Nassau County Equitable Distribution Lawyer

Nassau County equitable distribution lawyer Stephen Bilkis has devoted nearly 30 years to handling divorce, property division, and other matrimonial cases in New York, and he serves as the head of Stephen Bilkis & Associates. The firm has handled  hundreds of  equitable distribution cases, and its attorneys together have more than 300 years of legal experience.

When you are going through a divorce, questions about property and money can feel overwhelming. You may be anxious about whether you will be able to keep your house, how the retirement savings you have accumulated will be split, what will happen to a business you operate, or whether you will be stuck with debts you think your spouse should pay. You may also suspect that your spouse has shifted money around, lowballed the value of property, or held back information about accounts. We begin by learning how you and your spouse built your household finances, what you own and owe, and which assets you most need to hold onto after the divorce.

Every Nassau County family’s finances look a little different. Some couples have a home, a few bank accounts, and pensions or retirement plans from school districts, police departments, or private employers. Others own small businesses, professional practices, waterfront or rental properties, investment accounts, college savings plans, or assets that have been mingled with marital money over many years. We identify what each spouse owns and owes, evaluate which assets are marital and which may be separate, and explore the valuation and ownership questions that could affect how the marital estate is divided.

As you evaluate which firm to hire, the recognition an attorney has received from others in the profession can offer useful perspective. Stephen Bilkis has been honored by respected legal organizations over the course of his career, including selection to the New York Super Lawyers list, which is reserved for the top 5% of attorneys in the state. He has also earned an Excellent rating from Avvo, been recognized as a Top-Rated Lawyer by Justia, and received recognition from Expertise.com and TopLawyer.com.

How Nassau County Courts Handle Equitable Distribution

It is common to assume that a divorce ends with everything cut neatly in half, and many spouses are surprised when they learn how New York courts actually divide property. Stephen Bilkis helps clients understand those rules from the beginning of the case, so they can approach settlement and trial with a realistic view of what is at stake. Before negotiations begin, we work to define what a fair division looks like based on the facts and the evidence.

New York divides marital property through equitable distribution under Domestic Relations Law § 236(B), a system that aims for a fair result, which may or may not be an equal one. Nassau County spouses are free to negotiate their own division, but if they cannot agree, a judge will decide after considering the factors listed in the statute. In Nassau County, contested divorces are heard at the Matrimonial Center of the Supreme Court, located at 101 County Seat Drive, Mineola, NY 11501, a dedicated courthouse that houses all of the county’s matrimonial parts, with courtrooms for six justices along with hearing rooms for Judicial Hearing Officers and Special Referees who handle matrimonial matters. The Nassau County equitable distribution lawyers at Stephen Bilkis & Associates prepare every case as if it will go to trial, which gives our clients greater bargaining power at the settlement table.

The Matrimonial Center follows uniform part rules in addition to the statewide rules, and several of them affect how a case moves forward:

• Starting the case: A request for a preliminary conference must be filed with proof that the request for judicial intervention was served on the other side, and the court then sets the conference date by order.
• Preparing the conference order: The spouses must complete the preliminary conference order and send it to the court before the scheduled conference.
• Limited postponements: Adjournments of the preliminary conference are generally not granted without the court’s approval.
• Required attendance: Both the lawyers and the spouses themselves are expected to appear at every conference, whether it is held in person or virtually.

We handle these requirements from the start, so our clients can focus on the decisions that matter most to their future rather than on procedural details.

What Counts as Marital Property in a Nassau County Divorce

The uncertainty of not knowing which of your assets your spouse can claim a share of can make it hard to think clearly about anything else, especially when you are trying to plan where you and your children will land after the divorce. Stephen Bilkis & Associates helps clients prove which assets are marital and which are separate, and the firm pushes back against efforts to reclassify separate property as marital. We trace the path of each significant asset, including when it was acquired, what funds were used to buy it, and whether marital money was later mixed in.

Marital property usually includes income earned during the marriage, property purchased with that income, and retirement benefits earned during the marriage, no matter whose name is on the title. Separate property usually includes property owned before the marriage, inheritances, gifts from someone other than a spouse, the part of a personal injury award that compensates for pain and suffering, and property that a valid prenuptial or postnuptial agreement designates as separate.

Separate property does not always remain protected. Commingling it with marital funds can cause it to lose its separate status, and an increase in its value may become partly marital if it came from the other spouse’s contributions or efforts. Stephen Bilkis and his team examine bank records, closing documents, and account statements to trace separate funds and protect them for the client.

Parents frequently ask us what will happen to the 529 college savings accounts they opened for their children. A 529 account funded with marital money is generally considered marital property. In practice, however, many divorcing parents agree to keep the account dedicated to the children’s education and use their settlement agreement to decide who will control it and how withdrawals will be made.

How New York Courts Divide Property in a Nassau County Divorce

The court’s decision on how to divide your property can shape where you live, when you are able to retire, and how financially secure you will be for years to come. Stephen Bilkis presents the facts of each case in a way that shows the court why his client’s proposed division is the fair one. We zero in on the statutory factors that most strongly support the client and develop the evidence to back them up.

New York courts consider each spouse’s income and property at the time of the marriage and when the divorce was filed, the length of the marriage, each spouse’s age and health, and whether a custodial parent needs to live in the marital home. Courts also weigh the loss of inheritance rights, pension rights, and health insurance that results from the divorce, any maintenance award, the contributions of a spouse who cared for the home and children while the other built a career, the liquidity of the property, each spouse’s likely future financial circumstances, tax consequences, wasteful dissipation, transfers made in anticipation of divorce, domestic violence, and any other factor the court finds just and proper.

Our experienced Nassau County equitable distribution lawyers collect testimony and documentation that give the court a full account of each spouse’s contributions, including the work of running a household that never appeared on a pay stub.

Dividing Marital Debt in a Nassau County Divorce

Imagine finally signing your divorce papers, only to open a statement months later and learn you are on the hook for a loan your spouse took out without telling you. Stephen Bilkis & Associates helps Nassau County clients sort out which spouse should carry mortgages, home equity lines, credit cards, auto loans, business obligations, and unpaid taxes. Our attorneys examine the history behind every balance, looking at when the money was borrowed, where it went, and whether the household actually benefited from it.

Debts incurred during the marriage for marital purposes are generally divided along with marital assets, while a debt that one spouse took on for purely personal reasons may be assigned to that spouse. A divorce judgment does not change a creditor’s rights, so if your name remains on a joint account and your former spouse stops paying, the creditor can still pursue you. The Nassau County equitable distribution lawyers at our firm negotiate terms requiring refinancing, payoff, or indemnification to protect clients if a former spouse defaults.

Dividing a Business or Professional Practice in a Nassau County Divorce

If you have spent years building a business, the idea of your spouse taking part of it can feel like losing something you created through your own hard work. Stephen Bilkis represents business owners and their spouses in cases involving closely held companies, family-run businesses, medical and dental practices, law and accounting firms, and other professional interests. We involve qualified valuation experts at an early stage so that the value presented to the court is supported by solid financial analysis rather than speculation.

The portion of a business that was acquired or grew during the marriage is generally subject to equitable distribution. Determining its value may require reviewing tax returns, profit and loss statements, the owner’s compensation, and personal expenses run through the business.

Under a 2016 change to New York law, the enhanced earning capacity from a professional license or degree is no longer treated as marital property, although a court may still consider a spouse’s direct or indirect contributions to the other spouse’s education or career. We look for ways to divide a business’s value while keeping it intact, such as offsetting it against other assets or arranging payments over time.

Dividing Pensions and Retirement Accounts in a Nassau County Divorce

Retirement savings are often the most valuable asset a couple owns, and dividing them the wrong way can cost thousands of dollars or trigger unexpected taxes and penalties. Stephen Bilkis & Associates handles the division of 401(k) and 403(b) plans, IRAs, government and union pensions, deferred compensation, and stock options. For each account, we separate the portion earned during the marriage from what was earned before the marriage or after the divorce began, so that only the marital share is divided.

Retirement benefits earned during the marriage are generally marital property even if the account is held in one spouse’s name. Many Nassau County families depend on pensions earned through teaching, law enforcement, or other public service, and these pensions are often divided by a formula that gives the non-employee spouse a share of the benefits earned during the marriage. Many plans can only be divided through a qualified domestic relations order that the plan administrator must approve, and a Nassau County equitable distribution lawyer at our firm can make sure these orders are drafted correctly and submitted promptly, since a mistake or delay can lead to lost benefits.

Here is one way we might approach a case that combines two public pensions. Imagine a couple married for 18 years in which one spouse has been a Nassau County police officer for 22 years and the other has taught in a local school district for 15. We would start by obtaining each spouse’s pension statements and service history, determine how much of each pension was earned during the marriage, and work with an actuary to compare their values. Depending on the numbers, we might negotiate for each spouse to keep their own pension with a payment or other asset making up the difference, or divide both pensions through court orders, choosing whichever approach best protects our client’s retirement.

Another question we often hear when pensions are at stake is whether a spouse will receive part of the other’s Social Security benefits. The answer is no, because Social Security benefits are governed by federal law and are not divided through equitable distribution. However, if your marriage lasted at least 10 years, your former spouse may be eligible to collect benefits based on your work record once they reach retirement age, and doing so does not reduce your own benefits.

Dividing the Marital Home in a Nassau County Divorce

Leaving the house where you raised your children can be one of the hardest parts of ending a marriage, and in Nassau County, that house is often the couple’s most valuable asset. Stephen Bilkis represents spouses who want to keep the marital home and spouses who want to be fairly compensated for their share of it. We take an honest look at whether keeping the home is affordable, considering the mortgage, Nassau County property taxes, insurance, maintenance, and the client’s income after the divorce.

A court may award the home to one spouse and offset its value with other assets, order it sold and the proceeds divided, or allow a parent with custody of the children to remain there for a period of time so the children can stay in their school district. If one spouse owned the home before the marriage, the other spouse may still have a claim to part of any increase in value that resulted from marital contributions such as mortgage payments or renovations. The firm obtains appraisals and payment records so that each spouse’s share of the equity is calculated accurately.

These questions often carry high stakes in Nassau County, where according to the New York State Department of Health, about three in ten of the 2,085 divorces granted in 2022 ended marriages of 20 years or longer. After that many years, a family home may have substantial equity built up through decades of mortgage payments and rising property values, and with years of experience handling hundreds of equitable distribution cases in New York, we know how to make sure that equity is valued and divided fairly.

Hidden Assets and Dissipation of Marital Funds in a Nassau County Divorce

Feeling that your spouse is hiding money, underreporting income, or spending marital funds to leave you with less can make the entire divorce feel unfair. Stephen Bilkis and his team represent clients whose spouses have concealed assets, moved property into the names of relatives or friends, or wasted marital money on gambling, affairs, or other personal spending. We track the money through the records rather than accepting the other spouse’s version of events.

When a divorce action is commenced, automatic orders go into effect that generally prevent each spouse from transferring, hiding, or wasting marital property while the case is pending, becoming binding on the spouse who files at the time of filing and on the other spouse upon service. Each spouse must also file a sworn statement of net worth disclosing income, assets, and debts. When assets may be concealed, the firm analyzes tax returns, bank and brokerage statements, credit card records, and business documents and, when necessary, uses discovery, subpoenas, and forensic accountants to find and value them. If a spouse has hidden or wasted marital property, the court can take that into account and award the other spouse a larger share of what remains.

Some clients come to us after their divorce is already final, asking what they can do if they discover their former spouse hid assets. You may still have options. If your spouse failed to disclose assets or misrepresented their finances, you may be able to ask the court to divide the undisclosed property or to set aside all or part of a settlement agreement on the grounds of fraud, but acting promptly is important, because the time to bring these claims is limited.

Enforcing an Equitable Distribution Award in Nassau County

After working through a long negotiation or trial, it is maddening when your former spouse refuses to sign a deed, transfer an account, or make a payment the judgment requires. Stephen Bilkis & Associates represents clients who need to enforce equitable distribution awards and settlement agreements after their divorce is final. Our experienced Nassau County equitable distribution lawyers move quickly, because the longer a former spouse is allowed to delay, the greater the chance that assets will be spent, sold, or moved.

The court has several ways to enforce a property division, including money judgments, orders directing the transfer of property, and contempt proceedings. When a retirement account or pension was supposed to be divided, the solution may simply be obtaining the required court order and submitting it to the plan administrator. We review the judgment, identify which obligations have not been met, and pursue the remedy most likely to deliver what the client was awarded.

Request a Free, No-Obligation Consultation with Stephen Bilkis & Associates

If you are in the middle of a divorce and are worried about how your property and debts will be divided, contact an experienced Nassau County equitable distribution lawyer at Stephen Bilkis & Associates today for a free consultation at 800.696.9529. When you call, you can tell us about your marriage, the property and debts at issue, whether a court date or order is already pending, and what you hope to accomplish. We will discuss your situation and identify the next steps that may be available. Early action matters, because gathering financial records, appraisals, and account histories takes time, and having them in hand before key decisions are made can make a meaningful difference in the outcome.

Clients who reach out to Stephen Bilkis & Associates are choosing a firm whose leader has earned recognition from respected organizations throughout the legal profession. Stephen Bilkis has been selected to the New York Super Lawyers list, which recognizes the top 5% of attorneys in the state. He is also rated Excellent by Avvo and has been recognized as a Top-Rated Lawyer by Justia, as well as by Expertise.com and TopLawyer.com. Stephen Bilkis & Associates represents clients throughout Nassau County, from Hempstead and Garden City to Great Neck and Massapequa, as well as in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, Staten Island, Suffolk County, Westchester County, and other communities in the New York area.