Save Money on Divorce

Historically, Staten Island divorce attorneys used to concern themselves only with severe cases, involving physical abuse inflicted by one of the spouses upon the other. Divorce was such a rare practice that it took serious reasons to push one of the members of the couple to face the psychological trauma of the procedure, its financial costs, and the associated public ostracism. However, concurrent with the women liberation movement, spouses started to understand more and more that marriage does not have to be a life-long commitment unless it brings happiness to both partners. As a result of this process, divorce attorneys, as well as many of their peers around the United States, found themselves facing an increasing number of divorce cases initiated on the most diverse grounds.

Facing this raise in the number of marriage break-ups and the psychological difficulty of the procedure, Staten Island divorce attorneys and their colleagues began thinking up ways of making the whole process more humane. Apart from advising the couples on how to deal with the legal procedures, how to address the special situation of the children of the broken home, and how to tackle the financial costs, divorce attorneys thought up alternative divorce procedures to the traditional court rulings passed by judges.

The Staten Island attorneys were among the first to understand the inhumanness of leaving the conditions of ending a marriage up to neutral laws and judges and attorneys that are not personally involved in the case. This is not the way to deal with years of affection, mutual cohabitation, homes and children. The divorce attorneys realized the importance of out-of-court settlements, the terms of which would be decided by the members of the divorcing couple together, assisted by their attorneys. Other alternative procedures are the "collaborative" and the "co-operative" divorce, which give the opportunity to the two spouses to work together with both lawyers and jointly build up the case.

Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

Prospective Divorce Lawyers

#1 Question For Prospective Divorce Attorneys

The first question revolves around money. Divorce can be expensive. It's not just the division of assets, it's the cost in working out child support, extras like private detectives

or psychologists, and of course the attorney fees. Therefore, the number one priority in your interview process is to find out how much your divorce will cost.

Most divorce lawyers will be reluctant to give you a total cost of the divorce. However, they should be able to ask you a series of questions to deduce a rough estimate of your divorce costs. They should take into account whether your divorce is amicable, whether you have children, and the grounds for divorce (unless you live in a no fault state like California).

As part of this, you should discuss their fee structure. Do they charge by the day, hour, or minute? Does the cost increase if you go to court? Will they charge for advice on peripherals such as tax implications? What are the standard disbursements? Finding a lawyer who does not charge you every time you make a simple phone call will significantly reduce your stress levels, and the overall cost of their time.

#2 Question For Prospective Divorce Attorneys

The second most important question after money is your divorce attorney's experience. First, determine whether they specialize in divorce law, or simply offer it as part of a number of areas of law. It is better to choose an attorney that is a specialist in divorce law. Additionally, if there are children caught up in the divorce, you should investigate whether your divorce attorneys are qualified in Family Law.

To get a good gauge of their divorce experience, ask them how many divorce cases they have handled that are similar to yours. Look for an honest answer that contains specific details and examples. This way, you can feel comfortable that you will receive the best advice possible on your entitlements.



Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

Deciding What to Do During Divorce

During a divorce there are a plethora of things to decide upon for the two parties involved. A divorce case will not take only one appearance in court to settle the differences between a husband and wife. More than likely a divorce case, if the two parties cannot agree on anything, can take anywhere from two months to a year to complete. A divorce lawyer will help any divorce proceedings progress at a quicker pace and will help their client get the most property and assets from the split as possible.

Some of the things that need to be decided on in a divorce case are child custody, child support, spousal support, property division, debt division, child visitation rights and much more. If the spouses involved in a divorce case can come to an agreement on everything involved in the split then they can obtain an uncontested divorce. An uncontested divorce is when the couple is not on separate pages when it comes to dividing the property, assets, child support, and child custody. If a couple reaches an uncontested divorce then the proceedings will be extremely quick to complete. As with a regular divorce, a divorce lawyer can help a couple obtain an uncontested divorce rather quickly.


Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

Close Your Divorce Case!

Divorce is defined as the dissolution of a marriage in the presence of a court. If the divorce is not certified by the court then it is not considered a legal divorce. Once a couple completes a divorce they are free to marry anyone else of their choosing. Divorce not only affects the man and woman involved in the case but also the extended family and the children from the marriage if there were any. A divorce lawyer can help anyone going through a divorce get through the proceedings without ripping their hair out and becoming increasingly frustrated with the other person involved.


Divorce can be a mentally frustrating process and hiring a lawyer to help get through the process is the best thing to do. Why? A divorce lawyer will help with the filing of forms, requesting property when the division of property takes place, figuring out who gets custody of the children, determining visitation rights, figuring out child support and spousal support, and how the debt of the couple should be divided. A divorce lawyer for a divorce case can make the proceedings much easier to deal with than representing oneself.


The majority of states in the United States require that a spouse be a citizen of that state for at least six months before filing for divorce in that state and proof of residence for that time frame must be presented to the court before filing for divorce. The proof can be a written or oral declaration by someone with knowledge of that person’s residence in the specified state. Sometimes the spouse of another will decide to file for divorce in another state and if this is so the other spouse should file for divorce in their own state immediately in order to avoid travel as much as possible.


Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

Why Does Collaborative Divorce Work?

Why Collaborative Divorce Works So Well

The reasons why collaborative divorce does such a good job of helping most people achieve their own "best divorce" are simple. Collaborative divorce addresses the financial and legal matters that must be resolved in any divorce, but it does so more effectively because it provides the built-in help of three professions, not just one. The design of collaborative divorce -- with its team of professionals, its systematic attention to values, its emphasis on healthy relationships, and its focus on the future -- takes into account the broad spectrum of what really matters to most people when their marriages end. It considers not only the two spouses but those around them who also matter to the divorcing couple and who will be both directly and indirectly affected by a good or a bad divorce: children, families, and even extended families, friends, and colleagues. It applies what we know about marriage and divorce from the realms of psychology, sociology, history, law, communication theory, conflict resolution theory, finance, and other realms in a very practical, useful, and concrete way.

Collaborative Divorce Deals With What People Actually Experience in Divorce

Unlike any other divorce conflict resolution process that has come before, collaborative divorce teams make constant use of vital information about how people are "wired," how we think, how our emotions affect our ability to communicate effectively and to process information, how we experience pain and loss, how we recover from the end of a marriage, what our children are experiencing and what they need in the divorce, and what the needs of each member of the family after the divorce are likely to be. In this way, collaborative divorce offers constructive, comprehensive, multidisciplinary professional support that responds to the actual complexities of divorce as people experience it, rather than imposing an old-fashioned, limited institutional legal point of view as the sole perspective on a complex human experience.


Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

A Good Choice: Collaborative Divorce

We know from long experience that only collaborative divorce -- not old-style adversarial legal representation, and not a single mediator working with or without lawyers in the picture -- views divorce as a complex experience requiring advice and counsel from multiple perspectives if it is to be navigated well. Collaborative divorce prepares you to deal with the emotional challenges and changes associated with divorce and provides the resources that can best help you make a healthy transition from married to single.

Collaborative divorce builds in important protections for children, too. It informs you fully about how your children are experiencing the divorce and what they need to weather the big changes in their family structure without harm. It helps protect your future relationship with your spouse by informing both of you fully -- together, at the same time -- about the financial realities of your marriage and divorce in a way that eliminates pointless arguments about economic issues. It also teaches you and your spouse new ways of problem solving and conflict resolution so that you develop useful skills for addressing your differences more constructively in the future


Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

Legal Grounds for Divorce

There are two different categories for legal grounds for divorce: "Fault" and "No Fault".

What is "No Fault" divorce?

"No Fault" divorce is when the spouse suing for divorce does not have to prove that his or her spouse did something wrong. Every state recognizes the legal grounds for divorce regardless of who is at fault.

To get a No Fault divorce, the suing spouse just simply states a reason recognized by that state. In most cases, it's enough to say that the couple cannot get along, (these go by the names "incompatibility," or "irreconcilable differences").

In many instances however, the couple must live apart for a period of months or even years in order to get a No Fault divorce. One spouse cannot stop a No Fault divorce. Objecting to a spouse's request for divorce is itself an irreconcilable difference that would justify the divorce. There is a 60 day waiting period before the court grants a divorce on the grounds of irreconcilable differences.

It is important to do some research for the state you live in since a No Fault divorce is the only option allowed by a number of states. The other states recognize both a No Fault divorce or a Fault divorce.


Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

Promoting Peace in Divorce

Through promoting these types of practices, Staten Island divorce lawyers managed to bring about a change of paradigm in the thinking on divorce. Just like marriage should be perceived as something that the two members of the couple do together, so should the ending of the marriage stop short of being a conflict. Aware of the difficulty of a marriage break-up, attorneys try to seek out ways of making this moment pass as harmoniously as possible, both for the couple and for their children. The Staten Island divorce lawyers are also conscious that by keeping up the positive communication between the two members of the couple and their lawyers, the two parties will be able to come up with the best settlements and avoid coming back to court again.

It is perhaps time to stop perceiving divorce lawyers as hawks that are just there to take advantage of people's troubles for profit. The case of the Staten Island lawyers and their great involvement with alternative divorce settlements makes a good case for this point. Closer than anybody else to the pain and difficulties of divorce, the divorce attorneys were best positioned to come up with ways of reducing the stress. It is important that the judicial procedures, especially in such delicate areas as family law, keep changing and adjusting themselves to address the needs and sensitivities of the people. After all, the justice system exists in order to make people's lives and cohabitation easier. The justice system is not in place to ensure its own perpetuation, but it is set up in order to protect the well being of the citizens. The efforts of the divorce attorneys in the divorce-related procedures make it seem that the justice system has not forgotten its mission.


Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

Contested Divorces

In a traditional contested divorce, which needs a divorce lawyer, the judge will generally do what is called a "trial division method", where couples will split for awhile to see how life works without each other. But if you want to go the expensive route and If the judge put you two on trial division you could change your mind about divorce before the proceedings are settled; but this will cost you even more money, plus all the time you wasted just to get to this point.

Now, i think you got a good idea about the vast differences between contested divorces and uncontested divorces, let me be clear about uncontested divorces, which is clearly the best route to go. An uncontested divorce means that both the spouses comprehensively accept that quick divorce technique is in their best interest and there is nothing left to argue about, either in terms of the divorce itself or the separations of assets. Some life partners may have previously divide their assets and moved out, so filing for online divorce for them is almost just a formality.

Occasionally persons will bring one to the processing just in case their life partners begin to argue about the terms and conditions of the divorce. Lawyers may create argument and you may be in many future trials arguing about the conditions of the contested divorce for a long time to come with your expensive trial lawyer at your side. However, if your partner brought a lawyer to the proceeding and is arguing about the conditions of the divorce, then it's seemingly in your best interest to contact a divorce lawyer instantly.

Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

Uncontested Divorces

Many times people get married for the wrong reasons, and forecasting the future many years down the road is quite unfeasible. Luckily, in the United States it is quite ease to get a quick divorce, that’s if it stays uncontested by the life partner. If both the spouses doesn't accept with all the terms and conditions of the uncontested divorce that’s when your going to require a lawyer.

While filling the form for an uncontested divorce it is not necessary that you have a lawyer. An uncontested divorce process is as ease as you fill a form. If both the partners accept the terms and condition that an uncontested divorce is the best way, then filing for divorce will be very cheap and simple. You can find many online paralegal firms who are providing uncontested divorce kits that help you prepare your own for a mere twenty bucks, or pay a paralegal or divorce attorney to prepare the form for you for about two-hundred bucks. If both you and your spouse can not accept on how the assets you jointly own can be divided then you will require a lawyer to contest the divorce in court and allow the judge to decide how to divide those assets for you. However, If you and your spouse accept on how your combine owned assets can be spited then you qualify to file for an uncontested divorce, which doesn't requires a divorce lawyer.


Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

Making Divorce Easier

Divorce is a painful and extremely difficult process. Knowing how divorce laws function and understanding the court’s role in a divorce can help to make this transition smoother and easier, however.

New York Divorce laws govern the dissolution of a marriage. Every country has its own laws regarding divorce and, in fact, divorce laws can vary from state to state or province to province within a nation. Knowing your jurisdiction’s divorce laws can keep a bad situation from becoming worse, and save you future turmoil.

In the United States, divorce laws, in general, provide two basic forms of divorce: fault based and no-fault based. However, even in some jurisdictions whose divorce laws do not require a party to claim fault of their partner, a court may still take into account the behavior of the parties when dividing property, debts, evaluating custody, and support.

Fault-based divorces can be contested and may involve allegations of collusion of the parties, connivance, or provocation by the other party.


Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

Mediation Helps in Acknowledging Emotions

One of the distinct useful aspects of the process of divorce mediation is the manner in which recognition is given to emotions without allowing them to delay the process of arriving at a contract. Oftentimes, the adversarial approach fuels the anger of the divorcing couple, resulting in them focusing only on their disagreements, which leads them to lose vision of the things that they do agree about. Mediation helps in couples being able to express their usual feelings of rejection, fear, and hostility in a controlled and neutral environment wherein they can be handled and interpreted in such a way that these emotions are not mistaken or are allowed rising the conflict. This aspect, more than anything else, is what differentiates divorce via mediation from other ways of divorcing.

Even though divorce mediation is a novel approach to divorce and family law, it is one of the most time-tested ways used in resolving conflicts. Mediation is one of best ways of serving divorcing couples getting in-depth and important decisions while preserving their sense of self-respect, self-respect and humanity. In these times, with so many lives being aching by the harmful aspects of divorce, humanity, compassion, and respect can be priceless reserves.


Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

How is Mediation Different Than the Adversarial System?

In the conventional adversarial method of divorce, separate Staten Island divorce attorneys are hired by each spouse to stand for themselves. These Staten Island divorce lawyers then pay out a lot of time in discussions with each other, and then more time to communicate the result of their discussions to their clients. This adversarial method exacerbates the quarrel, anxiety and stress, along with increasing the legal fees. If the lawyers do not do well in arriving at an agreement, a judge will have to decide about the issues associated with the divorce. This results in rotating it into a litigation, which delays the process of the divorce, often for a number of years. It also results in compromising the privacy of the individuals worried while depleting their assets which otherwise could have been separated between the couple or used for providing for the children.

However, when couples resort to mediation, they take the help of a trained mediator to bargain with each other straight in order to appear at an contract about every aspect of their divorce, such as child support, arrangements about parenting, and dividing the property. The mediator remains an impartial third party whose special responsibility is facilitating negotiations by decisive the issues, investigative the possible solutions, and giving advice about all the matters that ought to be included in the last agreement.

Thus, mediation helps in decreasing the price of divorcing. Studies have shown that the adversarial method of using two attorneys escalates the total fees of the divorce by as much as 134 percent compared to using the mediation approach. These studies have also shown that divorces that are mediated lessens hostility, leaving the divorcing couples more satisfied with the outcome, and increased their abidance with the agreements arrived at during the mediation process.


Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

How Does Divorce Mediation Provide an Alternative?

Divorce mediation provides an alternative to divorcing couples because people specifically trained in mediation, known as divorce mediators, help them to come to a contract on issues related to their divorce, without them going the adversarial way. The divorce mediator gives the couple monetary and legal information helps them to know the emotional and mental aspects of divorcing, its impact on the children, as well as providing tips on conflict management. The mediator stays unbiased all through the process, without being condemnatory towards either spouse about the motivations or reasons for their decision to part ways. The methods of divorce mediation are designed to reduce hostility, enhance communication, and support the expression and maintenance of caring and respect between the divorcing couple as well as their family. This results in divorce no longer having to be identical with loss of self-respect and bitterness.

With divorce mediation, couples have the capability of deciding for themselves under what circumstances, when, and how their divorce will take place. Divorce mediation is giving attention on agreement, leaning towards achieving a goal, and is time limited. Unlike marriage counseling, it is not meant to improve or save a marriage, nor does it help divorcing couples make decisions, like in arbitration. Instead, divorce mediation helps in given that guidance along with creating an environment wherein divorcing couples can arrive at an agreement on the issues linked to their divorce, putting those agreements on paper, and thereby beginning the process of stirring on into the future.


Family law attorney, , is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

Divorce Mediation

Divorce is an upsetting process. Strong emotions of anger can remain for years. Mind-set of being cast off can even be carried over to new relationships. For many divorcing couples, the most painful part of the proceedings is often the loss of self-esteem. Confronted with hardhearted thoughts of fear and anger, many people in the process of divorcing each other are often distraught by the ease in which they seem to forsake values that they had held in deep regard such as empathy, compassion, and respect. The need to hurt often takes the place of what used to be enduring and deep love. Revenge replaces considerate. Anger supplants civility. When such humanitarian values are given up, it results in the loss of self-esteem and self-respect that is often seen in divorce procedures.

However, many divorcing couples found that they can preserve their dignity, compassion, and self-respect through approaching divorce in a new way – via mediation. Traditionally, divorce has always been approached in an adversarial manner, often resulting in the break in communication between the parties, costly court procedures, accompanied by strong hostility. Many couples often find that despite their first good intentions, the adversarial nature of the procedures would complicate matters by rotating even small issues into complicated and impossible ones, requiring a substantial amount of money and time to resolve. Such experiences have left many divorcing or divorced people feeling as if they have betrayed their inner values. While occasionally there may be no other way out, not every couple wants or needs this sort of ending to their marriage.

Family law attorney, is located on Staten Island, New York, and represents men and women with divorce, child support and family law throughout the New York City area, including Staten Island, Annadale, Arden Heights, Bay Terrace, Dongan Hills, Eltingville, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grant City, Grasmere, Great Kills, Greenridge, Grymes Hill, Heartland Village, Huguenot, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, New Springville, Oakwood, Old Town NY, Pleasant Plains, Prince's Bay, Randall Manor, Richmond Valley Richmondtown, Rosebank, Rossville, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, South Beach, St. George, Tottenville Beach, Ward Hill, Westerleigh, Willowbrook, Woodrow, other areas of Staten Island, New York City, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County, Westchester County, and Rockland County.

Is Your Spouse Hiding Money?

Hiding money (assets) during a divorce is illegal and unethical. Never the less it's more common than you think. Both men and woman alike have and continue these tactics daily. I am in no way advocating hiding assets. I am simply documenting facts to help educate and protect.

By hiding money your spouse may be trying to lower child support and alimony payments. You and your Staten Island divorce attorney must look to uncover any hidden moneys and to prove the actual amount of money that your spouse has available.

I've listed five items below to give you a starting point for finding hidden income and assets.

1) Your spouse may defer a part of his salary until after the divorce. Look for letters, notes, or emails asking to defer income. Look at past history of your spouses earnings. If he/she is normally receives $50,000 per year in commissions and suddenly not receiving any money or a dramatic drop. Advise your divorce attorney.

2) Some spouses receive bonuses in addition to their net pay. Look for deals where partial bonuses are paid and the other portion is put into a separate account accruing to the benefit of the employee. Bonuses can be deferred for future distribution. Look for a pattern of bonus payments in the past.

3) If your partner is suddenly, chronically short of cash, or if their weekly ATM withdrawal doubles, that could be a sign. Many stores now let you get cash back when using your debit card for purchases. Your spouse can be adding $20, $40, or more to ever purchase. Check receipts.

4) Does the mail come to your home? If not, that could be a red flag that your spouse doesn't want you to see certain incoming statements.

5) Any changes in the way family finances are handled. Did that joint savings account suddenly disappear? Was there a piece of a stock sold or got rolled over into something else?

Divorce Assets

Regardless of the type of divorce process you choose to use, it is important to identify your marital estate. The marital estate is defined by the New York Statute and generally comprises all assets and debts acquired by either party during the marriage, regardless of title. As you can guess, there are numerous exceptions to this rule, so discuss this issue carefully with your attorney. For starters, however, you should begin to gather the following information, regardless of how it was obtained or who obtained it, as long as it was obtained during the marriage. Gather information on an asset used during the marriage, regardless of when it was obtained.

An example of an “asset” would be your residence, a car, a boat, a valuable piece of artwork, a retirement account, or an investment account. An asset is anything that is worth money! Don’t worry about loans on the assets (such as your mortgage or a car loan), because you will be listing all of these debts separately. The result will be your “net” marital estate.

Financial Checklist for Divorce

Here is a brief checklist to help guide you with the divorce process. It is by no means a comprehensive list, so anticipate that your divorce attorney will need more information, but it is a good starting place.

Income/ Assets:
• Income tax returns for the previous five years
• Retirement account statements; one from the date of marriage, one current.
• Estimated valuation of all real estate acquired during the marriage
• Estimated value of the marital residence, if owned
• Statements from current investment accounts
• Statements from college savings accounts for minor children
• Estimated (Blue Book) value of all automobiles
• Itemization of all valuable artwork, jewelry, etc. with estimate of values
• Copies of all trusts
• Copies of all whole life insurance policies or annuities
• Recent statements from whole life and annuity policies
• Copies of all corporate papers; Sub S Corp’s, LLC’s etc.

Debts
• Current credit card statements
• Current mortgage balances (1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc….)
• Automobile loans
• Promissory notes
• Student loans
• Secured loans
• Other debts and obligations (unsecured)

In complicated cases, a financial professional is helpful to assist in establishing the value of the marital estate. In the more straightforward cases, you and your lawyer can establish the values using and Excell or Numbers spreadsheet, or just a pencil and paper!

The bottom line is that you want to identify everything that was obtained during the marriage, or used as marital property during the marriage regardless of how it was obtained.