Next to “how much will my divorce cost?”, “how long will my divorce take” is the most common question we hear at our free initial divorce consultation and case evaluation.
It’s natural and understandable to want to know the answer to this question before delving into such an emotional and life-changing event as a divorce. We’ve all heard the horror stories of divorces dragging out for years and draining the finances of all involved. This shouldn’t be and isn’t the case for the majority of couples getting divorced on Long Island, NY. Long, drawn out divorces are usually the result of three main things:
A divorce in New York typically takes a minimum of 6 months from the time the divorce petition is served to the final divorce decree. However, in cases with complex issues or disputes, it can take considerably longer, sometimes a year or more, to reach a resolution. It depends upon the type of divorce you will have.
True uncontested divorces take the least amount of time to resolve. In these cases, both spouses agree on all the significant issues of their divorce:
Some clients enter our door with the outline of an agreement with their spouse in their hand. These are the true uncontested divorces and they minimize how long your divorce will take to be finalized.
Other times, clients will have an outline of their settlement agreement in their hand, but there are a few unresolved issues. These may have to do with child custody or some property division, but the spouses are on amicable speaking terms and willing to work together to resolve these issues. These couples are usually good candidates for divorce mediation. Divorce mediation utilizes a neutral third-party mediator to help the spouses negotiate the few unresolved issues of their divorce in a few sessions.
Barring a true uncontested divorce where all issues are agreed upon prior to meeting with an attorney, mediation is a close second place for reducing how long your divorce will take. Not only does mediation reduce the time it takes for your divorce, it also often reduces the emotional stress and enables for better communication between the parties after the divorce. This can be a real benefit when there are children of the marriage and the former spouses will be at least peripherally involved in each other’s lives when dealing with the children.
At the opposite end of the spectrum from the client who enters the doors with an agreement already in place are those who enter looking for a resolution that is the polar opposite from that which their spouse desires. The New York State Unified Court System has a Contested Divorce flowchart here.
These are the opposite extreme: couples with complex financial holdings and children who are unwilling to communicate and compromise. These cases usually wind up litigated in a Nassau County or Suffolk County courtroom. In these cases, divorce lawyers on both sides of the aisle spend a great deal of time completing discovery, gathering documents, writing briefs, filing motions, appearing in court, etc. All of these things take time (and money).
The role of your divorce attorney is to gather information to help you make the best decisions for you and your future and to protect your interests. Ultimately, the decision of how long it takes to settle your case falls directly on you and your spouse.
How long your divorce takes depends entirely upon its complexity and the willingness of all participants to communicate and compromise. Simply put, the more you and your spouse can agree upon the less time your divorce will take and the less it will cost.
“My experience with Rob and his team was great I would highly recommend them! They were extremely helpful and answered any questions I had and explained everything to me to make sure I understood everything that was happening. They helped me with the process and kept it moving!”
What it comes down to is how long is it going to take to resolve your case? The more you and your spouse can agree upon, the shorter the duration of your case and the less your divorce will cost. The more issues you and your spouse cannot agree upon and “fight” over, the more time your attorney will be required to spend on you case, the longer it will take to resolve and thereby, the more it will cost.
Every one of our experienced Long Island divorce attorneys is committed to resolving your case as quickly as possible to keep our fees affordable for you while ensuring that you receive the absolute best representation that you expect and deserve.
To be sure, certain divorce resolution strategies are more affordable than others. For example, Divorce Mediation is generally a fraction of the cost of Divorce Litigation, but even then it depends upon you and your spouse’s ability to work out your differences and issues outside of a courtroom.
Visit How Much Does a Cost to learn more the cost of your divorce and how to get experienced representation to protect yourself and your future.
To find out more and get a better estimate of the time that may be associated with your divorce, contact us to schedule a complimentary consultation with an experienced divorce and family law attorney. This will give us a better opportunity to understand the complexity of your case, discuss the options available to you and provide you with a more accurate assessment of the time your divorce will take. Contact us at 631-923-1910 or fill out the form on this page and we’ll be happy to schedule a complimentary initial consultation appointment at a time that is convenient to you.
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At your meeting, your attorney will evaluate your case and describe the many options available to you so we can determine together which is the right solution for you. By the end of this meeting we’ll all understand how we can best help you to move forward.
There is no cost or obligation for this initial consultation. It is simply an opportunity for us to get to know each other, evaluate your case and answer your questions.
