If my appointment is denied I will have my priest call the Tribunal and ask again for an appointment. I am not going to let some Nun decide if I should get my annulment.
Nobody knows what it is like going through an annulment except people who have gone throught the experience. The strange part is that it is all paper work and phone calls to get it done. We should be able to have a visit with the Judge to tell in our own words our story instead of just in writing. Some of those written questions are kind of strange and we really don’t always know what they are really asking.
Some of you outsiders/looky loos may say I am wrong in assuming that a Nun will decide.
Maybe you are right or maybe you are wrong. I am not taking any chances. LaLucia
 
JNo said:
Does anyone have experience or knowledge of how long, on average (I know every case is different, but just an average), it takes for the annulment process in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles? Any experience with the Marriage Tribunal you can share?

Thanks so much!
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plato3 said:
Interesting case. The non-Catholic is getting the annulment? If there is no contesting of the facts, some cases take as little as 6 months and some up to 2 years. A recent case that I am familiar with caused quite a stir because one of the parties was trying to cite conduct after the marriage as means for the annulment. An annulment is not a Catholic divorce. An annulment declares that there was never a Sacramental marriage in the first place. There has to be some problem found that existed before the marriage such as form, information kept from one party about having children Etc. You can phone the tribunal.
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An annulment actually declares that there was not a valid marriage, as opposed to sacramental.
 
LaLucia said:
Some of you outsiders/looky loos may say I am wrong in assuming that a Nun will decide.
Maybe you are right or maybe you are wrong. I am not taking any chances. LaLucia
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Peace be with you Lucia!

My wife and I both praying for you as you go through this journey. We can’t speak for LA but we can comment on Vancouver BC and Pittsburgh PA.

Is the nun in question your advocate? If so, she will not decide your case. I can tell you that in my wife’s case, her advocate here in Pittsburgh (recall from my other thread that we started in Pittsburgh and ended up having to go to Canada), a nice but somewhat lovingly scatter-brained Father Joe, reviewed her testimony and recommended the grounds for the declaration of nullity. However, his recommendation was not solely on his word, as he consulted with his peers as to the course he was taking. Only after that was he ready to move to the next to step, that being the presentation into the case load of the tribunal office itself. It was at that point they came back to him and said that it had to go to BC.

That said, I believe that you have every right to testify in person before the judges, but I don’t know of you can meet with the Monsignor before that.

God bless you and guide you and teh work of the tribunal in this undertaking. We’ll be glad to answer any other questions as best we can, although we don’t really know it all and your actual mileage may vary 🙂

God bless

Tony
 
Hello Tony, Thank you and your wife so much for praying for me.

My advocate is an old man who should be retired. I don’t think he read my statements or the letters sent by my doctor or therapist. Plus he sent me to the wrong priest and wrong parish to have some papers signed. When I called him he was totally confused. I had to send him a Church newsletter so he could see the name of my church and the name of the priest who signed my original papers.

The nun I am talking about is someone who works at the L.A. Tribunal and calls the people to discuss their annulment cases. She has a stack of paper files where people can go read what other people had to say about the annulment. Plus, she gives imput on how the case is going. This is why I want to personally speak with Mon. Chaffman.
It looks like there are a lot of people envovled in the annulment cases because I get letters signed by different workers at the L.A. Tribunal.

It is going to be a year now since I started my annulment case. I have plenty of time since I am not planning on getting married. I just the annulment approved to release me from the ties with my ex-spouse and also so my ex-spouse can get married by the church with his wife of 30 or more years. My ex-spouse can’t write and explain his situation as well as I can. It was my adult son who encouraged me to file for the annulment so his dad could be free to return to the church.

Thank you all for your prayers. I do believe that prayers will help me a lot in my case.
PEACE, LaLucia
 
Just thought I’d give an update. I have a cousin who is a nun and works at a Tribunal in another state. She had suggested my boyfriend write a letter to the presiding judge (Msgr Chaffman) and advise him of everything that had been going on in the case. In the meantime, my BF finally was able to get ahold of his advocate, Mr. Shapiro. He also talked to the nun at the Tribunal who is handling his case. It all basically boiled down to this… the nun said SHE would be talking to Msgr Chaffman about whether my BF could review the psychologist’s report and make corrections, but that my BF didn’t need to speak with Msgr. Mr. Shapiro was less than helpful in that he really hadn’t a clue as to what my BF was needing clarification and help on. The nun also said that it was pretty much a given that there would be restrictions placed on the annulment if it were granted… all because the doctor doing the evaluation betrayed my BF’s trust and disclosed information to the church that was supposed to be kept in confidence.

I guess the “hearing” is going to be this month, so at this point, my BF has basically just thrown up his arms and said the heck with making any more calls as his voice is not being heard. We’ll see what happens in the next few weeks and then go from there.

On a more positive note…my BF and I had a wonderful Christmas here in Kansas City. It’s the longest we’ve been together at any one time since we reconnected about 16-17 months ago. It has made me realize more than ever that I do want to be with him for life so getting an annulment is extremely important.

I hope all of you had a good Christmas and best wishes in the new year for all of you (us!) that are going through this long and sometimes painful annulment journey.

Jennifer
 
Hi Jen., You know I also have Mr. Shapiro who is my advocate. That old man is totally clueless and I don’t think he really cares about us who are filing for annulments.
I consider him useless since I don’t think he has read my case at all.

There is nothing wrong in calling Msgr. Charles Chaffman’s office. I think that now that the Holidays are over maybe he will now have time to hear our annulment cases.

My case will go to the first court and then I will hear what they have to say in writing.
After I read it I plan to make an appointment with Msgr. Chaffman. If he is too busy to see me then I plan to get the head of my church to call him to find out why he can’t see me.

Tell your boyfriend not to let that Nun control the process of his annulment. He can speak to Msgr. Chaffman himself.
I just thought of a great idea for my case. My adult son has been teaching Catechism to high school kids and their parents for 7yrs. now and he did meet Msgr. Chaffman one time when Msgr. Chaffman was advising people on how to file for an annulment a few years ago.
I think I will ask my adult son to call Msgr. Chaffman if he denies having a meeting with me. I need to be heard verbally. I might even take my adult son with me to the meeting with Msgr. Chaffman.

My assertive energy is BACK! I plan to fight for my right to be heard in person. LaLucia
 
I wonder if there are any other advocates or judges handling cases at the tribunal, because my judge was also Msgr Chaffman, and my advocate was Mr. Shapiro. I never talked to Mr. Shapiro during my case, and although Msgr Chaffman called me during my case, when I returned his call he never answered. When I received my affirmative decision, it said I could send any comments on my case to the judge, Msgr Chaffman, concerning the decision. I had some things I thought I might add before my case went to appeal, so I wrote a letter to Msgr. I mailed it December 18, a Friday, and he was very prompt in calling me back on Monday December 21, so maybe your cousin is right saying your boyfriend should write a letter to Msgr Chaffman with his concerns. Msgr told me when he called me that he and the other person working with him on my case(I assume he meant the Defender) had no problem deciding in my favor and I shouldn’t worry about having to add more evidence for the appeal. My case is supposed to be sent to the appeals court after January 10, so I will let everyone know when they reach a decision. God Bless all of you.
 
Hello Chris, Thank you for your added information. It really helps to know some of the process. You have proved that Msr. Chaffman does talk with us on the telephone.
When I called him he was out of our country on vacation.

I do think that Msr. Chaffman is the only judge who works on the annulments in L.A.
I heard some of the cases have been moved to the Orange County Tribunal.

I am case number 324, which means there are that many cases ahead of me.

Do you mind telling us what is your case number? I don’t think the cases are followed by the number because I have heard of some people moving faster than my case and other lower number cases taking longer.

Our office receptionist who filed for her annulment months after I did is moving a lot faster than my case. Hummm… LaLucia
 
It is not appropriate to share specific names and details of individual annulment cases. Please refrain from doing so in the future.
 
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