Real Estate & Family Law Blog
The possibility of going through a divorce with a long legal struggle might be tough to swallow during an already trying time. Alternative conflict resolution methods, such as collaborative divorce, can eliminate the time-consuming and often unpleasant court litigation process. Here, we'll consider four benefits of collaborative divorce and how you can know whether it's right for you. What Is Involved in Collaborative Divorce? Each spouse works with a collaborative law attorney during the collaborative divorce process. Instead of operating as opponents, these lawyers will work together to accomplish mutual goals. The former spouses and their attorneys sign a contract to collaborate to resolve any problems. The contract requires the attorneys to withdraw if the collaborative arrangement fails. Both partners will then need new legal representation and file a court lawsuit. This stipulation incentivizes the couple to resolve their issues and reach an agreement within…Read More
Buying or selling property can be complex, with many steps involved and details to keep track of. If you're considering buying or selling property, you may wonder whether you need to work with a New York real estate lawyer. Here, we'll discuss what real estate lawyers do. Real Estate Lawyers: Their Role and Responsibilities Real estate lawyers handle the legal aspects of property transactions. They help people avoid legal issues by making sure they understand the contracts they sign and know their rights. They also help buyers and sellers get through the closing process smoothly—from handling paperwork to negotiating terms and conditions with other parties involved, such as banks. Your real estate lawyer's exact duties will depend on your individual needs. For example, if you are buying, your lawyer will review the documents to ensure they don't contain any clauses that could put your interests…Read More
Collaborative Divorce helps divorcing couples stay out of Court while at the same time providing both you and your spouse with independent and dedicated attorneys. At the beginning of the collaborative divorce process, both you and your spouse along with your respective attorneys will sign a collaborative participation agreement. In this agreement, everyone agrees to stay out of court and in the event that either party decides to litigate, the two attorneys will be precluded from representing the respective clients in the context of the litigation. This good faith contract helps couples to settle their divorce issues in an amicable and cooperative manner and avoid the pitfalls of divorce litigation. It is a good idea for you and your spouse to avoid court for many reasons. Firstly, legal fees really begin to mount and pile up quickly once the Court is involved in your divorce.…Read More
When you purchase a property, you want to make sure that the structures and improvements that have been made to the property were done with all necessary permits and inspections that the city, town, or village requires. The standard New York Contract of Sale for residential transactions contains the following language (or language to this effect): The delivery by Seller to Purchaser of a valid and subsisting Certificate of Occupancy or other required certificate of compliance, or evidence that none was required, covering the building(s) and all of the other improvements located on the property authorizing their use as a one family dwelling at the date of Closing (or multi-family dwelling if that is the case on a particular transaction). This is a simple but important provision and is put in to protect the buyer from taking a property that has improvements or additions made…Read More
The New Maintenance Laws have greatly effected the way alimony (termed “maintenance” in NY) is handled in New York State. The new law, which went into effect on 01/25/2016 throws out the former way the Courts determined alimony or maintenance and had done so for decades. The Courts used to weigh a number of factors and make a discretionary determination concerning the amount and duration of alimony payments that was appropriate for the case at hand. The determination considered multiple factors (about 20) including the length of marriage and the amount of time the recipient of maintenance would need to become self-supportive. The new maintenance law in New York has replaced this discretionary analysis with a mathematical formula that is similar to the child support calculations utilized in New York in the sense that each formula is based on the two parties’ respective incomes and…Read More
The short answer is: NO… However, as with most legal issues, there is no black and white. The NY Courts have stated that without a marriage – there will be no recognition of an implied contract. This is a huge impediment to someone seeking any sort of support or a share of property based on a romantic relationship that is not consummated by marriage. The highest court in New York – the Court of Appeals – stated in Morone v. Morone (1980) that it is not reasonable to infer an agreement to pay for services rendered when the relationship of the parties makes it natural that the services were rendered gratuitously. The Court further stated that it is hard for Courts to sort out intentions of parties and provide awards based on conduct carried out within private and non-contractual relationship. Contrast that with marriage, which…Read More
If a spouse receives assets during a divorce action and the assets turn out to be proceeds from fraud or theft, should the spouse be entitled to keep those assets? Or should the Courts step in and give back the money to innocent victims of fraud? While these situations may seem farfetched, Courts have increasingly been faced with these questions. The infamous Bernie Madoff ponzi scheme is probably the most well known financial scandal of late. However, there are many other recent financial scandals, one of which recently intersected with New York Divorce Law. New Yorkers Paul Greenwood and Stephen Walsh allegedly ran a fraudulent commodities trading company, WG Trading Investors. Starting in 1996, Greenwood and Walsh used the funds as their own “piggy bank” and misappropriated over $550 million from their clients. The firm’s assets were frozen and in 2009, the SEC filed a…Read More
What is the Mortgage Contingency Clause? The mortgage commitment contingency is a clause in standard residential real estate contract used in the greater New York City area that makes the purchaser’s obligation to purchase contingent upon being able to obtain a mortgage commitment from a lender. This clause affords protection in that the purchaser has the right to cancel a real estate contract and obtain the return of the down payment if the buyer is unable to obtain the commitment within a certain amount of time. The purchaser must, however, comply with the notice requirements in the contract of sale. The standard mortgage contingency clause also affords the seller the right to cancel the contract if a commitment has not been accepted by the purchaser by the commitment date specified in the contract. While this seems simple enough, the rights and obligations of the purchaser…Read More
[Please note that local customs and practices vary location to location within New York. For the NYC and surrounding areas, including Westchester County, the following summation should be useful:] So you have listed your home for sale and you have an accepted offer! Now what? The next step is for you or your attorney to draft a Contract of Sale to make the buyer’s intention of purchasing your home official. Your real estate agent will gather the critical information and terms and send your attorney a brief document referred to as a “Deal Sheet” or “Memorandum of Agreement”. This will enable your real estate attorney to draft the Contract of Sale and provide the Contract to the buyers’ attorney. Other documents you should send to your attorney at the outset include: The previous Deed of Sale showing how title to the property is held; Any…Read More
What are those confusing numbers that take place before the closing and at the closing that lawyers and title companies refer to as “adjustments” or “closing adjustments”? They are really not as complicated as they first appear. The main adjustments in your average home sale is for taxes. Depending on the town, village, or city that you live in, you may pay a number of different taxes during the course of the year. They are generally referred to as “real estate taxes” because the amount you pay is tied back to your property and its assessed value. However, these real estate taxes often consist of sub-sets of taxes such as School Taxes, Town/Village Taxes, County Tax, Sewer Tax, etc. And sometimes a few of these taxes are lumped together – again, it really depends upon the municipality in which you live. To make matters a…Read More
