New York Divorce Report - New York's Divorce and Family Law Blog

Because the client so relies on the experience, knowledge and counsel of his or her divorce attorney, the selection of an attorney can be one of most important decisions the client makes in the initial part of the case.  In a previous post, I wrote that a client should seek an attorney who is practical, creative and pragmatic. The attorney should be capable of being fierce advocate, but also a dealmaker, able and willing to settle the case.    But, how do you find such an attorney? The Blog  Mom Talk offers 5 Tips to Picking a Divorce Attorney to... More

Cases applying New York’s temporary maintenance and counsel fee award laws enacted last year are beginning to trickle in.    The recently decided case of J.H. v. W.H. illustrates how an award of temporary maintenance and child support will lead to a re-distribution of income.   In the case, the husband and the wife had incomes of $107,953 and $11,660, respectively. Application of the temporary maintenance guidelines, resulted in an award of $26,708.26 per year to the wife.     The parties had three children and the wife had physical custody of the children.  After application of the child support guidelines, the husband... More

In a front page article, Binyamin Appelbaum in the New York Times explored the newest trend in divorce-third parties are investing in and funding divorces.  A funding company “invests” in a divorce and advances the litigant money to pay the costs of the divorce.   The litigant repays the loan at the conclusion of the case- generally as a percentage of their “winnings.”  According to Stacey Napp, the founder of one funding company, Balance Point, “Everybody knows somebody where at the end of the day, the divorce was not equitable,” she said. “We want to help those people, the underdog, to make... More

This is an historic week in divorce law in New York.  The recently enacted no fault divorce law becomes effective October 12, 2010.    In addition to no fault divorce, three other divorce laws become effective this week including: 1.   a new procedures for setting awards of temporary maintenance while a divorce is pending; 2.  a procedure for reviewing and modifying child support awards; and 3.    a law making it easier for the less monied spouses to receive an award of attorneys’ fees during the divorce.   Here are the highlights of the new laws: No Fault Divorce             The law creates a... More

When an action for a divorce is commenced, it is often the case that most of the marital assets available for the payment of legal fees are possessed or controlled by one of the spouses, usually the husband. In order to ensure that the parties will have equal access to skilled legal representation, the Domestic Relations Law authorizes awards of interim counsel fees to the nonmonied spouse during the course of the litigation. Because of the importance of such awards to the fundamental fairness of the proceedings, we hold that an application for interim counsel fees by the nonmonied spouse... More

My dialogue with Ben Stevens on the merits of billable hour versus the flat fee in a matrimonial action continues. Let me say at the outset, that I am certainly no fan of the billable hour. For many reasons, I  prefer the flat fee model. The number one reason, it is predictable. With certainty, I can answer the question every client asks, “How much will this matter cost?” When billing on an hourly basis, I can only estimate, giving a meaningless range. As pointed out in The Billable Hour: Are its Days Numbered, a flat fee may work on more... More