First Steps in a Traditional Divorce in Staten Island
Video Transcript
A traditional Staten Island divorce begins with filing a summons and complaint in Richmond County Supreme Court, followed by financial disclosure and, often, a referral to mediation before trial. Each step adds time compared to starting with mediation directly.
Bill Leininger – Divorce Mediation Attorney – Staten Island, New York
The current state of the law is the judge, when they have the preliminary conference, which is the first time, the judge, the case is called in court, in other words, one party served the other one with the summons and complaint for divorce, the other person has generally hired an attorney, prepared an answer to the complaint or an answer and counterclaim for divorce, one of the parties will request a preliminary conference.
And at that preliminary conference, the judge will issue an outline as to when all this financial information shall be shared, if there’s going to be custodial evaluations will be ordered.