The pandemic has prompted an increase in virtual mediations all over. Learn how you can be prepared for your next virtual mediation in New York. Ask the Right Questions If you are unclear about the divorce mediation process, make sure you ask your New York divorce mediator to go over what you can expect and what the timelines are. It …
Rincker Law, PLLC is 7 years old! With each anniversary of my law practice, I like to reflect on the previous year. Ruth has been my right hand girl for a few years now but Ravi Cattry joined the team a year ago. It’s been great having these two ladies a part of the firm’s growth over the years. …
Here is a question that I recently received: “Hey Cari, What do people often do “wrong” when they’re about to file for divorce or in the midst of a divorce?” My response: People going through divorce sometimes believe that going to court immediately is the way to resolve things. To the contrary, mediation or the collaborative divorce process would be the …
Grandparent visitation is not automatic in New York. There is an assumption that the grandparent will have visitation with their grandchild through the grandchild’s parent. There is also a presumption that a fit parents acts in the best interest of their child. This means the courts will give great weight to the parent’s decision about their child’s visitation and access …
The New York Court of Appeals has held that absent any threat to the child’s wellbeing, those people who have visitation rights have the right to unsupervised visitation with his or her child. Weiss v. Weiss, 52 N.Y.2d 170 (1981); Nancy M. v. Brian M., 227 A.D.2d 404 (1996); Twersky v. Twersky, 103 A.D.2d 775 (1984). For the court to …
School Breaks Schools in New York typically have four (4) school breaks: Thanksgiving/Fall Break, Christmas/Winter Break, President’s Day/Mid-Winter Break, and Easter/Spring Break. When drafting a parenting plan, parents should be cognizant on what was agreed to with the holiday schedule. Here is an example schedule (for illustrative purposes): School Break Time Even Years Odd Years Mid-Winter Recess (President’s Day Week) …
Legal custody refers to the parent or parents that have decision-making authority over “major decisions” regarding the child, such as non-emergency medical care, religion, education, and extracurricular activities. When you think of the phrase “legal custody,” replace it with the phrase “decision-making” (e.g., sole decision-making or joint decision-making). Please note that “day-to-day” decisions are made with the parent who has …
It is important to choose the right mediator for you and your particular dispute. Mediators vary in experience, language proficiency, subject matter expertise, style, fees, communication, and level of involvement. For example, some mediators are able to speak fluently in different languages or have knowledge in certain family law disputes (e.g., animal ownership disputes). Some mediators do “virtual mediation” while others …
Super pumped for Michael Meyer, corporate photographer extraordinaire,for his new podcast called the “Legal Marketing Studio“, available via SoundCloud and iTunes. The podcast was just released and I’m in Episode 3 on book publishing. I talk about my New York food and agriculture book (my first child) and my recently published book on New York divorce and family law (both …
One of the “fault” grounds for divorce in New York is abandonment. There are two types of abandonment – physical abandonment and constructive abandonment (or sexual abandonment). In order to plead the ground of physical abandonment in a complaint for divorce, you must establish that 1) you have been abandoned by your spouse for one year or more, 2) the abandonment was …
I will be giving a Mock Divorce Consultation to my BNI Chapter on December 2nd from 6 to 7:30pm at Club 101 in Midtown Manhattan. BNI is a great networking organization. For those of you in New York City, please come visit! More info here. If you are interested in visiting, please let me know.