Why You Need a New York Uncontested divorce Attorney
To complete an uncontested divorce quickly and effectively, you must file the correct paperwork. Our uncontested support attorneys in Manhattan have developed a quick and convenient process to make your divorce more efficient and less costly. Our firm provides every client with personal attention to their case. Since our offices aim to find a timely resolution to your matter, you will have the opportunity to move past a difficult relationship without worrying about how long the uncontested divorce will take, whether you have all the required paperwork and with whom and how you will deal with the Court.
What's an Uncontested Divorce Like In New York?
There are two types of divorce available in New York State: contested and uncontested. A contested divorce means that you and your spouse do not agree on some, most or any part of the divorce. You might be arguing about equitable distribution, child custody, alimony, etc. The Court makes the final decision in a contested divorce after a trial. If your divorce is contested, you must appear in court.
When you and your spouse agree on the terms of the divorce, then you qualify for an uncontested divorce. An uncontested divorce means what it sounds like: both parties agree to the divorce, both parties agree on how to divide their assets, both parties agree on child custody and visitation issues.
Grounds for an Uncontested Divorce in NYC
New York used to have fault-based grounds for divorce, like adultery. In 2010, New York changed the law to allow for the no-fault ground of irretrievable breakdown of the marriage for at least six months before filing for divorce. ‘Irretrievable breakdown of the marriage’ means that you and your spouse no longer wish to be married, and it is not likely that you and your spouse will get back together. (Domestic Relations Law section 170 (7)) As long as you and your spouse have been separated for six or more months, you may ask your Manhattan uncontested support attorney to claim this ground for a no-fault divorce. This is the most common ground used to obtain an uncontested divorce in New York. It is also the least costly approach.
Other grounds for divorce in New York include:
Cruel and Inhuman treatment: The Court will assess whether one spouse abused the other either physically or mentally during the marriage.
Abandonment: One spouse must have abandoned the other for at least a year or more and signal they intend to not return.
Imprisonment: One spouse must have been in prison for three or more years in a row after the marriage began.
Adultery: The spouse must prove that the other committed adultery during the marriage.
Divorce after a legal separation agreement: You may seek a divorce one year after you and your spouse have signed a valid separation agreement and have lived apart for one year.
Divorce after a judgement of separation: You may seek a divorce if the Supreme Court has drafted a judgement of separation and after you and your spouse have lived apart for one year. (Domestic Relations Law section 170)
To file for a divorce in New York, you must also meet the State’s residency requirements, meaning:
Either you or your spouse has been living in New York for at least two years continuously before filing for divorce; or
Either you or your spouse has been living in New York for at least one year continuously before filing for divorce and (1) you got married in New York, or (2) you lived together in New York as a married couple, or (3) the grounds of divorce occurred in New York (Domestic Relations Law section 230).
What's the the Process of an Uncontested Divorce?
In New York, your Uncontested Divorce Lawyer will file your uncontested divorce papers when you and your spouse agree on the following:
Getting the divorce
the grounds of divorce
how you will divide marital property and debt
child custody and visitation
child support
alimony
Our uncontested divorce lawyers in New York offer a step-by-step walk through of the uncontested divorce process:
FREE initial telephone consultation.
We will email you a divorce packet to complete.
Upon receiving the divorce packet, we will prepare a Summons and file it with the County Clerk. The County Clerk, in turn, will provide an index number–which effectively initiates your divorce case.
We will prepare all the required documents and send it to you and your spouse for review.
Upon review, you and your spouse will sign the papers and mail it back to us.
Once we receive your divorce papers, we will file them with the Court.
A judge will review and sign the papers.
How Long does an Uncontested Divorce Take in NYC?
Once the divorce papers are filed with the Court, a judge will review and sign the judgment which can take anywhere between 4 to 12 months depending on the county.