subject: Contested Divorce In New York [print this page] A contested divorce in New York is often very complicated. From the time a marriage contract is signed by both parties quite a lot of their assets are joined, that will need to be divided as deemed appropriate by the courts. As the name suggests, a contested divorce in New York is a divorce that involves a settlement which cannot be accepted by one or both of the spouses. Here the judicial system takes charge and tries to impartially split the assets as fairly as possible.
The settlements for New York divorces are decided equitably. This does not mean that every asset is divided in half, but really means that every one of the joint possessions are divided depending on the contributions of both members of the divorcing couple. Working out how much each spouse is owed can be complicated, and it falls upon the lawyers of each of the former partners to convince the court of the size and validity of their claim. This is why an excellent lawyer can be critical, as many people have lost considerable amounts of money in the divorce court.
If it happens that a contested divorce in New York is presented to the court, the initial order of business is to decide which assets belong to which party. Both of the former partners individual assets should be classed as either personal or marital assets, and it is up to each lawyer to convince the court how every single asset should be classed.
Contested divorce in New York is unpredictable, as any types of assets can be proclaimed to be martial assets. It is common for one of the former members of the marriage to ask for a percentage of a pension which will be paid to the other spouse at a later date. After the martial assets are selected however, the courts must then choose how to split them. Where a certain item a particular asset was in the possession of one party prior to the marriage which then grew in value, the other party can demand a share of the assets increase in value. They may attempt to prove that any increase in the assets financial value was as a result of their support and it falls to the courts to rule on the monetary value of any such contribution. Typically the family home is divided in half in a contested divorce, but this is dependent on whether there are any children involved.
