Category Archives: Family Law
When Can Grandparents Be Awarded Child Visitation?
Many grandparents treasure the relationships they maintain with their grandchildren. Sometimes, however, this precious connection can be disrupted. After a divorce, the custodial parent might not want or care to see their ex-spouse’s family, and the non-custodial parent might have a limited visitation schedule with their children, during which they will want to concentrate on […]
What Creates a Contested Divorce, and How Do You Avoid It?
In an uncontested divorce, the spouses settle all financial and parenting issues between themselves and jointly ask the court to dissolve the marriage on no-fault grounds. But when the spouses have significant differences over property division, child custody, visitation rights, child support or spousal support, the court must decide these issues, which makes the divorce […]
Are Children’s Preferences Considered in Custody and Visitation Cases?
In a divorce or separation, it can be difficult to formulate child custody and visitation arrangements that work for everyone in the family. Each parent has their own opinions about what the schedule should be. When the parents can’t agree, a judge must weigh numerous factors to decide on the right arrangement. Since every family […]
Relocating With the Children After Divorce
After a divorce, the parent with primary custody of the children may have a need to relocate to another area for work, family or other reasons. Whether a court will grant a custodial parent’s request to move depends on what is deemed to be in the children’s best interests. One consideration for a court deciding […]
Splitting Business Interests When You Split with Your Spouse
If you own all or part of a business enterprise and you’re getting divorced, your stake in the company may be not be yours to keep. Your spouse may be entitled to an equitable share of your ownership, even if he or she played no part in acquiring or running the business. The key question […]
Enforcing Child Custody and Visitation Rights in New York
Child custody and visitation disputes are common during and after a divorce. Society generally favors having minor children maintain a close relationship with both parents, even when they live in separate households. Unless otherwise ordered by a court, people have a right to see their minor children. However, enforcing those rights can be challenging. In […]
New Law Requires NY Judges to Consider Pets’ “Best Interests” in Deciding on Possession
New York has recently passed a law that greatly affects how household pets are treated in divorce cases. Judges are now required “to consider the best interest of a companion animal” in deciding which of the divorcing spouse takes possession. This is a significant development in New York domestic relations law and might be an […]
How Easing of COVID Rules is Affecting the NY Family Courts
As COVID-19 swept the country, court operations in New York came to a virtual standstill under lockdown orders. In-person trials, conferences and hearings were postponed indefinitely. Despite the innovative use of videoconferencing technology for some proceedings, case dockets swelled as new cases were being filed and older cases were on hold. Now, as schools, restaurants […]
How Does a Spouse’s Wasting of Marital Assets Affect a Divorce?
When it comes to dividing property in a divorce, New York is an equitable distribution state. Most of the assets and debts acquired by either spouse during the marriage are considered marital property and are divided fairly, though not necessarily equally. The judge will take various factors into consideration in making an equitable distribution, such […]
Should You and Your Spouse Have Mirror Wills?
When a married couple plans their estate, they often create identical wills, also known as “mirror wills.” This arrangement makes sense to spouses who want the same things when they pass away. Typically, each spouse leaves all their property to the other or to their children if the other spouse dies first. Mirror wills may […]
