I am a big fan of alternative dispute resolution such as mediation and collaborative law. Lawyers in New York are guided by the Code of Professional Responsibility. When I am in my role as a mediator, however, I am not acting as a lawyer at that time. Although I am…
Separation agreements, pre-nuptial agreements, post-nuptial agreements, and stipulations of settlement may largely contain the same contents, and serve a lot of the same purposes, but vary in the timing that they are made. One purpose is invariably to define the respective rights of each marital partner in the event of…
Every location has different particularities that make handling family law and divorce cases somewhat different from County to County. The Domestic Relations Laws and Family Court Act is the same for everyone in New York, but different rules and procedures might apply from Judge to Judge, courtroom to courtroom, and…
The Long Island contingent of the New York Association of Collaborative Law Professionals has been making a push to start implementing streamlined protocols in order to further save time and expenses to divorcing couples that have chosen to work collaboratively. Collaborative law is an alternative to litigation, but unlike mediation,…
After agreeing upon the terms of a settlement in a divorce mediation, the drafting attorney usually will put together the settlement agreement. It might be in the form of a separation agreement or a stipulation of settlement. Since I am a New York City area, Suffolk County and Nassau County…
Relocations can be discussed and settled upon in child custody cases, mediations and collaborative divorce cases. What happens, however, if the parties (usually parents) do not agree on whether a parent should be allowed? As usual, the best interests of the children are used as the legal standard in New…
A party to a divorce can change their last name back to a prior surname once the divorce is granted. There will be language in the Judgment of Divorce which either specifies the last name that can be resumed or that in general they may start to use whatever their…
Separation agreements or stipulations of settlement that come from divorce mediations or a collaborative divorce case are structured the same as a stipulation of settlement that emanates from a divorce litigation that was eventually settled. The differences between the three methods are in the process by which the agreements are…
Collaborative law is a process where couples, and their lawyers, agree to settle their differences without the courts or threatening to litigate. This is accomplished by everyone signing an agreement to work together in a cooperative or collaborative fashion, to iron out all the details that need to be settled…
Each case is unique, however, I am writing this blog entry to give people a broad outline of how a New York divorce litigation might proceed on Long Island, New York City or the surrounding areas based on what I know and have seen in my practice. A divorce case…