A custodial parent seeking a court's permission to relocate with a minor child bears the burden of establishing by a preponderance of the evidence that the move would be in the child's best interests. This rule was articulated by the New York Court of Appeals in 1996 in the landmark cases of Tropea v. Tropea. [Read More]
In a Family Court proceeding when a party does not testify to rebut allegations against him or her the Family Court is permitted "to draw the strongest inference against him as the opposing evidence would allow." This is because the right against self-incrimination and other rights that protect criminal defendants do not extend to Family [Read More]
In neglect and custody proceedings a child's out-of-court statement claiming abuse or neglect may be admissible if it is corroborated sufficiently. As with the types of circumstances that give rise to this exception to the hearsay rule, the definition of corroboration is very broad. The Family Court Act defines corroboration as any other evidence tending [Read More]
Proving in court child abuse or mistreatment can be difficult. Often we only have a child's out-of-court statements to a parent or a third party and very little other proof. An evidentiary problem arises in this situation since out-of-court statements are hearsay. Hearsay statements generally are not admissible in court. That means that they cannot [Read More]
Visitation with a non-custodial parent is presumed to be in the best interests of a child. The denial of visitation is justified only for a compelling reason. This may include a variety of situations where visitation has been detrimental to the child or could be detrimental or dangerous to the child. Typically these are cases [Read More]
The Collaborative Divorce Process is a cooperative process in which a separating or divorcing couple, with the assistance of their attorneys, work together to negotiate the best outcome for both parties and their children. The process is based on a voluntary and free exchange of information, the parties pledge not to go to court and [Read More]
Welcome to my blog. Here we will discuss domestic relations matters as they present themselves in upstate New York. Not that divorce or custody cases here are very different than those down state or in other states. But the law of domestic relations law in New York is different from that in other states. Also [Read More]
Temporary orders are tests. You may not think as a temporary order as a test, but they are. Depending on what the judge directs, a temporary order may be a way for the Court to test one or both of the parties to see how they will behave in a given situation, or how they [Read More]
Joint Legal Custody is an arrangement by which parents jointly make important decisions for their child or children. Joint legal custody requires that parents cooperate with each other for the benefit of their child or children. This means sharing information, communicating and discussing things about their children and working together to make the best decision [Read More]