Do you want to dissolve your marriage in New York? Is the process taking a toll on your finances and emotions? You should retain legal counsel with a skilled Larchmont divorce lawyer during such trying times. We will protect your legal options while guiding you through the complex process.
Douglas Family Law Group divorce lawyers in Larchmont, NY, provide customized divorce litigation services to New York residents. We understand the situation’s complexity and are prepared to negotiate for a favorable outcome on your behalf.
Don’t hesitate to bring us your case, and rest assured that it is in the safest hands. Our clients get nothing short of the best legal representation, thanks to our years of practical legal experience in divorce and family law matters.
Consult Douglas Family Law Group today if you need legal representation in your embroiling divorce. Call 914-615-9058 to speak with our professional Larchmont attorneys.
What Are the Grounds for Divorce in New York?
New York state law recognizes seven grounds for seeking a divorce. They include:
Irretrievable Breakdown
In order for a New York court to grant a divorce based on irretrievable breakdown, you or your spouse must show that your marriage has been severely damaged for a minimum of six months and that it is impossible to fix. You can only divorce once the court resolves the issue and decides regarding your assets, liabilities, child custody and support, visitation, and spousal support.
Separation Agreement
The court needs to understand you have been living apart as a couple for at least a year after signing a formal Separation Agreement before granting a divorce. In New York, you must sign the document before a notary public. The agreement must adhere to certain legal specifications.
Having a lawyer review the agreement is best because the contract is only valid if you follow those guidelines. The court expects you to abide by all contract terms after signing it.
Abandonment
You must show that your spouse has abandoned you for at least a year. Abandonment means that the partner has abandoned you or forced you to leave without intending to take you back.
Cruel Treatment
The court must understand whether your spouse was cruel and mean to you. If so, it may grant a divorce as your physical or mental health is in danger if you stay together. However, the cruelty must have happened within five years lest the court might decline the application if your partner contests.
Imprisonment
You can get a divorce if your spouse spends three years or more behind bars. However, the court will only grant it if your partner was released from prison less than five years ago. Additionally, the partner must have been imprisoned within your marriage’s span.
Judgment of Separation
The court issues a Judgment of Separation to prevent you and your spouse from cohabitating for at least a year. You must follow its exact instructions. A Judgment of Separation is usually unusual since it requires evidence similar to a divorce. Most people, therefore, prefer divorcing without attending the judgment.
Adultery
A family law court can grant a divorce if you demonstrate that your spouse cheated on you. However, this does not constitute grounds for divorce if you incite your spouse to adultery, pardon them by engaging in sexual activity, or respond to the act by engaging in adultery yourself.
You cannot also obtain a divorce as a result of adultery if you discovered it more than five years ago. You need a witness who can testify if you can’t prove adultery.
What Is an Equitable Division, and How Does it Work?
Under New York’s equitable distribution law, the court will strive to fairly split your property if you and your spouse cannot agree on the division. Equitable distribution aims at dividing the property fairly but not always equally. Courts only consider marital property and not the spouse’s separate property during the distribution.
What Does Contested Divorce Mean?
A contested divorce occurs when a couple disagrees on pertinent issues when dissolving a legal marriage. You can only resolve your grievances as a couple in a New York family law court if you fail to do so in mediation and negotiation.
Call Us to Learn About Your Options During Divorce
Are you experiencing difficulty when pursuing a divorce process in New York? Family law and divorce lawyers at Douglas Family Law Group are with you in these dark moments. We commit ourselves to helping New York residents get the best outcomes in their divorce pursuits. Call us at 914-615-9058 to talk to a professional Larchmont divorce lawyer about your contested divorce in New York.
What Are Spousal Support and Spousal Maintenance?
Maintenance is the money one spouse pays another after a divorce. The funds aim to provide financially for the spouse who has fewer resources. New York courts award maintenance depending on one spouse’s needs and the other’s ability to pay.
If a couple is separated but not officially divorced, the court may order one party to pay spousal support.
How Is Maintenance Determined?
New York courts use different methods to calculate spousal maintenance. The final amount is heavily affected by factors such as child support. If the non-custodial parent is paying spousal and child support, the final amount is determined by subtracting one spouse’s 25% income from the paying spouse’s 25% income. This happens before determining child support payments.
When Can I Stop Paying Maintenance?
Several factors contribute to spousal support reduction or termination. The court can terminate the agreement if your ex-spouse no longer requires financial support. You can also cease paying the support if your ex-partner cohabitates in a marriage-like relationship, remarries, or dies.
Contact Our New York Spousal Support Attorneys
Do you need legal advice from a divorce lawyer when pursuing a divorce involving spousal support? Larchmont, NY, divorce lawyers at Douglas Family Law can provide effective counsel on spousal support during a divorce proceeding and maintenance after the divorce is official.
We will help you determine the fairest amount you should pay or receive. Call 914-615-9058 to learn about your legal options in the divorce case.
What Is an Uncontested Divorce?
An uncontested divorce is a legal marriage dissolution without disagreements on property division, child support and custody, debt allocation, and spousal management. There is no need to contest such issues in court since they don’t exist. The judge finalizes the divorce quickly since there is no hearing.
What Are the Requirements for an Uncontested Divorce?
Uncontested divorces do not require both couples to attend the proceedings. The court recognizes and enforces marriage dissolutions based on a couple’s agreement regarding the desire to divorce, marriage grounds, child custody, visitation, support, maintenance, and property division.
What Are the Differences Between a Contested and Uncontested Divorce?
Spouses typically agree on dissolving a marriage and assets distribution outside the court during an uncontested divorce. On the other hand, contested divorces occur when couples disagree on issues such as child custody, divorce terms, spousal support, etc. In such cases, there is no better way of solving the issue than in a court of law.
Discuss Your Divorce Options With an Experienced Family Law Attorney
Would you like to learn more about whether to pursue an uncontested and contested divorce in New York? Arrange a legal consultation with Douglas Family Law Group. Call our law firm at 914-615-9058 to schedule a legal consultation with our Larchmont, NY, divorce lawyers.
What Does a High Net-Worth Divorce Lawyer Do?
A high-net-worth divorce lawyer helps high-net-worth couples handle their divorces efficiently. The legal specialist understands how to deal with complex financial matters during high net-worth divorces. This protects the assets of the parties affected by the pursuit.
How Do I Know I Need a High Net-Worth Divorce Lawyer?
You need a reputable Larchmont, NY, high-net-worth divorce lawyer when pursuing a divorce in a high-net-worth relationship. Such cases can get ugly due to the complex financial matters that lead to disagreements, especially when inheritance or family heirlooms are involved. You should therefore hire reputable high-net-worth lawyer services if you are considering a divorce in a high-net-worth divorce.
How Can Douglas Family Law Group Help Me With My High Net-Worth Divorce?
A high-net-worth divorce lawyer can help you with many things when navigating the complex high-net-worth divorce process. A Douglas Family Law Group high net-worth divorce lawyer can help to:
Correctly Identify the Assets that Need Protection
High net-worth divorces typically require proper identification of the assets that need protection. You should protect your assets from division if you are a high-net-worth individual involved in a divorce.
Our high net-worth divorce lawyers in Larchmont, NY, can help separate your assets from marital ones for fairer distribution. A high net-worth attorney from our law firm is eagerly waiting to help you in such a situation.
Properly Valuing Assets in High Net-Worth Divorces
The dedicated high-net-worth divorce lawyers at Douglas Family Law will also assist in evaluating all assets eligible for division when divorcing. Determining asset value often requires numerous complex financial calculations, which make it challenging to identify the net value of some assets.
High net-worth divorce cases also involve tedious legal struggles, especially when a partner is dishonest about the true value of some assets. Douglas Family Law Group divorce lawyers are knowledgeable and experienced in properly evaluating assets in high net-worth divorces.
Help You Avoid Making Emotionally-Charged Decisions
Solving high net-worth divorces is challenging, especially when one partner does not want the divorce. The skilled high-net-worth divorce lawyer from Douglas Family Law in Larchmont, New York, will ensure you do not make emotionally-charged decisions during the divorce negotiations.
Do you wish to streamline your decision to avoid making an emotionally-charged decision in your high net-worth divorce? You should then consider retaining legal counsel to guide and assist you in protecting your rights. Douglas Family Law Group will provide the emotional support and guidance to make level-headed decisions in high net-worth divorces.
Let the New York High Net-Worth Divorce Lawyers at Douglas Family Law Group Help
Are you pursuing a high net-worth divorce in Larchmont, NY? Consider seeking the assistance of talented, skilled, and experienced attorneys. Contact our experienced high-net-worth divorce legal team today for guidance through the complex process. Call us at 914-615-9058 to schedule a consultation today.
What Is a Business Valuation Lawyer, and What Do They Do?
Divorces proceedings may involve valuations when you want to dissolve a marriage where one partner owns a business. Courts normally consider ownership during business evaluation, regardless of its size. You need an experienced valuation attorney to estimate the company’s worth.
Our Larchmont, NY, valuation lawyers work closely with other business professionals to calculate the competitive advantage, future earnings, market dynamics, capital structure, and future and current market value of the business. We consult specialists to ensure a proper valuation of the business while helping you get the best deal.
How to Value a Business During Divorce
When valuing a business, our attorneys and valuation specialists refer to various case laws and statutes to understand the values necessary during the process. Our divorce lawyers strive to ensure you receive a fair share of a business during a divorce. We typically use these strategies to evaluate the value of a business:
The Income Approach
The strategy focuses on using the projected future income of a business to determine its potential worth. It uses expected return rates or analyzes a business’ annual income to capitalize on its potential income.
The Assets Approach
This approach analyzes the liabilities and assets of a company as reflected in the ledgers. The final amount is determined after deducting potential adjustments, appreciation, and depreciation influencing the value of the business.
The Market Approach
The method determines the business’s worth by considering its current market value and future earning capacity.
What Types of Information Will Be Looked at to Determine Value?
Our Larchmont, NY, valuation lawyers always uphold the importance of asset ownership, especially in divorce cases. We always strive to ensure that the law honors our client’s interests. We employ reputable company valuators to determine the value of the businesses involved in your divorce case.
Understanding a company’s value will make it easier to determine if it is worth contesting. We consider the following information when analyzing businesses to determine their value.
What The Business Owns
This includes all the business’s tangible and intangible assets. Such assets include inventory, machinery, equipment, trademarks, goodwill, patents, market share, etc.
What The Business Owes
We analyze the responsibilities and liabilities of a business to determine a fair distribution between the parties.
Business Profitability
We compile the company’s expenditures and weigh the information against the returns to determine profitability.
Contact Douglas Family Law Group to Learn More about Business Valuation During Divorce
Understanding the value of your operational marital business if you are involved in a divorce. Douglas Family Law Group divorce lawyers in New York can help determine the value of your company and each spouse’s entitlement after a divorce.
Call our Larchmont, NY attorneys at 914-615-9058 to schedule a legal consultation.
What Is Property Division in New York?
Property division refers to the act of dividing property rights between divorcing spouses. You can agree on property division as a couple through a property settlement or decide it in court through a divorce proceeding. State laws such as marital contributions and community property laws definitions affect the property division process.
New York follows an equitable distribution law, meaning courts only consider and divide property a couple acquired during the marriage. Courts consider financial misconduct, contributions to a partner’s education, and non-monetary contributions when determining property division in divorce cases.
How Do Marital Property Division Attorneys Determine Property Value?
Douglas Family Law Group, marital property division attorneys, understand the importance of determining property value for fair assets’ distribution during a divorce. Our legal specialists will consider these factors to determine property value:
- Real estate owned by each of you
- The payable tax on specific assets
- The number of children involved in the divorce and their requirements
- The ability of the partners to earn enough cash to support themselves
- The effects of the separation on your finances in the future
- The value of your marital company or business
What Is the Process of Dividing the Property?
New York law defines marital property as acquired due to a couple’s investments and labor during the marriage. The property is subject to an equitable division where the court divides it equitably or fairly between the spouses. Here is how New York courts distribute marital property after divorce.
Identifying Debts and Assets
The law requires you to declare and disclose your individually or jointly owned debts and assets. This may include vehicles, artwork, mortgages, retirement and bank accounts, investments, real estate, bonds, annuities, furnishings, pensions, stocks, loans, tax debts, and patents.
Our lawyers will help you identify assets and debts as of the separation date.
Classification of Assets and Debts
Next debts and assets are classified as “separate” or “marital” (subject to division). All assets are assumed to be marital and hence subject to division unless owners prove they are separate, meaning they owned them before getting married. As for debts like credit card loans, they must have a marital purpose to qualify for equitable distribution.
Valuation
After setting aside the marital property subject to division, courts need to understand its value to determine how to distribute it. Our marital property attorneys can arrange for activities such as a family house or business appraisal if you disagree on their value as a couple.
Property Distribution
The court can now equitably and fairly distribute the property after identifying, classifying, and evaluating marital and divisible assets and debts. The court will strive to divide property in a way that is fair, but that doesn’t always mean a 50/50 split.
Depending on various economic factors, one party can get more than half of the marital property.
Contact an Experienced Marital Property Division Law Firm in Larchmont Today
Are you aware of the various considerations that New York courts make to split assets between divorcing spouses equitably? Some considerations include the party responsible for the divorce, child custody, support, and how much each party owns and owes. You should consult a trusted Larchmont, NY, divorce lawyer from Douglas Family Law Group to protect your interests.
We understand how the legal system operates in New York, especially on matters involving divorce and property division, thanks to our extensive knowledge and experience.
Douglas Family Law Group can help you get the best case outcome if you are concerned about property division issues when divorcing in New York. Call our divorce lawyers in Larchmont, NY, today at 914-615-9058 to schedule a meeting.
