A church annulment, or more properly, a Declaration of Invalidity, is an acknowledgment that for a particular couple a canonically valid marriage was never achieved. Through the Ordinary Process, one of the parties of the marriage asks the Tribunal to examine their marriage in question based on the party's claim that their consent lacked something which marriage requires: freely given consent involving permanence, fidelity, and openness to the possibility of children.
The Tribunal seeks to determine if there truly was something that prevented one or more of those elements from being present at the time of consent, even though both individuals may have entered the marriage in good will.
Due to the great number of cases considered and the demands of canon law, an exact time cannot be specified. No one is free to promise a specific date for a subsequent marriage until the tribunal gives notification of an affirmative decision (without restrictions) and the time for an appeal to be made ends. The parties involved in the case are always free to contact the tribunal office regarding the status of the case.
Note: Due to the inability of the tribunal to provide specific timelines, parties with an active case who are engaged to be remarried or who plan have an existing marriage convalidated are not permitted to even tentatively schedule a wedding until their case has been resolved.
No, however, the tribunal is required to inform the other spouse that the review has been initiated and then offers that person the opportunity to participate. By canon law, both parties enjoy all the same rights in the process. A reasonable time is given the former spouse to reply. If the former spouse declines to cooperate, the tribunal is not bound to wait indefinitely for a response before judging the case.
The ordinary expectation is that you will. The judge instructing your case will arrange for a deposition with you.
A church Declaration of Nullity is always strictly a religious matter and is solely an evaluation of the spousal relationship. It does not affect the civil validity of the marriage and does not involve the legal standing of any children