There are many ways to settle a case. Negotiated settlements are not always a zero sum game and don’t always require reading the Art of War. We will try to come up with “win-win” solutions by developing creative and potentially tax advantaged alternatives. Of course, sometimes not everyone can walk away feeling like they have “won”. But in negotiations our goal will be to try to insure you and your spouse or co-parent maintain the best relationship possible for the two of you and for your children. Remember, it’s not always just about how much money you get to keep or have to pay, it’s often about your emotional peace of mind and the well-being of your children.
Together with you, accountants, and financial experts, we develop a thorough understanding of the accounting and valuation issues that are involved in your case and how best and most advantageously to resolve them.
There are many ways to settle a case. Negotiated settlements are not always a zero sum game and don’t always require reading the Art of War. We will try to come up with “win-win” solutions by developing creative and potentially tax advantaged alternatives. Of course, sometimes not everyone can walk away feeling like they have “won”. But in negotiations our goal will be to try to insure you and your spouse or co-parent maintain the best relationship possible for the two of you and for your children. Remember, it’s not always just about how much money you get to keep or have to pay, it’s often about your emotional peace of mind and the well-being of your children.
Together with you, accountants, and financial experts, we develop a thorough understanding of the accounting and valuation issues that are involved in your case and how best and most advantageously to resolve them.
Maintenance (also known as “alimony” in some other states) is the terminology used when one spouse pays the other spouse a certain amount of money at specified intervals for a specified amount of time. Maintenance is not guaranteed under New York State law and is determined based on the specifics of each case. It used to be that maintenance was almost entirely discretionary with the courts. But recently, statutes have been promulgated making both temporary and permanent maintenance more predictable. However, there is still a substantial amount of discretion that is available to judges in making such awards. We can help you use those factors to obtain more maintenance or to limit your obligations. We will provide you with detailed guidance tailored to your case.
There are two aspects of custody: legal and physical (or residential). Legal custody determines who bears the responsibility for making important decisions, such as education, religion, and medical care, for the child. Physical (or residential) custody determines with whom and where the child lives and what the access schedule will be. Legal and physical custody may be awarded to both parents (“joint custody”) or to one parent (“sole custody”).
The court will determine custody for any child under the age of 18 based upon what is in the child’s best interest. There are specific “best interest” guidelines that direct the court’s determination. However, this is also largely a matter of the court’s discretion. Custody issues are of the utmost importance to you, so, naturally, they are to us as well. We understand all of the components of a winning custody strategy because we have a long history of litigating and winning custody cases.
Courts require parents to financially support any child under the age of 21. In a divorce, the Court will determine the child support amount and each parent’s pro rata share of this support amount. As with maintenance, there are statutory formulas that guide courts in awards of child support. However, that statute (the Child Support Standards Act, or “CSSA”) also allows for great flexibility and judicial discretion. With our experience and expertise we are able to help you muster the arguments best suited to your case to optimize the outcome of any child support negotiation or award.
In New York, the Court must divide marital property equitably between the partners. A couple of terms are very important in parsing out the actual law pertaining to equitable distribution. Marital property is any asset (house, brokerage, pension, personal property, etc.) acquired during the marriage, regardless of who is titled as the owner (there are a couple notable exceptions which include gifts from third parties and inheritances). Courts may also review the status of “separate property” that either spouse acquired prior to marriage and during the marriage (under specific definitions of “separate property”) in determining equitable distribution. Equitable is not necessarily “equal.” Equitable is about the “fair” apportionment of marital assets as determined by the court. We will guide you through equitable distribution and your specific financial circumstances. There are often unusual circumstances and legal arguments that will make your case different from other cases. We can identify those factors and employ them to assist you in obtaining a more financially advantageous outcome.
As a general rule, each party is responsible for their own legal fees in divorce or other family law proceedings. But much depends on the parties’ financial circumstances. Courts seek to “level the playing field” when it comes to counsel fees so that neither party has an advantage by virtue of his/her ability to finance the litigation. Therefore, in appropriate circumstances courts will award counsel fees to the less affluent spouse. At the end of the case, in making a final award of fees, courts will look to various factors, including whether a party unnecessarily caused counsel fees to increase by stonewalling and whether a spouse was improvident in rejecting appropriate settlement offers in favor of fruitless and costly litigation. It’s important that your attorney know the difference between zealous and aggressive representation and that which seeks to scorch the earth and is short-sighted. We do. And understanding that difference can make a significant difference in the outcome of your case.
Prenuptial and postnuptial agreements are negotiated between the parties. These legally binding agreements are not governed by the same requirements as most other family law matters. We will represent your interests throughout the negotiations and preparation of the agreement. Prenuptial agreements are geared to protect assets of one or both parties or to determine issues such as maintenance and distribution of marital property prior to the marriage to avoid disputes should there be a divorce in the future. A postnuptial agreement often arises when parties are having difficulties in the marriage but do not want to divorce. They may chart out a plan to divide assets, set support or even agree on custody if there are children in the event of a divorce.
A separation or settlement agreement is a legally binding contract between spouses that details very specific terms of their separation and, usually, divorce. This includes how the parties will divide their assets, and provisions for custody, child support and maintenance. Given the comprehensive and lasting nature of a separation agreement (as well as a prenuptial and postnuptial agreement) it is often the most important document one ever signs. Before entering into such a contract you will want to be sure you have had the best legal representation available. That’s where we come in.