Rochester NY Family Law Blog

According to officials and attorneys, the time it takes to completely resolve a divorce in New York is on the rise. While finalizing a divorce took three to four months in previous years, it can now take more than nine months to obtain a signed judgment. This does not take into account the time needed for divorcing parties to reach a settlement, typically anywhere from several months to two years.

Divorce lawyers say the delays are mainly being caused by layoffs and budget cuts. According to information from the New York City Bar Association, the state judiciary lost approximately 1,300 employees in 2011 to layoffs and early retirement. This amounted to around 8 percent of the judiciary's total workforce. Additionally, the judiciary saw approximately $170 million cut from its budget. Lawyers in the state say the still-suffering economy has also contributed to the problem.

New York has awarded what is believed to be the first contested no-fault divorce in the state since it adopted a new law allowing a spouse to file for divorce without claiming the other party is at fault.

Prior to the introduction of the year-old statute, someone who wished to file for divorce in New York first had to show that his or her spouse was cruel, adulterous and neglectful or had otherwise caused the marriage to fail. Lawmakers approved no-fault divorce in 2010 in order to make full separation possible without forcing couples to invent false justifications for the split.

Due to the ever-changing face of divorce, New York couples that separate today are likely well-acquainted with how their divorce affects Social Security. But those that divorced years or even decades ago might not be as informed. This can apply to men and women, but women are likely to earn less than their husbands over the course of their lives, especially when they were married several decades before employers began practicing wage equality.

For instance, a woman that divorced her husband in New York in the 1970s after being married since the 1950s may be able to collect half of her ex-husband's Social Security benefits following divorce if she has not remarried. If she took time off work to raise children or made less money than her former husband, this difference can be significant. The Social Security Administration may even allow her to collect retroactive benefits going back six months, paid in a lump sum.

Despite actor and ex-California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's confession of having fathered a child with his former housekeeper -- an admission that captured headlines in New York and elsewhere -- new reports say that Maria Shriver may be reconsidering her planned divorce from Schwarzenegger.

Sources close to Shriver say she has been struggling with the decision, as her Catholic faith forbids divorce, although marriages may be annulled in some cases. One source says that she may also back down due to Schwarzenegger's gestures to win her back. He has reportedly given Shriver numerous gifts in an effort to reconcile with his wife.