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Queens Divorce Statutes

A Queens divorce statutes lawyer will tell you that all of the applicable laws in the state of New York will apply to your divorce, regardless of the county in which you file.

Although the exact location of where you file or the jurisdiction for your divorce may vary based on where you live or the residence in which you and your spouse have lived, divorce statutes apply across the state of New York, meaning that all judges are interpreting issues with the same legal considerations in mind.

There are several different types of laws that will ultimately influence the outcome of your divorce. The applicability of your divorce laws is based on your county residency, waiting period and the length of any state residency requirements. In New York state, you can base your divorce on no-fault or fault grounds and your Queens divorce statutes lawyer will tell you more about which of these applies to you.

A divorce statutes attorney in Queens is your best resource for getting your questions answered in a timely fashion. A divorce statutes attorney in Queens will be highly knowledgeable about all the various laws that will influence the outcome of your case.

Legal Grounds for Divorce

In addition to filing for no-fault divorce based on an irretrievable breakdown of the marriage, you are eligible to pursue fault based grounds in New York if you are able to show at least one of the following causes: adultery, imprisonment, abandonment for a minimum of a year, or inhumane or cruel treatment. Furthermore, there are residency requirements based on New York statutes 170, 171, 202, 230 and 231.

The laws cover many different aspects of ending a marriage in New York, including child custody, child support, spousal support, and distribution of property. Although judges have some discretion on certain issues, the laws provide guidelines for how these concerns should be interpreted and managed during a divorce case. It’s a good idea to be aware of the divorce laws before you file a petition or respond to another spouse’s petition. Your divorce lawyer is recommended in order to ensure you have accurate information about what the laws do and do not say and to help you avoid making an error in your case that could cost you in terms of any of these elements.

The residency requirements mean that if either person has been a resident of the state of New York for two years, or a resident of the state of New York at the commencement of the divorce case, they are eligible to move forward.

Defenses to a divorce filing associated with adultery may include that the offense was forgiven, shown by voluntary cohabitation, if the offense was committed with the plaintiff's knowledge or encouraged by the plaintiff, if the plaintiff is also guilty of adultery, since a defendant can also set up misconduct of the plaintiff as justification. For grounds for abandonment, this must have continued for a minimum of one or more years. Courts use the statutes associated with best interests of child to determine child custody and visitation arrangements. Both parents are responsible for providing financial support to their children, until that child reaches age 18, and this falls under the umbrella of spousal support statutes. Judges have discretion on whether or not to award spousal support or alimony based on the individual circumstances of the case, and property is divided in a manner known as equitable distribution of property. This does not always mean that the property is divided equally but rather what is considered fair with the insight of the judge.


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