New York Legal Separation Lawyer

What is a separation agreement?

A separation agreement is a detailed contract between you and your spouse that outlines the issue of living separately from one another although you remain legally wed. Issues of finance, visitation and other marital circumstances may also be established in the conditions of a separation agreement, and the court will incorporate these into the final judgment of divorce, should that be the route you ultimately decide to take.

With the experienced help of a professional from our firm, you can tailor your separation agreement to include matters such as spousal support (or alimony), child custody specifications and the division of debts and property acquired during the marriage.

The agreement is made and used for the specific purpose of allowing you and your spouse to live separately, having divided up the respective rights and duties of the household. If you or your partner fail to comply with the pre-determined agreements stipulated in the legal documentation of your separation, the agreement can be enforced by the courts. If you later divorce, the court will use your separation agreement to settle all the issues in dissolution of your marriage. New York State laws allow for no fault divorce if the marital relationship is irretrievably broken for six months or if spouses have lived separately and apart for one year or more.

New York City Lawyer for Separation Agreements

There are many reasons that couples choose legal separation. Sometimes due to religious or financial reasons it is as an alternative to divorce. Other times, a legal separation is done before a couple can file a no fault divorce in the state of New York. Regardless of your reasons, a New York City divorce attorney can provide you with solutions to the issues you could encounter upon going through the divorce process. We provide legal services in many areas of family and divorce law, including separation, and our professional services extend to clients in all five boroughs of New York City. Our strengths lie in our ability to listen and to help you navigate the state's family and divorce court system.

Divorce lawyers at our firm work confidentially with clients to draft and review legal separation agreements. Once our clients' goals are written down exactly as they intend for them to be, we file the documents with the clerk of the New York county in which one or both of the spouses currently lives.

Separation can serve as an alternative to divorce or a step in the direction of terminating a marriage. Either way, it is best to contact a Manhattan divorce lawyer to help guide you through the process.