New York Divorce Lawyers – Protecting Your Future with Expert Legal Representation
Experienced representation in contested and uncontested divorces across New York City and Long Island.
Divorce changes your finances, your home, and your time with your children all at once. Decisions made in the first few months of a case often shape the outcome years later.
At Mindin & Mindin, P.C., we focus exclusively on New York matrimonial and family law. We appear regularly before judges in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, the Bronx, Nassau, and Suffolk, and we build each strategy around how those courts actually decide cases.
Call or text 888-501-3292 for a Free Consultation.
Getting Divorced in New York: Grounds and Residency
No-Fault Divorce
Most New York divorces now proceed on no-fault grounds. Under Domestic Relations Law § 170(7), either spouse may seek a divorce by stating under oath that the marriage has been irretrievably broken for at least six months. You do not need to prove wrongdoing, and your spouse's disagreement does not stop the case.
There is one important condition. The court cannot sign a judgment of divorce until every economic issue and every custody issue has been either settled by the parties or decided by the judge. That includes property division, maintenance, child support, counsel fees, and parenting time.
New York also recognizes cruel and inhuman treatment, abandonment for one year or more, imprisonment for three or more consecutive years, and adultery. Fault grounds are rarely necessary today, but they can still matter in limited situations.
Spouses who have already separated can convert that separation into a divorce. As of 2026, spouses who have lived apart for six months under a judgment of separation or a signed and acknowledged separation agreement may file for divorce on that basis. The waiting period was previously one year.
Residency Requirements
Under Domestic Relations Law § 230, you can file in New York if any one of the following applies:
Either spouse has lived in New York continuously for at least two years before filing.
Either spouse has lived in New York continuously for one year, and you were married in New York, lived here as a married couple, or the grounds for divorce arose here.
Both spouses live in New York when the case is filed and the grounds for divorce arose here.
If you or your spouse recently moved, or one of you lives in another state or country, see our Interstate Divorce page.
Contested and Uncontested Divorce
A divorce is considered uncontested when both spouses agree on every issue: property, debt, support, and custody. These cases are handled on paper, usually without either spouse appearing in court, and they are the fastest and least expensive way to end a marriage. Learn more on our Uncontested Divorce page.
A divorce is contested when the spouses disagree on even one issue. Contested does not have to mean a trial. Most contested cases settle once both sides have exchanged financial information and understand how a judge is likely to rule. Our goal is to get you to that point efficiently, and to be fully prepared for trial if settlement is not possible.
When a case involves hidden assets, a family business, allegations of abuse, or a spouse who refuses to cooperate, see our High Conflict Divorce page. If you have been served with divorce papers, see Divorce Defense.
How a New York Divorce Moves Through the Courts
Every New York divorce is filed in the Supreme Court of the county where either spouse lives. A contested case typically follows these stages:
Filing and service. The case begins when one spouse files a summons with the County Clerk. The other spouse must then be personally served, generally within 120 days.
Automatic orders. From the moment of filing and service, both spouses are bound by automatic orders. Neither may transfer, hide, or encumber marital assets outside the ordinary course, change beneficiaries on life or health insurance, or run up unreasonable debt without consent or a court order.
Financial disclosure. Each spouse must exchange a sworn Statement of Net Worth, recent tax returns, and supporting financial records. This is the foundation of every support and property decision that follows.
Preliminary conference. Once a Request for Judicial Intervention is filed, the court schedules a preliminary conference. The judge identifies the disputed issues and sets a schedule for discovery.
Temporary relief. While the case is pending, either spouse can ask the court for temporary maintenance, child support, a parenting schedule, exclusive use of the home, or interim counsel fees.
Discovery and evaluations. This stage can include document demands, subpoenas, depositions, business valuations, real estate appraisals, and, in custody cases, a forensic evaluation and the appointment of an attorney for the child.
Settlement or trial. Most cases resolve through a written Stipulation of Settlement. Unresolved issues are decided by the judge after trial.
Judgment of divorce. The final judgment dissolves the marriage and incorporates the settlement or the court's decision on every issue.
Equitable Distribution: Dividing Property and Debt
New York divides marital property equitably, which means fairly, but not necessarily equally. The first and often most contested question is which assets are marital and which are separate.
Marital property generally includes everything either spouse acquired during the marriage, up to the date the divorce was filed, no matter whose name is on the title. Common examples are the marital home, retirement accounts, bank and brokerage accounts, business interests, and stock compensation.
Separate property generally includes:
Property owned before the marriage (that remains clearly traceable)
Inheritances
Gifts from someone other than your spouse
Compensation for personal injuries
Property designated as separate in a valid prenuptial or postnuptial agreement
Income and appreciation on separate property, except to the extent the increase is due to the other spouse's contributions or efforts
A professional license, degree, or career enhancement is not itself divided. The court will, however, consider one spouse's contributions to the other's increased earning capacity when dividing the marital estate.
Once property is classified, the judge weighs a series of statutory factors, including the length of the marriage, each spouse's age and health, income and property at the time of marriage and at filing, contributions as a homemaker or parent, wasteful dissipation of assets, transfers made in anticipation of divorce, and the tax consequences of any division.
How New York courts have applied these rules
The spouse claiming separate property must prove it. In Bloom v Hilpert, 222 AD3d 574 (1st Dept 2023), the husband claimed he bought a property with separate funds. He had no documents to support the claim, and the First Department held that his testimony alone was not enough. The property was treated as marital.
Mixing separate and marital money creates risk. In Palazolo v Palazolo, 200 AD3d 700 (2d Dept 2021), the wife placed inherited stock into an investment account that also held marital assets. Commingled assets are presumed marital, but she was able to trace 1,703 shares back to her inheritance and keep them. The 838 shares she could not trace were split equally.
Separate money put into a marital home can earn a credit. In Jones v Jones, 227 AD3d 967 (2d Dept 2024), the husband owned the house before the marriage and later added his wife to the deed, which made the house marital. The Second Department still awarded him a $50,000 credit, equal to his equity on the wedding date, before splitting the remaining value equally after a 28-year marriage.
Draining accounts before filing can backfire. In Sawas v Elzanaty, 2026 NY Slip Op 04336 (2d Dept 2026), the husband made large withdrawals and transfers between the separation and the filing of the divorce. The court did not believe his explanations and credited the wife with half of the money he had moved.
Business interests are often valued at the filing date. In Wen Wen Sun v Ti Zhou, 243 AD3d 735 (2d Dept 2025), the court valued the husband's interest in an investment firm at $607,000 as of the filing date, rather than its near-trial value of $0. The wife received 35% of that value, based in part on her indirect, unpaid contributions to the marriage.
The practical lesson from these cases is consistent: documentation wins. If you inherited money, owned property before marriage, or run a business, the records you gather early will often decide the outcome.
Spousal Maintenance (Alimony)
New York uses a statutory formula for both temporary maintenance, paid while the case is pending, and post-divorce maintenance. Effective March 1, 2026, the formula applies to the paying spouse's income up to $241,000 per year, up from $228,000.
Courts look past the reported numbers. In Luo v Lee, 2026 NY Slip Op 03023 (2d Dept 2026), the husband reported modest income, but the evidence showed regular gifts from his family and rents from properties he managed. The court imputed an additional $120,000 per year to him, for a total of $156,000, and calculated both maintenance and child support on that figure.
Income above the cap is decided case by case. In Wen Wen Sun v Ti Zhou, 243 AD3d 735 (2d Dept 2025), the court imputed $300,000 in annual income to the husband, well above the cap. After weighing the parties' earning capacities, their marital lifestyle, and the property division, it awarded the wife $4,000 per month for 17 months.
Child Custody and Parenting Time
Every custody decision in New York turns on one question: what arrangement is in the child's best interests. There is no presumption in favor of either parent.
Custody has two parts. Legal custody is the authority to make major decisions about education, health care, and religion. Physical custody determines where the child lives day to day. Either can be joint or sole, and the parent without primary physical custody is typically awarded a parenting schedule.
Judges consider many factors, including:
Which parent has been the primary caretaker
The stability of each home and each parent's work schedule
Each parent's involvement in schooling, medical care, and activities
Each parent's willingness to support the child's relationship with the other parent
Any history of domestic violence, which the court is required to consider
The child's wishes, given more weight as the child gets older
In contested cases the court often appoints an attorney for the child and may order a forensic evaluation by a mental health professional. For more detail, visit our Child Custody and Relocation pages.
How New York courts have applied these rules
The parent who supports the other relationship has an edge. In Matter of Rodney W. v Uchechi C., 2026 NY Slip Op 01150 (1st Dept 2026), the First Department affirmed sole custody to the mother. She had been the primary caretaker, handled the child's schooling, medical appointments, and insurance, and expressed a genuine willingness to support the father's relationship with the child. The father had refused supervised visits and had no contact for more than a year.
Joint custody requires parents who can cooperate. In Matter of Elnour v Elnour, 2026 NY Slip Op 04768 (2d Dept 2026), the Second Department reaffirmed that joint custody is inappropriate when parents are antagonistic and unable to work together. The court credited the mother's testimony about domestic violence and awarded her sole legal and physical custody.
Child Support
New York calculates child support under the Child Support Standards Act. Effective March 1, 2026, the formula applies to the parents' combined income up to $193,000 per year, up from $183,000. A fixed percentage of that combined income is the basic obligation, which the parents share in proportion to their incomes.
For combined income above $193,000, the court decides whether to apply the percentage to some or all of the excess, considering factors such as the family's standard of living and the child's needs. On top of the basic obligation, parents typically share child care, health insurance, unreimbursed medical costs, and in many cases educational expenses.
Child support in New York generally continues until the child turns 21. Existing orders do not change automatically when the cap rises, but either parent may seek a modification after three years or after a change in income of 15% or more. See our Child Support and Post-Divorce Modification pages.
Legal Fees and Financial Disclosure
A spouse who earns significantly less should not be priced out of a fair result. Under Domestic Relations Law § 237, there is a rebuttable presumption that the less-monied spouse is entitled to have the other spouse contribute toward legal fees, both during the case and at its conclusion.
That right comes with obligations. Any spouse asking the court for money, whether support or counsel fees, must file a complete, sworn Statement of Net Worth. Courts take this requirement seriously.
How New York courts have applied these rules
The presumption favors the spouse with fewer resources. In Sawas v Elzanaty, 2026 NY Slip Op 04336 (2d Dept 2026), the husband earned more than $300,000 a year, while the wife had left the workforce to care for their child. The husband could not rebut the presumption, and the Second Department upheld a $65,000 counsel fee award in the wife's favor.
Skipping the paperwork can cost you the request. In Milchin v Milchin, 2025 NY Slip Op 06654 (1st Dept 2025), a father applied for attorney's fees without filing a Statement of Net Worth or anything comparable. The First Department affirmed the denial of his applications.
Prenuptial, Postnuptial, and Separation Agreements
If you and your spouse signed a prenuptial agreement, postnuptial agreement, or separation agreement, it will likely control much of your divorce. New York courts generally enforce these agreements as written, provided they were signed and acknowledged with the proper formalities.
An agreement can be challenged on limited grounds, such as fraud, duress, overreaching, or terms so one-sided that they are unconscionable. Waiting too long to raise a challenge, especially while accepting benefits under the agreement, can forfeit it entirely.
If you are planning a marriage, see our Prenuptial Agreements page.
Domestic Violence and Orders of Protection
If you or your children are in danger, safety comes first. We can seek a temporary order of protection, often on the same day, in either Family Court or Supreme Court. An order can direct the other spouse to stay away, leave the home, and refrain from contact, and it can include temporary custody provisions.
A history of domestic violence must be considered in custody decisions and can affect other parts of the divorce. Visit our Order of Protection page for more information.
Why Clients Choose Mindin & Mindin, P.C.
We focus exclusively on matrimonial and family law. Divorce, custody, support, and agreements are all we do, and we have done it in New York courts for more than a decade.
Direct access to your attorney. You work with the lawyer handling your case, not a rotating team.
Prepared for either path. We negotiate from a position of strength because we prepare every case as if it will go to trial.
Honest assessments. We tell you what the law and the facts support, even when it is not what you hoped to hear.
Coverage across Downstate New York. Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, the Bronx, Westchester, Nassau, and Suffolk.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does a New York divorce take? An uncontested divorce is often finalized within a few months of filing, depending on the county. A contested divorce commonly takes a year or more, depending on the issues and how quickly financial information is exchanged.
Do I have to prove my spouse did something wrong? No. A sworn statement that the marriage has been irretrievably broken for at least six months is enough to establish grounds.
Will everything be split 50/50? Not necessarily. Marital property is divided equitably, based on statutory factors, and separate property is generally not divided at all.
What if my spouse is hiding income or assets? The court is not bound by what a spouse reports. Through subpoenas, depositions, and forensic accounting, hidden income can be uncovered, and the court can impute income based on actual lifestyle and resources.
Should I move out of the house? Speak with a lawyer before you do. Leaving can affect parenting time, temporary support, and possession of the home while the case is pending.
Who pays the legal fees? Each spouse is initially responsible for their own, but the court can order the higher-earning spouse to contribute toward the other's fees.
Talk to a New York Divorce Lawyer Today
The earlier you get advice, the more options you have. A short conversation now can protect your property, your income, and your time with your children.
Call or text 888-501-3292 for a free consultation, or contact us online.
The information on this page is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice for any individual case. Viewing this page does not create an attorney-client relationship. The court decisions described above are summaries of published New York appellate decisions and are not results obtained by this firm. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Attorney advertising.
