Family Law covers an expansive spectrum of legal matters that impact families. This includes cases related to prenuptial agreements, separation and divorce proceedings; civil unions/domestic partnerships; parent-child relationships as well as civil partnerships/domestic partnerships and prenuptial agreements/divorces.
Family court can often take time and an experienced lawyer can speed up this process by effectively navigating the legal system.
Child Custody Determinations
Family law cases involving child custody often center on the best interests of the child, including legal and physical custody as well as visitation rights for noncustodial parents. Child custody decisions in New York should take into account factors like parent-child bonding, stability of home environment and each parent’s ability to care for the child when making these determinations.
Judges can take into account each parent’s lifestyle, stability, mental health issues, drug use and history of domestic violence when making visitation decisions. Furthermore, judges may require psychological evaluations for both parties as well as preconditions to visitation.
These factors may extend the overall duration of a case, particularly if custody disputes involve high levels of conflict and disagreement among parents on what would be in their child’s best interests. Case duration also varies based on how quickly parties cooperate with one another.
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
Alternative Dispute Resolution provides methods of conflict resolution outside of litigation to save time, money, and stress. ADR encompasses negotiation, mediation, conciliation, and arbitration processes as means to achieve these results.
Negotiation is the most popular form of ADR, where disputing parties identify issues, meet, and work to reach an amicable resolution that works for both sides. Mediation utilizes an impartial third-party mediator who listens to both sides before helping them explore options and find common ground through discussion and negotiations. Mediation provides a non-confrontational alternative ideal for cases in which relationships must remain intact.
Courts strongly encourage parties to explore ADR as a form of alternative dispute resolution prior to initiating legal proceedings, with penalties possibly issued if one party refuses to participate. Other types of ADR include neutral fact-finding and private judging processes which can be found on NADRAC publications page.
Divorce
Divorce can be a complex matter and its duration largely depends on a number of variables. For instance, if both spouses can agree on all matters concerning the case within six months it could be resolved quickly.
On the other hand, if you and your spouse cannot agree on matters such as spousal support or asset division, your case could drag on for months to years. Divorces can become further complicated by matters like child custody disputes, domestic violence restraining orders and financial matters such as retirement account appraisals or real estate valuations.
Some states impose mandatory waiting periods or other requirements, such as parental education classes, that can lengthen your divorce. Furthermore, your county and local clerk’s offices can often become extremely busy, which delays processing paperwork.
Prenuptial/Postnuptial Agreements
Many couples who are either engaged to be married, or recently married, look at creating prenuptial and postnuptial agreements as a means of protecting themselves against an eventual divorce by outlining assets and debts, payments for spousal support payments, inheritance rights or any potential rights issues that might arise during this time.
An effective prenup or postnup can reduce conflict during any potential separation or divorce process and give couples greater peace of mind knowing that should their marriage fail, their financial interests will be protected.
Both types of agreements must meet stringent legal criteria in order for them to be enforced, typically including full financial disclosure and no coercion from either partner. Couples considering prenup or postnup agreements should consult a knowledgeable attorney in order to make sure their contract meets all applicable legal standards – otherwise it might be found invalid by courts.
Emancipation
Minors are defined as individuals aged 18 or younger and their parents have the legal responsibility of making decisions regarding their education, healthcare and support needs until emancipation occurs.
Emancipation typically occurs once a child reaches 18 and can prove that they have achieved maturity enough to handle their affairs and make decisions independently. Sometimes however, courts will declare them independent even before this milestone, provided they demonstrate self-sufficiency and maturity.
To request emancipation, an individual must file a petition with the court detailing why they wish to apply for it and why emancipation should take place. Once received by a judge, an evidence review hearing will take place to consider all evidence presented at trial.
