Articles Posted in Mediation

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Meditation-Coach-300x200Welcome to the last edition in our series of articles and guides on parenting time and visitation. Through the course of this series, we’ve talked about various factors which might be relevant when you’re making decisions about visitation and parenting time following a divorce.

Although all aspects of divorce can be stressful, choices made about the care of children are often the ones that cause the most complexity for many of my clients. Each parent may believe they are doing what’s best for the child when they ask for specific agreements and orders to be made. However, not all parents will naturally agree with each other about what should happen next.

In this segment of our parenting time bullet point guide, we’re going to be looking at the concept of mindfulness in child custody and parenting time arrangements, and what may happen if you decide to discuss visitation issues during mediation. Continue reading ›

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Closeupfamily-300x200Welcome back to this third installment in our series of Parenting Time bullet point guides. Following on from the other fast-paced guides I’ve produced on this website about divorce and child custody, this particular handbook will cover everything you need to know about visitation rights, and the decisions that need to be made about parenting time for a child’s future.

So far, we’ve addressed topics like parental relationships, same-sex couples, the rights of stepparents and more. Today, we’re going to be examining when it might be appropriate for joint legal custody to be with the parents, and what that means for visitation schedules.

We’ll also be looking at the actions of parent coordinators in the legal landscape, and how they can help with things like making parenting time decisions. Continue reading ›

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All aspects of family law have their challenges to consider.Couple-Counter-300x200

Even amicable divorces that revolve around mediation can be uncomfortable and emotionally draining for the people involved. But issues often become a lot more complex when the focus shifts to the children involved in a divorce between two parents.

We know that parents in New York and various parts of the USA are deemed responsible for caring for the child, both emotionally, and financially, until they reach the age of adulthood. However, when two parents separate, it’s often difficult to determine how each parent should be expected to deliver their fair share of this “support”.

In our Child Support Bullet series, we’re tackling some of the most common issues raised in child support cases. Today, we’ll be looking at unmarried parents, mediation, and child support expectations for non-relative guardians. Continue reading ›

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We’re back for another instalment of this bullet point guide for child support.couple-chairs-300x200

If you’ve been following this blog for some time, you’ll know that I post both full articles, and bullet guides designed to offer support for people considering divorce and family law cases. It can be difficult to know where to start when you’re approaching divorce, but it’s important to ensure that you do consider all of the major issues that might affect you and your family.

In this guide, we’re looking at child support, and the way it’s paid to a custodial parent. This portion of the child support guide will discuss the options parents might have to make decisions through mediation and agreements made outside of court. Continue reading ›

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Couch-Meeting-300x200Welcome back to my series of bullet point guides on divorce litigation. We’re coming to the end of this guide, with more information to come on various aspects of family law in the months ahead. If you’ve been keeping up with this series to this point, you’ll know we’ve been covering some of the most commonly queried parts of divorce litigation, ranging all the way from “what is equitable distribution”, to how decisions are made about maintenance.

This time, we’re going to be looking at the concept of an uncontested divorce, what kind of documents you would need to complete an uncontested divorce, and when you might choose to switch from litigation to mediation or collaborative law. Continue reading ›

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Outsidequarrelcouple-300x200If you’ve been following my blog over the last year or two, you’ll have noticed that I’ve been systematically sorting through various articles I’ve done over the years to bring you an easy-to-follow list of guides on things like divorce mediation, litigation, and beyond.

Right now, I’m discussing divorce litigation, which is one of the most complicated topics for many couples to deal with. Litigation can be a difficult process at the best of times but understanding the basics of how decisions are made, and issues are overcome can help you to move through the process with as little stress as possible.

Today’s bullet points will cover some important ideas in divorce litigation: namely, equitable distribution, and what kind of things might change what a court sees as “fair”. Continue reading ›

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If you’ve been following my blog for a while now, you’ll be familiar with the bullet point series I publish from time toCouplefightphone-300x200 time. These cover everything from child custody lawyer tips, mediation insights, to information about divorce litigation. Today, we’re carrying on with the divorce litigation bullet points, providing an insight into issues like serving summons, and deciding whether divorce is the right choice.

I often find that divorce is a complicated and emotional experience for all parties – no matter how their relationship might be coming into an end. Sometimes, understanding the processes that you need to go through when getting divorced can make the experience a little less stressful and the right choices clearer.

Serving Summons in New York Divorce

As I often remind my clients, while there are certain differences to New York divorces compared to cases in other states, these procedures often follow the same basic steps of most lawsuits. A plaintiff spouse who is filing for the divorce needs to either serve a summons and complaint on the other side together or provide the other spouse (the defendant) with a summons with notice that describes the nature of the lawsuit. Continue reading ›

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Meditation-Coach-300x200Staying together for the kids is often not the choice people make in an unhappy marriage or relationship. For many, the best thing that can be done for both yourself and your little ones, is find a way to move on.  For others it might be continuing to work on the relationship. When the relationship with your children’s other parent doesn’t work, you need to think about how you can move forward without causing excessive discomfort for you and your child.

One common question that you may need to think about is whether it’s better to have the child living equally with you and another child’s parent. Another option could be to limit the amount of time that your child has with the other parent if the other parent might not be suitable for your child. Some parents even need to think about fighting the requests of other parents and making sure that they get adequate parenting time out of the new agreement.  What is the right choice?  What is the best process to use to get agreements or to make court orders?

Addressing Different Perspectives in Child Custody Litigation

Everyone has a different perspective and unique goals with these cases. In one of my first days at law school, my professor said something to our class. This point has stuck with me for over 26 years, and it’s something that resonates more than ever today. He was quoting a legal scholar.  He said that his wish was that he was able to put on everyone else’s glasses and see the world through their eyes.  He meant that true wisdom could come from seeing the world through all perspectives. Continue reading ›

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Video-Call-300x200Even in challenging times, when the courts aren’t operating as normal, our lives continue to progress, with various unique concerns to consider. Throughout New York and Long Island today, there are many people struggling with things like child custody concerns and making decisions about parenting rights. Unfortunately, at the time of the writing of this blog during the coronavirus pandemic, since the courts are closed for new filings right now (except for cases deemed essential and emergency matters), it can feel as though you’re stuck in limbo, unable to make progress.

The good news is that people in search of new solutions for the best interests of both themselves and their children can still get help using a family law and divorce mediator like myself. Mediation has always been a useful mode of alternative dispute resolution for couples who prefer to maintain an amicable relationship with the other parent to their child or spouse in a divorce. However, mediation also has other benefits. For instance, for unmarried couples, it can be a useful way to discuss issues that need to be addressed when ending a serious relationship, particularly for couples with children. For married partners, mediation can also offer a more reasonably priced and quicker way to get the courts to approve an order that’s suitable for both you and your partner, without exposing yourselves to litigation. Continue reading ›

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This blog is the conclusion of my six part bullet point series summarizing my divorce mediation blogs over the years.WhiteTableContract-300x200

Mature couples going through divorce, sometimes referred to as gray or mature divorces often have a different perspective than younger couples. Mediation is a good option for these couples as well, though, some will still opt to litigate. After all, it takes two people willing to sit down and negotiate to be able to engage in alternative dispute resolution. Having an expeditious process, which mediation is the most likely to be, is often a top priority for older divorcees. Having a fair settlement that allows each side to meet their needs going forward is of utmost importance. Like for everyone, these couples are advised of the importance of using review attorneys and speaking with financial and tax professionals to ensure that they will be able to take care of themselves, in the right manner, after the couple separates and divorces. The mediation can focus on budgets and how it is that the transition from one household to two can be accomplished so that everyone is able to move on with the next chapters of their lives. How to handle distribution of retirement assets like IRAs, 401ks, and pensions is particularly important to focus on in divorce mediation for older individuals. What to do with the house, marital debt and perhaps child custody (if there are children under 18), and child support (which the default law in New York is that it lasts until 21 years of age) all are topics that might still apply. Everything needs to be explored.

Notably, social security benefits are not something that can be distributed in divorces. Rather, each person’s entitlement to social security benefits is determined by the federal Social Security laws. But social security benefits might be something that does get discussed in mediation. The benefits are income to the recipients and can be important in determining the proper amount of maintenance or support to be paid from one party to the other and for how long it should last. Likewise, someone’s entitlement to Medicare is something of a matter covered by federal law. This might be worth discussing in order to figure out how long one spouse needs to stay on the health insurance plan of the other. Often a separation agreement might be an option to stay on the spouse’s plan for a period until Medicare would kick in. Divorce is an event that in all or most instances prevents someone from staying on the health insurance plan of the ex-spouse. When Social Security or Medicare kicks in is something that parties can discuss with their divorce mediators in order to figure out how long maintenance should last. Continue reading ›

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