WHAT WE PRACTICE
What We Provide
PRENUPTIAL AGREEMENTS
Perhaps you have been asked to sign a prenuptial agreement. Or maybe, you want your future spouse to sign such an agreement. There are numerous reasons why couples enter into agreements before they get married. Maybe a prospective spouse has children from a prior marriage or relationship and wants to protect the children’s financial future. Or maybe a prospective spouse has a family business that (s)he and/or the family wish to keep separate. Or maybe the couple have different earnings histories and potential earnings and want to keep their financial lives separate. Sometimes one of the parties has a great deal of debt and his or her prospective spouse wants to insure that (s)he will not be held responsible.
People have different reasons for wanting to make provisions in the event of a divorce or the death of a spouse. Anyone thinking about the advisability of entering into such an agreement should consult with an experienced matrimonial attorney as soon as possible before the marriage. Whether you are the proponent of the agreement or whether your future spouse has asked you to sign, you need expert guidance. It is one of the most important decisions, if not the most important decision you can make in your life. I have drafted numerous prenuptial agreements and have represented future spouses in negotiating such agreements during my thirty years of practice as a matrimonial lawyer. Make an appointment for a consultation today.
DIVORCE, ANNULMENTS AND SEPARATION
It isn’t even necessary for you to be a resident of New York State because the residency requirements for New York jurisdiction can be satisfied in other ways. Domestic Relations Law Sections 230 and 231 set forth five different ways you can meet the residency requirements allowing you to sue for divorce in New York:
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You were married in New York and either you or your spouse is a New York resident at the time the divorce is filed and has been a resident for a continuous period of at least one year immediately proceeding commencement; OR
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The parties have resided in New York as husband and wife and either party is a resident thereof when the action is commenced and has been a resident for a continuous period of one year immediately preceding; OR
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The cause occurred I the State and either party has been a resident thereof for a continuous period of at least one year immediately preceding the commencement of the action; OR
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The cause occurred in the State and both parties are residents at the time of the commencement of the action; OR
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Either party has been a resident of the State for a continuous period of at least two years immediately preceding the commencement of the action.
There are seven grounds for divorce in New York but the easiest ground is:
The Irretrievable breakdown of the marriage for six months or longer. Unless there is a special reason that the irretrievable breakdown grounds is inappropriate (and there may be in your particular case as, for example, when you have been married for less than six months), there is usually no compelling rationale for proceeding upon any of the other six grounds for divorce:
*Cruel and inhuman treatment
*Abandonment
*A spouse’s imprisonment for three or more years after the beginning of a marriage
*Adultery
*living separate and apartment pursuant to a separation agreement for a period of one year or longer
*divorce after a judgment of separation
INTERNATIONAL, RELIGIOUS AND SPECIALTY DIVORCE
It isn’t necessary to be a citizen of the U.S. to obtain a divorce or an annulment in New York State. The New York metropolitan area is home to people who have lived here all of their lives. New York has become the adopted or second home of people settling here from Iowa, or Pakistan, Spain, India, Israel and numerous countries from around the world. As long as you meet the residency requirements – explained here in a separate section -- you can file for divorce in New York State.
As an attorney who has practiced in New York for over 30 years, I have seen it all – international child custody conflicts, prenuptial agreements entered into in Germany, France and Russia that are sought to be enforced in New York, custodial parents attempting to enforce New York child support orders against spouses who have moved abroad, and situations where Orthodox Jewish men refuse to give their wives a get, a Jewish divorce, despite the fact that New York law requires a person seeking a divorce to remove all barriers to a spouse’s remarriage as a prerequisite for granting a civil divorce.
An experienced matrimonial lawyer can work with you to find solutions to these problems. If negotiation fails to resolve the situation, you need an experienced lawyer who is not afraid of taking the battle to court.
EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTON OF PROPERTY AND DEBT
Marriage in New York is considered a partnership. Upon dissolution of a marriage, as in any partnership, its assets and liabilities are distributed equitably, not equally. Marital assets include everything from the family home, to pensions and other retirement accounts, to bank and investment accounts, and to tangible possessions like paintings, vehicles, and jewelry. A closely-held business, a professional practice (such as a medical, legal or accounting practice) can also be distributed, even to a husband or wife who made no direct contribution to the business or practice.
Liability can also be distributed in a divorce. Often a couple has acquired liabilities during the marriage, such as, to name one example, credit card debt.
You need an experienced matrimonial lawyer to guide you through, to educate you as to your rights. Contact me to set up a consultation.
CHILD SUPPORT – GETTING IT AND ENFORCING IT – OR MODIFYING IT
If you are a parent with custody of children, you know how expensive it is to live in the New York metropolitan area. A child is entitled to support from both of his parents, regardless of whether the parents were ever married. Child support can be ordered by the Supreme Court in a divorce action as part of a divorce, and also by Family Court, a court that adjudicates child support, among other issues facing married parents, divorced parents and also the rights of parents who were never married. New York’s statutes set forth a formula to provide the custodial parent with support. The amounts can sometimes seem insufficient to the custodial parent, while, at the same time, burdensome to the noncustodial parent because virtually all sources of income are considered and very few deductions from gross income are allowed.
If a parent fails to pay child support ordered by a court, there are several remedies – the entry of a money judgment, wage garnishments, suspension of licenses (even drivers and professional licenses in extreme cases), and a finding of contempt, which can sometimes result in imprisonment.
A child support order or judgment can be modified, either upward or downward, upon a showing of a substantial change of circumstances. Child support can also be modified after the passage of three years after the entry of the order or judgment, or, in the court’s discretion, upon a showing that either or both parents’ income has increased or decreased by 15 percent, unless the right to seek s
You need someone to help you navigate the confusing maze of child support statutes and judge-made law. Make an appointment today for a consultation with respect to child support.
MAINTENANCE
In New York State, “maintenance”-- which in the past was called “alimony” -- is money that one spouse pays the other during and/or after a divorce. The purpose of maintenance is to ensure that the supported spouse continues to live a similar lifestyle as he or did while they were living together. Maintenance can be temporary for the period between the commencement of a defined period of time, it is durational maintenance. If a judgment of divorce makes maintenance “nondurational,” it continues until the death of either ex-spouse, or until either party’s application for termination is granted based upon post-divorce circumstances.
There is a formula for calculating maintenance which arrives at the “presumptively” correct amount. The formula becomes more complicated when child support is also requested. Everybody’s situation is different and if you can show why a higher or lower amount should be awarded by providing concrete information about your individual situation, a judge has the discretion to vary upward or downward from the formula.
In Family Court, which has jurisdiction to deal with many of the same issues as Supreme Court but not divorce, maintenance is called “spousal support.” It is nondurational but can be terminated upon an application to Family Court upon a change in circumstance (for example, the supported spouse is capable of earning a living, or marries). A Family Court’s spousal support order can also be terminated by a judge presiding over a divorce action brought in Supreme Court.
As with other issues, whenever it is possible to avoid going to trial and letting a judge decide what is right for you and your family, you should instead negotiate a settlement that both you and your spouse can live with.
APPEALS
If a judge or other factfinder has issued a decision that you believe is wrong, you may have the right to appeal to the decision. But you must act very fast – you have only thirty (30) days to reserve your right to appeal the decision by filing and serving a Notice of Appeal. Some temporary orders in a divorce action in Supreme Court can be appealed, such as a temporary support or other order in a divorce (also called a pendente lite order) but an appeal of a temporary order is usually not financially feasible because child support and spousal support orders in Family Court can be challenged by means of an “objection.” Make an appointment for a consultation today because, with a thirty-day deadline, you don’t have a moment to waste.
CHILD CUSTODY
The most emotionally fraught issue in divorce is child custody. Decisions involving custody are best made by the parents themselves rather than a judge. It is, by far, preferable for the parents to decide together where the child (or children) will reside, and which parent should have the right to make major decisions about a child’s education, course of medical and psychological treatment and religious education. With the help of an attorney experienced in child custody, parents usually reach an agreement about these issues and avoid the expense and emotional trauma that a custody fight can entail for children and also parents.
But if you cannot reach an agreement, then you need an experienced attorney to represent you in court.
RELOCATION OUTSIDE OF NEW YORK WITH CHILDREN
When a New York custodial parent wants to relocate away from where the family once lived – whether the move is from Brooklyn to London or Chicago, or as close as Westchester or suburban New Jersey, there is a danger that the relocation will profoundly affect the children’s relationship with the parent left behind. Custodial parents are sometimes shocked that they may not simply pick up and leave for a better job or a new partner. And noncustodial parents are also surprised that the Courts sometimes allow the custodial parent to leave New York with the children.
If you are a parent contemplating a relocation away from New York with your children, or if you are worried that your former partner contemplates a relocation, depriving you of regular time with your children, you owe it to yourself to be armed with a professional opinion.
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND ORDERS OF PROTECTION
If you are the victim of abuse, harassment, stalking, violence or threats of violence from your current or former spouse, partner or family member, you can ask for an Order of Protection. Family Court, Criminal Court or Supreme Court are all empowered to grant this kind of relief, but which court you choose will depend upon a variety of factors. Obtaining an Order of Protection is a momentous decision. A court has the power to order your abuser to stay away from your home, your workplace, and away from you in general. It is a huge step that can affect your and your children’s lives for a long time. Applying for an Order of Protection is confusing, not only are there different courts that can grant this relief, but the process is particularly confusing during the Covid situation where so much of the Courts’ work is being conducted “virtually” via computer links. You may very well want to forego representation by an attorney but before you act, you should at least get expert advice. Call or email me to schedule a free half-hour consultation.