ANNULMENT, SEPARATION, & DIVORCE

Oct 27, 2018

Question #72: Hi. Two years ago, I naively and stupidly married my roommate, here in NYC, so he could get immigration papers. A few weeks later, I moved out of the apartment and I haven’t spoken to him since. The “marriage” was never consummated. I presume he will not want the divorce, and fight it or hide, since as far as I understand, our marriage gives him some sort of legal status in the US. 1) I never went on any immigration interview or filled out any forms. Since I voluntarily entered the marriage with the intent of helping him obtain citizenship, am I liable for fraud? 2) Can I get an annulment? Can I get a divorce? What is the simplest and least expensive recourse? Thank you!!

If you intentionally entered into the marriage solely for the purpose of providing your roommate with immigration status in United States , you would be theoretically subject to a claim of fraud , but it would be hard for the prosecutor to prove that you had intent to defraud. In order to get an annulment […]

Oct 27, 2018

Question #71: Hello, I was curious about how I should separate. I currently am in a lousy situation. I was married, in NY, at 18 without parental consent. I married a non-citizen, who earned citizenship through marriage. The marriage is not working out and I wanted to know the best way to end it. I would like to get an annulment, but can I? and also do I need a lawyer…since both of us decided to be civil and go through this peacefully ( we also have no property together or children, bank accounts, etc. ) Unfortunately I know this will jepordize his citizenship- is there anyway to make that not happen..since we are both students, and I dont want to see him get put in a situation where he needs to flee the country since we are not legally married anymore. Please help! I know nothing about this!

In order to get an annulment in New York the specific grounds are somewhat different from the grounds needed for a divorce. In any case, there are records of annulments in New York , just as there are records of divorce. What is important is that you be able to separate legally and get on […]

Oct 27, 2018

Question #70: DIVORCE: How long does he have to wait to get married? the divorce is being dealt with now. My question was, AFTER a divorce is finalized. How long does someone have to wait to get married?

As soon as the Judgment of Divorce is signed by the Judge and is filed with the County Clerk’s Office, the divorce is final and the parties are free to marry again. Leonard M. Weiner, Esq./Divorce Solutions

Oct 27, 2018

Question #69: SEPARATION: Hello- Great informative site! I have been married for 12 years and am now 40. My wife and I have three kids under the age of 16. My wife and I do not get along at all. We can not agree on anything, even simple things. This has been getting worse over the past few years. We have discussed serperation. I have requested to stay in the home. I enjoy our home and she always complains about it (too big, too old) but she refuses to leave. Since our house is a large 1860 victorian style home, we can have seperate bedrooms. We have not been sleeping together nor had relations in quite sometime. Can I file for a seperation with her still remaining in the house since we are not a “couple”? I live in a small rural town in northern New York State so I need to do my homework first. Thanks for your help. I know ending this marriage will be the best for us and our three children.

One of the benefits of mediating your separation or divorce is that you and your spouse can decide exactly how you wish to separate and where to live. The answer to your question is , yes, you may separate and still live in the same premises. I cannot overemphasize the benefits of mediating your divorce […]

Oct 27, 2018

Question #68: SEPARATION: My wife and myself have been living apart for 4 months now. I would like to help her with some of the bills we had together. We do not have any children or own any property. I offered some help and she came up with an amount that sounds reasonable. She makes more money than me and she is also on my health insurance plan at my job. If I decide on a separation agreement, what determines the amount of money she would get? Can I come up with a durational maintenance amount myself?

Unlike child support, there is no statutory percentage of one’s income that is required for spousal support. The judge will consider the lifestyle of the parties during the marriage, the income of each one of the spouses, and the assets of each one of the spouses in making a determination with regard to spousal support. […]

Oct 27, 2018

Question #67: ANNULMENT I got married on June 30, 2006 in nyc I recently left his mother’s apartment where we were living at due to a lack of communication after 3 months of being married, I tried to fix things between us, but it seems like he doesn’t want to work things out and last time I spoke to him he mentioned annulment since we’ve been married for that short period of time he said he was able to do it without me being there without me even knowing, is this true? You don’t need to be at least notified that you marriage has been annulled? Is there any way I can fight his decision? how do I find out if my marriage has been annulled? Thanks in advance for your help.

He is just trying to scare you. He cannot annul the marriage or divorce you without your being served with a Summons and Complaint. If he tries to do it without notifying you, you can have it reversed. He can sue you for an annulment but it is up to a judge to grant him […]

Oct 27, 2018

Question #66: DIVORCE I came across your web page in attempt to find some articles for my brother about divorce. Although I found sites that can help, they didn’t really answer the critical parts of his case. He had been married for 7 years now and had a beautiful daughter together. He said he felt forced to marry her by her relatives bcoz she got pregnant. He didn’t have any relatives back in the Philippines then since we all migrated here in the US. They separated after a year of marriage amicably since they both agreed they don’t get along. That was for two years until he went into a new relationship (2003). His wife decided to cohabit wt him again since she got low on her career as a dentist. But it also made things ugly with him and his wife who started harassing his current partner. He decided to go here in the US as a tourist and subsequently applied for a working VISA hoping to start a new life. He left his house and properties (fields, pharmacy and apartments) for their use. He worked peacefully here without contact with them for 3 yrs with the same woman (partner) from the Philippines who migrated here 2 yrs after him, but then he learned that his wife and daughter supported by our parents is coming here as immigrants petitioned by the hospital as a nurse (she took nursing to get here). Now he wanted divorce since there is no divorce in the Philippines and it’s hard to prove their marriage null and void. He is also included in the petition as an immigrant (family petition by the agency). Can he file a divorce even if he got married in the Philippines? Will that compromise his status here in the US?

Even though your brother got married in the Philippines he can file for divorce in NY if he is a resident of NY for 2 years or if both parties are living in NY for a minimum of 1 year. I do not see how his commencing divorce proceedings against his wife will impact his […]

Oct 27, 2018

Question #65: ANNULMENT Question: I have been married for six months. Am I still in the legal time frame to get an annulment in New York State?

The time frame is not the determining factor. It is the “grounds” that must be proven to get an annulment. You will need to prove such grounds as underage, bigamy, fraud, etc. If you are living in the NYC metro area, please call me at 212-370-1660 to arrange for a meeting to discuss the matter […]

Oct 27, 2018

Question #64: My spouse and I both live in NY. We want to file for divorce – Do we have to file a legal separation and wait 1 full year? We have no minor children, and no arguments about the division of property. Can he sign a quit-claim form and sell me his share of the property for a $1?

It is a common misconception that one has to wait a year in order to get a divorce in NY. That is only the case if you use the Separation Agreement as the grounds for divorce. There are other grounds that can be used in which you can file for divorce immediately. Yes, he can […]

Oct 27, 2018

Question #63: SEPARATION: Question: My ex and I have been separated and have notarized separation papers in NY State for the past 3 years. We didn’t have anything to split up within the courts nor do we have any children. We just went our separate ways. We were only married less than a year! Her Uncle is a lawyer and he was supposed to file the papers for divorce for us after the 1 year penalty and we have been living completely separate lives for the past 3 years. NOW, her uncle just sent me only her final signed separation papers after all this time (which she did sign 3yrs ago). I was expecting my final divorce papers from him! I thought it was final years ago. I have no contact with her and apparently I need to file these papers on my own. What should I do? Where should I go? Is this process going to be costly? Is she going to have to be involved in the filing? Do I need a lawyer? Please help! This needs to be taken care of ASAP

In order to make sure that the Separation Agreement was prepared properly, I would have to review it to make sure you covered all of the legal requirements , and that you have included the necessary provisions in order to file your divorce papers and be sure that all of these matters will not come […]

LEONARD M.WEINER, ESQ, Ph.D.

Divorcesolutions.com

Divorce Solutions

Question #70: DIVORCE: How long does he have to wait to get married? the divorce is being dealt with now. My question was, AFTER a divorce is finalized. How long does someone have to wait to get married?

Question #65: ANNULMENT Question: I have been married for six months. Am I still in the legal time frame to get an annulment in New York State?

Question #64: My spouse and I both live in NY. We want to file for divorce – Do we have to file a legal separation and wait 1 full year? We have no minor children, and no arguments about the division of property. Can he sign a quit-claim form and sell me his share of the property for a $1?