Long Island Family Law Blog

Child support matters may spark confusion in New York

On behalf of Judd & Moss, P.C. posted in Child Custody on Thursday, June 6, 2019.

Going through divorce can understandably be difficult for the entire family, especially from a financial standpoint. A financial aspect of divorce that can be particularly hard for parents to deal with is child support. Let us take a peek at how the family law court addresses child support matters in New York.

As a general rule of thumb, minor children depend on their parents for financial support. This is why both custodial parents and non-custodial parents are required to meet their children's financial needs after divorce. These needs range from food to housing, clothing, health care, transportation and entertainment.

Negotiation may help with obtaining alimony following divorce

On behalf of Judd & Moss, P.C. posted in Divorce on Thursday, May 23, 2019.

When people get divorced in New York, they might understandably be concerned about being able to stay afloat financially going forward. The spouse who was not the primary breadwinner may especially be concerned about this during divorce. Some tips, though, might help the lower-earning spouse to successfully negotiate alimony with his or her spouse.

First, the spouse who wishes to receive alimony payments would be wise to stay calm during the negotiation process. When the discussion appears to heat up, he or she may want to recommend that the two parties revisit at another time after tempers have subsided. Along these lines, the person seeking alimony may want to avoid bringing up the topic when the other party is in a rush, as he or she may be less cooperative in such a situation.

Parents can make divorce, child custody easier for children

On behalf of Judd & Moss, P.C. posted in Child Custody on Thursday, May 9, 2019.

According to research, over 50% of spouses throughout the United States end up breaking up. The divorce process can be emotionally difficult for spouses to deal with, and in the same way, children may have a hard time processing it. However, a couple of tips might help parents who are getting divorced in New York to make the process easier for their children while dealing with such matters as child custody.

First, if possible, parents who are going through divorce may want to avoid pulling their children from the school they have been attending up to the time of the divorce filing. The reason for this is that forcing the children to go to new schools during the divorce can further disrupt their lives at a time when their lives are already being shaken up by the idea of watching their parents divorce. The more consistent things are during the marital dissolution process, the better the children will fare.

Managing divorce while working can prove challenging

On behalf of Judd & Moss, P.C. posted in Divorce on Thursday, April 25, 2019.

Those getting divorced in New York may try to avoid mixing their personal challenges and their working lives. The truth is, though, that keeping these two worlds apart can prove challenging. For instance, an urgent divorce decision may need to be made in the middle of a busy workday. Still, a couple of tips might help divorcing individuals to prevent their breakups from negatively impacting their careers.

For starters, it is expedient to avoid scheduling divorce activities or discussions during work times. This is because concentrating excessively on divorce matters at work may end up hurting an individual's job performance. In the same manner, the stress of a busy workday might cause the individual to make decisions hurriedly, which can have negative outcomes.

Spousal support can be major source of conflict in divorce

On behalf of Judd & Moss, P.C. posted in Divorce on Wednesday, April 10, 2019.

Spousal support is often a major sticking point during the dissolution of a marriage. However, it is often not determined till later on in a couple's divorce proceeding. Here is a glimpse at how spousal support is handled during a divorce proceeding in New York.

Spousal support's aim is to limit the unjust economic impact that one of the spouses may experience following divorce, if he or she did not earn money or earned less income than the other party did. The quantity of spousal support to which a divorcing individual is entitled is based on state law. As a general rule of thumb, the support calculation is made using a few factors, including the need of the recipient's spouse and the payor spouse's capability of paying.

Divorce process involves multiple emotional stages

On behalf of Judd & Moss, P.C. posted in Divorce on Wednesday, March 27, 2019.

When couples in New York get married, they naturally expect to be in it for the long haul. Sometimes, though, marital conflict may drive one or both partners to seek divorce. Fortunately, individuals who are embarking on the divorce process can take steps to reduce their stress levels during this type of family law proceeding.

For starters, it may be helpful for divorcing spouses to acknowledge the emotional stages that come before a marital breakup. The first stage is denial, where an individual may struggle to believe that the marriage is ending. The second stage is anger and shock; this is where a person may blame his or her future ex for the failure of the marriage. The third stage is bargaining, where a divorcing spouse tries to save the union, and the final stage is depression.

Searching for hidden assets a wise move during divorce

On behalf of Judd & Moss, P.C. posted in Divorce on Wednesday, March 13, 2019.

Married couples in New York choose to break up for various reasons. Still, the reason behind many marital breakups is that one spouse loses trust in the other one. In this situation, one spouse could have easily been concealing assets with the hope that the other party would not find them. This is why it is so important for a divorcing individual to verify that each marital asset is uncovered as he or she navigates the divorce process.

Knowing how married individuals frequently conceal their property can help with tracking down such property in a more efficient manner. People often hide assets simply by claiming that they do not have the assets. In some cases, a spouse might transfer a hidden asset to another family member or friend. People who wish to hide assets might also assert that they lost the assets, or they may generate false debt.

Prenuptial agreements can benefit those marrying late in life

On behalf of Judd & Moss, P.C. posted in Divorce on Thursday, February 28, 2019.

When young couples in New York marry, they usually expect their marriages to last decades. As a result, they might not see the need to create prenuptial agreements. However, prenuptial agreements may be particularly important for people to draft if they are marrying -- or remarrying -- near their golden years.

Before getting married in their 50s, for example, two people might want to explain in a prenuptial agreement how they plan to take care of their financial needs during their union. They can also lay out a plan for drawing from their retirement savings. For instance, if one person has more retirement assets, the two individuals might want to rely heavily on these assets and then use the other person's assets to supplement them.

People are likely to go through divorce at certain ages

On behalf of Judd & Moss, P.C. posted in Divorce on Thursday, February 14, 2019.

A number of people in New York get married with the hopes of staying that way. However, the truth is, marriages do not always last due to irreconcilable differences, among other problems. Here is a look at what age many people who are currently married may end up going through divorce.

In a recent study, researchers looked at various marital outcomes for people of different ages in 2017. According to people's answers to questions about how many times they had been married and their current marital statuses, around 10 percent of people who were 30 had already gotten divorced. Meanwhile, the divorce percentage reached a maximum at the age of 63. At this age, the number of people who had been divorced was more than 41 percent.

Divorce mistakes can have financial repercussions

On behalf of Judd & Moss, P.C. posted in Divorce on Thursday, January 31, 2019.

When people in New York decide to get divorced, they may understandably feel overwhelmed by the financial aspect of the process. Unfortunately, making some critical financial mistakes during a divorce proceeding can have long-term repercussions. Here are a couple of the most common errors, along with some tips about how to avoid them.

First, sometimes those going through the divorce process fail to get all of the paperwork needed early on. These documents include Social Security statements that show a spouse's record of earnings as well as his or her anticipated future benefits. Any receipts that document home improvements, along with paperwork showing how much was paid for the marital home and other major assets are also important to collect. It's also smart to gather all financial accounts' numbers as well as their balances.