Finally!! It’s No Fault Divorce for New York State

On October 13, 2010, New York finally joined the other 49 states to allow a no-fault divorce.  This means that thankfully, couples no longer have to allege marital misconduct and suffer the emotional trauma it causes, because it is no longer part of the legal landscape.

Prior to October 13, if you wanted a divorce in New York you had two choices:

•  To obtain a “No Fault” divorce a couple would have to live under the terms of a Separation Agreement for a minimum of one year before filing for an uncontested divorce; or
• You had to allege and prove that your spouse was guilty of marital misconduct such as adultery, cruelty or abandonment.

The problem with the first choice was that you had to reach an agreement and if your spouse didn’t want to agree to anything, you could not satisfy the conditions which the law required before granting a “no fault” divorce.  And often one spouse had to accept an unfair settlement in order to get the other spouse to agree.

The second choice wasn’t much better.  If one spouse did not want the divorce, many couples became involved in a protracted legal battle where they exchanged blame for the breakdown of their marriage.  More importantly, even those couples who wanted an immediate and amicable divorce and who agreed on the settlement terms, were compelled to allege “marital fault” if they did not want to wait the required year.

With the new No Fault law, all of this has changed. Now, either spouse may get a divorce by stating that there has been an irretrievable breakdown of the marriage thereby taking the blame out of the equation.   And Mediation is the perfect venue to help a couple look forward and plan their future rather than look back and lay blame for their mistakes!