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

In view of news reports of the hopeful passage by the New York legislature of a “no fault” divorce law, I have been repeatedly asked, “what is no fault divorce” and “why is this no fault divorce so important. A no fault divorce essentially allows a couple to dissolve a marriage without assigning fault; typically the parties would only have to allege that the marriage has irretrievably broken down and there is no likelihood of reconciliation. The present law in New York, (the only state that does not have provision for a no fault divorce) requires one of the parties... More

In yet another odd case, a husband who was attacked by his wife with a three foot samurai sword,was not entitled to a divorce based upon his wife’s cruel and inhuman treatment. Although the Court found that the wife would have killed the husband, but for his daughter’s intervention, the Court in the case S.K. v. I.K. found that: . . . at no time did the husband testify that the alleged cruel and inhuman treatment of him by the wife so endangered his physical or mental well being as to render it unsafe or improper for him to cohabit... More

Last week, the New York Times ran a blistering editorial about New York’s antiquated divorce law. New York remains the only state in the nation that does not have a no-fault or an irreconcilable differences grounds for divorce. In New York, someone seeking a divorce has to prove that their spouse is guilty of marital fault, that is their spouse committed adultery, treated them in a way that is cruel and inhuman, abandoned them or has been imprisoned. A divorce is also available if the parties have been legally separated for one year. The absence of a no fault divorce... More

Because New York remains the only state in the country that does not provide for a no-fault divorce, creative lawyers have been forced to “push the envelope” to develop theories using the statutorily recognized grounds of divorce-abandonment, adultery, cruel and inhuman treatment, imprisonment, and constructive abandonment. In one recent case, the wife alleged that she had been “socially abandoned” by her husband. In Davis v. Davis, the wife of 41 years claimed that her husband: . . .refused to engage in social interaction with the wife by refusing to celebrate with her or acknowledge Valentine's Day, Christmas, Thanksgiving, and the... More