REQUIREMENTS OF DIVORCE

Oct 29, 2018

Question #107: My spouse and i have been living apart for over a year. she has moved out of state. i served her with a summons and complaint and the time period that she had to respond has passed. she and her attorney are simply ignoring the deadline. what happens now? am i stuck waiting or do i have recourse if she just ignores the summons? how long do i have to wait to take the next step and what would the next step be?

I cannot overemphasize the need to use experienced matrimonial counsel when dealing with divorce or separation matters. Assuming that all of your papers were in order , and your spouse was properly served, and the time has elapsed for her to answer, you can make a motion for a default judgment. Divorce and separation are […]

Oct 29, 2018

Question #95: My boyfriend and I have been together for 2.5 years, his ” wife ” filed and he signed, seven years ago, seperation papers, there have never been any problems between them there children are taken care of, what has to be done to finalize this, it is mutual. Since she filed does she have to initiate the rest of the proceedings ar can he. Sh had the lawyer.

Assuming that the Separation Agreement was done properly, your boyfriend can file without waiting any longer. The preparation of the Divorce Papers should be done by an experienced attorney to make sure that it is properly prepared. These matters are too important to leave to self-help and mistakes may come back to haunt you many […]

Oct 29, 2018

Question #84: My question is I live in New York State. I have been married for 2 years. My husband wants a separation but I am thinking about a divorce. Do I have to be separated a certain amount of time before I file for divorce? If so how long must I wait? Can I just file now?

If both are you are in agreement, I can help you so that you will not have to wait and may file for both the separation and divorce immediately. If you are located in the New York City metropolitan area, please call me at 212-370-1660 to arrange for a meeting between us to discuss the […]

Oct 29, 2018

Question #82: I live in the NYC area and have been married for 2 years. My wife and I separated to take time out and decide if we wanted to divorce. She originally left with the intent to divorce but I did not want to. It has been 3 months already and she has confessed to sleeping with someone else. I now want to file for divorce on grounds of adultery but she claims I cannot because we were separated. Do I have the right to file on grounds of adultery although we were separated for 3 months?

Unless you entered into a formal Separation Agreement or were separated by order of the court, having simply separated informally and gone on your way is not a legal separation and you are considered legally married. Therefore, if either of you had sexual relations during this period , the grounds of adultery would be applicable. […]

Oct 29, 2018

Question #63: I am a New York City resident. I was married in March of 2001. My husband traveled back to Brazil (He is Brazilian) post September 11th. He went through a period of some emotional and mental instability during this time which was very trying. He went to Brazil post September 11th to gain some support from his family and his mother requested that he “come home”. When he attempted to return to the States he was unable to. We are still on amicable terms however we communicate infrequently. I have begun to see someone else and would like to get an immediate divorce. We do not have any children or own any property together. We had one joint account but that has since been closed. Does he have to be present to begin divorce filings? Am I able to get an anulment?

Your husband does not have to be present to begin the filing process, although we will need his cooperation and agreement to get a mediated divorce. With the limited amount of information you provided, there does not seem to be grounds for annulment. Please call me at 212-370-1660 to discuss the matter at greater length. […]

Oct 29, 2018

Question #62: My friend’s husband has filed for divorce on the grounds of cruel and inhuman treatment. He is going to have the summons delivered within the next day. The fact of the matter is that he is a homosexual and has never had sexual relations to me. She did not learn of his sexual preference until recently. She was trying to make the marriage work since it was arranged. He even kicked her out of the house and cut off all her money. We believe he is doing this so he won’t have to give her much money since he makes a very good living. How long does she have after the summons is delivered? If she avoids the summons can he declare a divorce publicly and it be in effect? She is in New York Metro Area. Please Help.

She has 20 days to answer the summons from the date of receipt. There are many details to the way the summons is served and if it is accompanied with the Complaint or just with a Notice which may change the way in which you must respond. I do not understand what you mean as […]

Oct 29, 2018

Question #56: My husband just served me with a UD-4 form or summons for divorce. He had some one else delivered it. We are getting divorced by mutual agreement. Child support, custody, visitation have been discussed. We were married for 22 years, but he abandoned me 15 years ago. Now, I want to know if I have to appear in court within the first 20 days of receiving this form? What does DRL Section 170 subd. mean? I want to keep his last name because all my paper are under his last name. What do I have to do to keep it? Will I be entitled for alimony money? In the summons, he claimed abandonment of the Plaintiff by the Defendant, What does this mean? How can it affect me? It was not discussed in the agreement.

You must respond in writing with a legal Answer to the Summons and Complaint within the time indicated. You do not have to actually appear before the court. DRL is New York’s Domestic Relations Law. From the balance of the Questions you ask it is apparent that you need to consult with an experienced matrimonial […]

Oct 29, 2018

Question #48: We live in California. My wife has filed for divorce, but has not served me with them yet. Her reason is because of other things going on in our lives right now, (a daughters marriage) we don’t have the time or energy to work out a financial agreement before the 30 day response time is up.1- How long can she hold the papers before serving me?2- I do have 30 days to respond, once I am served, but does a financial agreement and children’s custodial agreement have to be completed and agreed upon in those 30 days too? Or do they just have to be completed and filed before the final papers are signed? Thanks for your time.

Check with the County clerk’s office in the Court in your jurisdiction to find out how much time your wife has to serve the Summons once she has purchased the index number. With regard to the second question, you have to prepare an “Answer” (respond) by agreeing with or denying the allegations made in the […]

Oct 29, 2018

Question #42: Hello. I was hoping you could help. My husband and I married in 1997. We both moved out of our marital home in May 2000. I moved into an apartment and he subsequently moved down the hall from me-despite my feelings/reservations. Unfortunately, we didn’t know that we had to file with New York State in order to obtain a separation (to proceed to divorce). We both have separate apartments, but during our separation, he quit his job and had no income. I basically paid his bills (his mom paid his rent), and I still cover him under my insurance. (Incidentally, we have not been intimate since 1999 due to his sexual preference. He wanted to renew a male relationship because he missed that part of his life-unknown to me).What is our recourse for divorce? Neither of us want to have to go through the one year separation period-we’ve already done this. We have both agreed that divorce is the best option, but unfortunately neither of us has a lot of money. There are no children and/or property. We both have our own 401(K) plans, our own insurance (he is still covered by mine until we legally separate). How long should it take to obtain a divorce? I would just like this nightmare over. I would sincerely appreciate your advice/help.

Although you are separated physically, legally you are still married until you enter into a formal separation agreement. If you are located in the New York City metropolitan area, please call me at 212-370-1660 to discuss the matter in greater length. If both of you are interested in entering into a stipulated agreement you will […]

Oct 29, 2018

Question #41: I’m a 23 year old mother of 2 children and I have been married for 5 years now, Going on 6 in November. My question is … What are the steps involved with filing a divorce or even a separation?

You must reach a settlement with your spouse regarding child custody, child support, spousal support, division of marital assets, etc., have these incorporated into a Separation Agreement and then draft the Divorce documents. I strongly recommend that you consult a divorce mediator-attorney; I do not recommend that you attempt to draft these documents yourself. They […]

LEONARD M.WEINER, ESQ, Ph.D.

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Question #84: My question is I live in New York State. I have been married for 2 years. My husband wants a separation but I am thinking about a divorce. Do I have to be separated a certain amount of time before I file for divorce? If so how long must I wait? Can I just file now?

Question #41: I’m a 23 year old mother of 2 children and I have been married for 5 years now, Going on 6 in November. My question is … What are the steps involved with filing a divorce or even a separation?