Disagreements often form the backbone of many New York divorces. When the parties to a legal relationship cannot work out their differences and cannot foresee a future where they will be able to live together, they may decide to end their marriage through the courts. Couples that divorce in New York may elect to use the state’s no fault option, which generally asserts that their marriages are broken and cannot be fixed; they may also use one of the recognized fault-based options to bring their marriages to their end.
Fault grounds cover a wide range of behaviors and topics. For example, abuse may be used as a basis for a New York divorce and, to prevail on this type of claim, a person may have to show how they were subjected to cruelty and harm at the hands of their spouse. If they choose to use abandonment as the grounds for their marital termination, they will have to prove that their spouse left them at least one year prior.
Adultery is another fault-based ground that couples can use to obtain a divorce. In these cases, proof of extramarital affairs may be needed to successfully end marriages, while divorces based on imprisonment must offer evidence that one spouse has been incarcerated for at least three straight years.
Not all couples want to discuss their problems in court and may choose to forego fault-based claims to avoid this sometimes difficult process. Both no fault and fault-based grounds are available to New Yorkers who meet the residency requirements to file for divorce. Readers should speak with their family law attorneys about their divorce plans as this post does not provide any legal advice.