Rachel S. Silberstein - Divorce, Family Law & Mediation Services- Long Island and NYC

Making the decision to dissolve your marriage and file for divorce is never easy.  Divorces are wrought with emotional turmoil and parties often lose sight of the ultimate goal.  This is why it is important to have an experienced divorce attorney to help you stay on track and move through your divorce as swiftly and painlessly as possible.

In October 2010, the State of New York passed a law eliminating a primary source of turmoil in the divorce process.  Specifically, "irretrievable breakdown of relationship" was added to the New York Domestic Relations Law as a ground for divorce.  What this means is that one can now obtain a divorce without the Court finding "fault" on the part of either party, and only one party has to claim that the relationship is irretrievably broken.  However, before a divorce can be granted based upon this ground, all issues surrounding the divorce must be resolved.  Resolving such issues can be complicated, especially when there are children involved.  Most divorce cases are ultimately settled without going to trial, with the help of skilled and experienced attorneys who come up with creative solutions to contested issues.  Unfortunately, there are some issues that cannot be resolved without going to trial and the majority of cases are conferenced before the Court, and settled after arguing certain points and receiving the Court's input.  It is essential that you have a professional and experienced divorce attorney on your side to ensure that your rights are protected.  Contact Rachel S. Silberstein today to schedule a free telephone consultation and start the divorce process!

The issue of custody and parenting time is perhaps the most emotionally charged issue in divorce and family law.  Any Order or agreement regarding custody and parenting time will directly impact your child's day-to-day life and future. Having an experienced attorney help resolve this issue, whether in Court or out of Court, is essential to ensuring that your child's needs are met and his life is not negatively impacted.

Negotiating a custody and parenting time agreement requires great attention to detail. It is essential that there are no holes in the agreement or unaccounted for scenarios that could land the parties back in Court.  Parties are often tempted to keep agreements vague to allow for flexibility, which almost always leads to arguments about how the agreement should be interpreted.  Only an experienced divorce and family law attorney can make sure that you have a professionally drafted agreement that adequately reflects the parties' intentions.

It is equally, if not more, important to have an experienced divorce and family law attorney if the question of custody and/or parenting time cannot be resolved out of Court.  Your attorney will help convince the Judge and Law Guardian (an attorney appointed by the Court to represent your child) why you should have custody of your child or why your proposal for parenting time is in the best interests of your child.  Contact Rachel S. Silberstein today and make sure you are represented by an experienced family law attorney in your custody case!       

In New York, Child Support is determined based upon a formula incorporated into a law known as the Child Support Standards Act.  When both parties are W-2 employees, determining Child Support is usually simple and can often be resolved without Court intervention.  However, if one or both parties are self-employed, recently became unemployed, or there was a recent change to a party's income, determining Child Support becomes more complicated.  In this instance, it is imperative that an experienced family lawyer represent you to ensure that your financial future, as well as your child's, is safeguarded.  Contact Rachel S. Silberstein today to represent you in your Child Support matter!

The law for this issue has once again changed.  As of October 25, 2015, there is a statutory formula that must be utilized in order to determine how much maintenance a spouse is entitled to, both during the pendency of the action, and once the divorce is finalized.  There are also factors that must be considered in order to determine the duration of maintenance.  Additionally, the maintenance award is affected by how much child support, if any, the entitled spouse is receiving. Click here to calculate your temporary (during the pendency of the action) maintenance award, or obligation, based upon the new stautory formula if your divorce was commenced on or after October 25, 2015. Click here to calculate your post-divorce maintenance award, or obligation, based upon the statutory guidelines if your divorce was commenced on or after October 25, 2015.  Click here to calculate your temporary maintenance award if your divorce was commenced before October 25, 2015.     

Rachel S. Silberstein is an experienced divorce and family law attorney who will show the Court how these factors apply to your individual situation so that you can receive a favorable award, whether you are seeking support from your spouse or your spouse is seeking maintenance.  Contact Rachel S. Silberstein today to have an experience divorce and family law attorney represent you in your maintenance/alimony case!

In cases where there are many valuable assets, it can be hard to come to an agreement on property distribution.  Arguments often arise as to the value of certain assets and whether the asset is marital or separate property (separate property is not subject to distribution in a divorce).  Additionally, if you own a business, the question of whether your spouse should be entitled to a percentage of the value, and what the business is worth, is not easily answered.  Also, it becomes more difficult to determine awards of child and spousal support in high net worth cases, as there is often an argument as to the actual income of the payor and if income exceeding the statutory cap should be considered in determining support.  

Rachel S. Silberstein is extremely experienced with handling high net worth cases.  She will do her best to ensure your assets are protected and are not spent on unnecessary legal fees.  Contact Rachel S. Silberstein today and make sure an experienced divorce and family law attorney is working to protect your hard earned assets!

A pre-nuptial agreement is an agreement entered into prior to marriage providing for certain stipulations in the event of a divorce, separation or death of a spouse.  These agreements commonly provide for how certain property should be divided, but can also provide for payment of child suppor and spousal support if the parties desire. It is important to have a pre-nuptial agreement in place prior to entering into a marriage if you have precious or valuable assets (such as a business or a home) in order to make sure these assets are protected in the event the marriage is dissolved.  Additionally, if this is not your first marriage and there are children involved, it is recommended that a pre-nuptial agreement be signed if there are certain assets you would like your children to inherit or if there are matters of custody or child support to consider.

A post-nuptial agreement has the same function as a pre-nuptial agreement, but it is entered into once the parties are already married.  Post-nuptial agreements are especially important if you acquire any substantial assets during the marriage that you want to protect, as these assets will be considered marital property and be subject to equitable distribution in the event of a divorce.  For example, if you start your own business during your marriage, in the event of a divorce your business (as well as your business property) will be appraised, and subject to equitable distribution, even if your spouse had little to no involvement in the company.  It is in your best interest to protect these assets during your marriage, rather than having to negotiate their distribution in the context of a divorce when your relationship with your spouse will most likely be less than amicable.

Rachel S. Silberstein is an experienced divorce and family law attorney and will draft a pre- or post-nuptial agreement that is legally binding and specific so the terms of the agreement cannot later be questioned or successfully contested. Contact us today to get started on drafting your agreement!

There are many reasons you may want to opt to enter into a Separation Agreement rather than immediately initiating a divorce proceeding.  First, in New York, you are entitled to a "conversion divorce" if you have been living separate and apart from your spouse for a period of at least one year pursuant to a separation agreement.  What this means is that once your Separation Agreement is a year old, as long both parties have substantially complied with the terms, your lawyer can simply fill out some paperwork, submit it to the Court, and obtain a Judgment of Divorce on your behalf without ever having to step inside a courtroom.

Another reason is that once a Judgment of Divorce is obtained, you are no longer eligible to be covered under your spouse's health insurance plan.  Thus, many people enter into separation agreements so they can continue to be covered by their spouse's health insurance. This allows them more time to plan for their own health coverage while having piece of mind that the issues surrounding the dissolution of their marriage has been resolved.

Separation Agreements, like Stipulations resolving a divorce, must resolve the issues surrounding the separation such as custody, child support, maintenance/alimony and equitable distribution.  Thus, it is important to have a professional and experienced divorce and family lawyer draft your agreement to ensure that your rights are protected, that the agreement is legally binding, and that it accurately reflects the intentions of you and your spouse.  Contact Rachel S. Silberstein today to start drafting your Separation Agreement!

Orders of Protection are Court Orders that instruct abusers not to contact, harass, stalk, go near or commit any action that will inflict harm upon their victim(s).  If an abuser violates this Order, the police can be called and the abuser will automatically be arrested.  Orders of Protection are sometimes issued in Criminal Court after a police report is made, but the victim has a lot more control over obtaining an Order of Protection in Family Court.

The law in New York was recently changed so that parties involved in a significant relationship, in addition to family members, spouses, ex-spouses and people who share children, can seek an Order of Protection in Family Court.  An experienced divorce and family lawyer will help you draft your petition so that the wording is clear that a family offense has been committed and the issuance of an Order of Protection is warranted.  She will also represent you in Court and help convince the Court that a permanent Order of Protection (for a period of 1 year or more depending upon the circumstances) should be granted on behalf of you and/or your children.  Contact Rachel S. Silberstein today and have an experienced  divorce and family law attorney draft your petition and represent you in Family Court!