New York Family Laws

Index number filing fee for divorce in New York Supreme Court. Fee waivers are available for qualifying low-income filers.

Tiered requirements: if both parties are NY residents at filing, no minimum period. If married in NY or lived in NY as married couple, 1 year. Otherwise, 2 years of continuous residency.

New York's no-fault ground requires the relationship to have been irretrievably broken for at least 6 months, and all economic issues must be resolved before judgment is granted.

Courts determine custody solely based on the best interests of the child. No prima facie right to custody for either parent. Factors include the quality of the home environment, parenting skills, mental and physical health, history of domestic violence, and the child's wishes (if of sufficient age).

Marital property is equitably distributed (not necessarily 50/50). Courts consider income and property at marriage and divorce, duration of marriage, age and health, custodial parent needs, loss of pension/inheritance rights, contributions as homemaker, wasteful dissipation of assets, and tax consequences.

New York uses a formula-based calculation with an income cap (currently $228,000 for payee). Duration guidelines based on marriage length: 0–15 years = 15–30% of marriage length, 15–20 years = 30–40%, 20+ years = 35–50%.

Child support is a percentage of combined parental income: 17% for 1 child, 25% for 2, 29% for 3, 31% for 4, 35%+ for 5 or more. Applied to combined income up to a statutory cap (currently $163,000). Above the cap, the court has discretion.

Orders of protection last up to 2 years (general cases) or a minimum of 5 years (domestic violence cases). May include stay-away orders, exclusive possession of residence, no contact provisions, and firearms surrender.