Divorce is an emotionally taxing process, but it’s especially devastating if you have been abandoned by your spouse without any discussion or warning. If your spouse has left the marital home for seemingly no reason, you likely have a lot of questions, including how your spouse’s desertion can impact your divorce proceedings. Please continue reading to learn how abandonment can affect divorce and how a determined Garden City Divorce Lawyer can help you navigate this difficult time.
What is Abandonment in a Marriage?
To get a divorce in New York, you must have a legally accepted reason. The state allows you the option of filing for a fault divorce based on abandonment or desertion. Generally, you can get a divorce on this ground if your spouse has intentionally left the marital home without consent for at least one year, without any justifiable reason, and there is no reasonable expectation of reconciliation. To constitute abandonment, your spouse must have left voluntarily, meaning you did not force or lock your spouse out of the marital home. It’s important to understand that the absence of consent from the deserted spouse is crucial. If you have permission or agree to live separately, it’s not considered abandonment.
How Can Desertion Impact My Divorce Settlement?
If you are thinking about filing for divorce based on your spouse’s desertion, it’s imperative to understand that pursuing these grounds can significantly impact the resulting divorce settlement. Spousal abandonment can influence the court’s decision regarding property division, child custody, alimony, and child support orders.
New Jersey is an equitable distribution state which means that the court will divide marital property between the spouses in a manner that is fair but not necessarily equal. Although abandonment doesn’t automatically entitle a deserted spouse to a larger share of the marital property, desertion can factor into a judge’s decision as a way to achieve overall fairness. The court may award a greater share of the marital property if the deserting spouse left the marital home and did not contribute to certain expenses.
When it comes to alimony, the court will consider various factors to determine whether they should award it, how much the payments will be, and how long they will last. While the judge’s primary focus will be on the financial aspects of alimony, abandonment can be a factor when the court deems it has hurt the remaining spouse’s financial stability. If the desertion resulted in financial hardship for the deserted spouse, the court may award a higher alimony obligation. Similarly, the court may view abandonment as a type of neglect, which can result in a higher child support obligation. The court may order the deserting spouse to pay more if they leave their family without providing financial support to make up for the neglect.
Furthermore, if one parent has abandoned their family, it can influence the court’s decision on custody arrangements. In most cases, the deserting parent will find it difficult to secure custody or may be granted limited visitation rights if the court finds that the abandonment has negatively impacted the child’s overall well-being.
Filing for divorce under fault grounds can be much more complex, especially when dealing with issues of spousal abandonment. As such, it’s in your best interest to enlist the help of a seasoned lawyer from the Law Offices of Eyal Talassazan, P.C., who can protect your rights and interests.
