New York Divorce Law Blog : New York Divorce Lawyer & Attorney : Law Offices of David A. Gabay, PC : Serving New York City, Long Island, Suffolk County, Nassau County

In an historic decision, a New York State Supreme Court Justice in Broome County has granted a lesbian couple a divorce. In her decision, Justice Molly Fitzgerald granted the request of Lauren Wells-Weiss to divorce her partner, Shari Weiss. The women were married in Canada in 2004. Shari Weiss was represented by Joseph Meagher. Lauren Wills-Weiss was represented by Judith Osburn.

This decision appears to be the first time a trial judge in New York has approved a same sex divorce.

I spoke with Judith Osburn today, and according to her here is what happened in the case:  Shari Weiss filed a partition action against Lauren Wells-Weiss regarding a home they shared together but which Shari bought about 3 months before the marriage.  Lauren counter-claimed for divorce.  The Court eventually determined that it would try the partition action before the divorce case and would not allow Lauren to make equitable distribution claims concerning the home.  That decision paved the way for a settlement of the divorce action.

The stipulation in the case was placed on the record orally on March 12 or 13.  The Court accepted the stipulation, and the parties are now submitting the final judgment of divorce to the Court.

I wonder what effect this decision will have on the pending actions for divorce among same sex couples, including one case I am now handling in Suffolk County. Perhaps it will be the end of the debate on the question of whether same sex divorce in New York is permissible. Or, it might be the beginning of a process which will ultimately be settled by the Court of Appeals. 

I also know that there are many other attorneys working on similar cases throughout the state.

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One of the more difficult issues faced by couples who are divorcing in the current economic environment is how to divide retirement or deferred compensation benefits, especially defined benefit plans such as a 401(k), SEP, or IRA.

New York law specifies that the ‘cut off’ date for classifying retirement assets as either martial property or separate property is the date on which a divorce action is commenced. The law also provides for a range of dates for valuing the marital portion of the account, ranging from the commencement date through the trial date.

Courts have developed certain standards for determining which valuation date should be applied to a particular asset class such as retirement and deferred compensation accounts. Under certain circumstances, the Courts may value the asset as of the date of commencement and under others it may use the trial date as the valuation point.

A problem arises in today’s economy where after the commencement of a divorce action the marital portion of the retirement assets declines in value. Disagreements arise over which party should bear the cost of that decline. Some common discussion points are:

1.                  Is the account actively managed (traded) by either or both spouses?

2.                  Which spouse is responsible for selecting the assets held in the account?

3.                  Which spouse should bear the risk of the asset declining during the time the divorce case proceeds in Court.

4.                  How are the post-commencement contributions into the account valued?

Unfortunately, there seems to be very little guidance from the Courts at this time as to how they are dealing with these issues in this new economic environment. In the absence of any definitive authority, it is extremely important for people going through a divorce to have as much factual information about their retirement assets as they can obtain and to carefully think through and negotiate this complex issue.

If you or someone you know would like more information on this topic, please feel free to contact my office.

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