New York Divorce Report - New York's Divorce and Family Law Blog

Following up on yesterday’s posting is this article, in today’s New York Post, (in which I was quoted). The floodgates have opened; there will be thousands of same-sex marriages performed in California in the near future. In the aftermath, I anticipate a wave of same sex divorces. At least, one court has already recognized the right of same sex couples to seek a divorce in New York.  In order to avoid the pain of divorce, same-sex marriage couples should be urged to proceed with caution. As pointed out in the Post: Fools rush in, they said, even gay fools. "It's... More

In an environment where every day we are greeted with news about the troubled economy, we are thankful for any sign of economic growth. Today, California began performing same sex marriages which may provide a boost to the local California economy. The New York Times reported that: The potential windfall of same-sex marriage was underscored this week in a study by the Williams Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law, which estimated that over three years, same-sex nuptials would contribute $684 million to the state’s wedding industry and $64 million to the state budget. The... More

Postings in two divorce and family law blogs highlight a growing conflict between the states on how to deal with a parties continuing obligation to pay alimony or maintenance, as it called in New York, if the former spouse enters into a domestic partnership. To frame the issue, what happens if you are obligated to pay maintenance to your ex, but your ex rather than  re-marrying, enters into a domestic partnership? A number of states have enacted civil union or domestic partnership statutes which grant same sex couples some, but not all, of the rights and privileges of marriage. Maintenance... More