Matrimonial & Divorce
Divorce
Uncontested Divorce - In New York City, this typically take 2-4 months, depending on whether there are children involved. The simplest uncontested divorce is where the parties simply want a divorce decree from the court, and adjudication as to the custody and support of the children involved. If ancillary issues are involved, such as where property need to be divided and where the custodial arrangement is complex, an agreement may be submitted along with the divorce documents.
Contested Divorce - is the procedure for people seeking a divorce where the parties do not agree on all the terms of the divorce. The disagreements are usually over property division, spousal alimony, child custody and visitation, and child support. There is no set time as to how long contested divorces take, as each case is different.
Default Divorce - refers to the situation where after a spouse (the Plaintiff) initiates the proceeding, and where the other spouse (the Defendant) has been duly served with the process, the Defendant fails to respond or appear within the legally permissible time period.
Divorce by Separation Agreementa. In New York, legal separation requires a court decree, or the parties must execute a formal written separation agreement, and file it to court, before the legal separation takes effect.
Divorce by Publication - refers to the situation where one spouse initiates a divorce but is unable to find the other spouse for service of process. After conducting all the due diligence searches for the Defendant Spouse, the Plaintiff Spouse applies to the Court for permission to serve the Defendant Spouse by publication. Upon the Court’s grant of the permission to serve process by publication, the Plaintiff Spouse may proceed with her divorce proceedings, usually in the form of a default divorce, if the Defendant Spouses never appears after the service of process by publication.
Separation Agreement
In New York, legal separation requires a court decree, or the parties must execute a formal written separation agreement, and file it to court, before the legal separation takes effect.
Prenuptial Agreement
After a couple gets married, there are legal consequences to the marriage, the most important of which include the creation of marital property, and the right for a spouse to inherit a deceased spouse's estate. The primary goal of prenuptial agreements is to alter these spousal rights based on the parties' actual intent, and to determine how issues such as property division and alimony would be handled in the event of divorce, so as to reduce the necessity of costly divorce litigation.
Procedurally, usually the unwed couple first discuss the issues and come up with a set of terms. Then one party，through an attorney, proposes a draft. The other party may choose to hire an attorney to review the proposed draft, and make counterproposals. When both parties are fully satisfied with the agreement, the agreement is executed.
Postnuptial Agreement
|
