Legal Question in Family Law in New York

Re: legal seperations

Legal separation is _one_ of the routes available for divorce in NYState. It is the nearest thing to a "no fault" divorce that is available in NYState.

Put otherwise, unless the legal separation "mode" is used, a divorce can only be obtained by a lawsuit alleging one or more grounds {such as adultery, fraud, abandonment, cruel & inhuman treatment}.

The "separation" becomes legal by way of a formal Separation Agreement - - this document is designed to spell out and specify the "terms and conditions" under which the parties will live separate and apart - - most significantly, this document details how the marital assets will be divided.

The parties must live 'separate and apart' under the terms of a Separation Agreement for a period in excess of one [1] year {i.e., one year + one day}.

Once that condition is met, another set of papers is drawn and filed with the Court, this set being the formal paperwork asking the Court to grant a divorce, based upon the Separation Agreement & the passage of the necessary amount of time.

A couple can obtain a divorce in less than the one year time frame of the legal separation, but it means filing a lawsuit seeking divorce based on sworn-to allegations of some "fault" {e.g., adultery; cruel & inhuman treatment, etc.}. If the "alleged wrong-doer" consents to the divorce, it can be completed within a matter of a few months {depending on where you're located}.

Regards, etc.,

J. M. Hayes

>>--> The foregoing amounts to musings and observations based on some years familiarity with the 'day-to-day' operation of the law with regard to the issues involved In The Most General sense; my remarks should not be thought of as "legal advice and counsel" in the formal sense of that phrase, since there is, in fact, no 'attorney / client' relationship existing between us. <-<<

Re: legal seperations

You can file for an uncontested divorce now.

It is not necessary to first be separated for a year.