According to a famous stress scale, divorce ranks right behind death of a spouse as the most stressful event we can face. But divorce can be much less stressful when the couple are in accord and the divorce is uncontested. Consult with a good Bronx uncontested divorce lawyer to keep things on track even if you and your spouse are in agreement about everything that needs to be addressed in a divorce. Your attorney can explain the law and keep the process running smoothly.
An uncontested divorce is one where the couple agree on all the important issues necessary to resolve to get a divorce and make their own decisions rather than giving control of their lives to a judge. It involves just submitting the executed agreement the couple’s attorneys have drafted to a judge, who will normally approve the agreement and issue a divorce decree. There are exceptions if an agreement is inherently unfair or is contrary to the best interests of any children the couple may have. This is far more desirable than the adversarial litigation process of a contested divorce.
If a couple has a prenuptial or a postnuptial agreement, they will already have navigated many of the stumbling blocks that lead people to contested divorce. Working together along with their attorneys to create a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement enables the couple to address important aspects of their lives at a time when they are not as upset or emotional as they might be later should they divorce. Also, when a couple owns valuable and complex property, valuing it and deciding who will get it can be very time consuming. If this is done in advance, it can make getting a divorce months faster.
A judge will usually respect a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement, unless one of the parties challenges in court, it’s extremely unfair, or it is in opposition to the best interests of the children. Often, prenuptial and postnuptial agreements cover division of property, debt allocation spousal maintenance. These agreements do not always cover matters such as child custody, child support and child visitation, partially because the children may not even exist at the time of the agreement. But even if only some issues are addressed, this puts spouses much closer to being able to have a divorce that is uncontested.
Agreement to divorce: If one of the individuals does not want to divorce, then the other will have to sue them for divorce in court.
Grounds for divorce: In New York, you must a list a statutory grounds for your divorce. If you cannot agree on this, the only option is contested divorce.
Division of property: It stands to reason that if you have a lot of complex and valuable property, it may be difficult and time consuming to reach agreement on its division. But sometimes the sticking point can be property of sentimental value. Also, if a couple has been married for years, property they brought into the marriage may become intermingled, and there may be contention about what is individual property and what is marital property.
Spousal maintenance: Often spousal maintenance is not granted today, and your Bronx attorney for uncontested divorce can tell you if it’s likely a judge will grant alimony in your case. Of course, for an uncontested divorce, the couple must not only agree on whether or not spousal maintenance is paid, but also its amount and duration.
Child custody: The couple must agree on both legal and physical child custody in order to get an uncontested divorce. Legal custody involves who has the authority to make important decisions about the child’s life; both parents could have legal custody. Physical custody involves which parent the child lives with most of the time.
Child visitation: The noncustodial parent gets child visitation rights. If the custodial parent only wants the noncustodial parent to see the child every other weekend, and the noncustodial parent wants every other weekend and also a night during the week, the couple will not be able to get an uncontested divorce without some kind of compromise.
Child support: The parties must agree on the amount of child support to be paid in order to get an uncontested divorce. Your Bronx uncontested divorce attorney can give a good estimate what a judge is likely to award and help guide you to a reasonable figure upon which you can both agree.
It’s no wonder that couples have trouble reaching agreement on everything necessary for getting an uncontested divorce. Fortunately, in the Bronx or anywhere in New York, a collaborative divorce process is now available where couples and their specially trained collaborative divorce attorneys can work together in order to amicably reach agreement. This is fairly new, and the process requires transparency and good will. It’s a less expensive process than proceeding to contested divorce and produces much less rancor. At the end of the process, the couple reaches agreement and can get an uncontested divorce. Should they find agreement impossible, they have little choice at that point but to have a contested divorce.
Sometimes a divorce will begin uncontested, but as the couple get into deeper discussions, they find there are areas where they cannot agree after all. They can use the collaborative divorce process and see if that will help them work out their differences, but if they do not succeed or if they do not even want to try, they could then enter the contested divorce process and all the litigation discovery and trial preparations that involves.
If you believe you and your spouse will be able to get an uncontested divorce, you should still consult with a good Bronx attorney specializing in uncontested divorce. There are probably issues of which you are not aware, and uncontested divorce can become contested very quickly. A good attorney can help keep things on track and help you to avoid litigation if they are involved from the outset. The attorneys at the Law Offices of Stephen Bilkis & Associates have years of experience successfully representing clients who are seeking a divorce, legal separation, or annulment. We also represent clients on issues related to custody, child support and spousal support. Contact us at 800.696.9529 to schedule a free, no obligation consultation regarding your case. We represent clients in the following locations: the Bronx, Brooklyn, Long Island, Manhattan, Nassau County, Queens, Staten Island, Suffolk County and Westchester County.