If you and your spouse are considering divorce in New York, there is a process you must follow.
Divorce process
Before filing for divorce, you or your spouse must have been a resident of New York for at least two years immediately before filing. Alternatively, either you or your spouse must have been a resident of the state for one year if both spouses are residents at the time of filing or the grounds for divorce happened in New York. It is not required to prove fault on either spouse’s part.
Once you determine eligibility, you must file a summons in the county court where either spouse resides. The spouse who is filing must serve the other spouse with notice but can use a process server to do this.
The spouse who receives service will have time to respond and both spouses are required to share information with the other about their finances, including their assets and debts. They will also need to decide how to divide their property.
Equitable property division
The court will aim to divide your property and your spouse’s property equitably, meaning that it is fair, but not necessarily equal.
It will consider the length of the marriage, the contributions you and your spouse made to the marriage, both of your incomes and earning capacities and if you and your spouse have children, the child custody arrangement in place, to decide the share each spouse receives.
Once all issues are resolved, the court will issue a final judgment of divorce.