Legal Question in Family Law in New York
divorce
my soon to be ex filed for divorce in july of 06 he is on a payment plan so the lawyers have not submitted the paperwork to the courthouse so what i want to know is if it is not filed with the court yet can in get my own lawyer an start my own proceedings and finish this. i don't want to be in limbo but is it within my legal rights to do so.?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: divorce
The short answer is yes, it's within your legal rights.
You can get your own lawyer to speed the process along. The lawyer will not file a new action, but rather, can file the necessary documents for an uncontested divorce (if it's uncontested) and thus relieve your spouse's attorney from spending time on the case.
However, if the matter is a contested divorce, hiring an attorney will help move the process along. But there will be other paperwork and possibly motions involved, which the attorney can assist you with.