Charo Ezdrin
Former prosecutor for the Nassau County Attorney’s Office. Opened her own firm in 2010.
View profile02 / Matrimonial & Divorce
The hardest year of your life should not also be the longest.
What happens to the house. Who the children live with. How often you see them. Whether you can still support everyone. These are not easy questions and the answers are sometimes hard to accept.
Contested, or not
A divorce is contested when one spouse wants to end the marriage and the other does not, or when you disagree about maintenance, marital property, assets, pensions or custody.
It is uncontested when you both agree the marriage should end and you substantially agree on custody and on how the assets should be divided. That case belongs in mediation, and it will cost you a fraction of the other route.
Most people do not know which one they are in when they first call. Working that out is the first thing we do.
Mediation, and whether it is for you
Mediation is usually the least adversarial and the least expensive way to obtain a divorce. It avoids most of the emotional entanglement a full contested case brings, and you should consider it before either of you retains an attorney.
You do not have to agree on everything first. The mediator explains the law to both spouses, gives guidance on what is fair and equitable, and helps you resolve the disagreements without the cost of court intervention.
- You can reasonably agree, or think you can, on custody, property, maintenance and support
- There are no children, or custody and visitation are not in dispute, and the marital assets are limited
- You agree on most of it and need guidance to close the remaining gaps
- You are both simply ready to be done and to move on
Choosing the lawyer
Your attorney should be available, should answer your questions, and should still be professional and courteous when the other side is not. They will be protecting your rights and helping you chart your future, so you need to have confidence in them.
We will not rush you out the door, and we will take the time to address your concerns. If after meeting us you do not feel comfortable with this firm, we would encourage you to keep looking until you find an attorney you connect with. That is genuinely our advice.
Common questions
A contested divorce is one where one spouse wants to terminate the marriage and the other does not, or where the spouses disagree about custody, visitation, spousal maintenance, child support or the distribution of marital property. An uncontested divorce is one where both spouses agree on ending the marriage and on those major factors.
We can file a modification petition where the payee is unable to be self-sufficient, where there has been a substantial change in the payor’s circumstances including financial hardship, or where partial or full retirement of the payor has substantially changed their finances.
We can file a contempt motion. It asks the court to hold a hearing where the non-compliant spouse must explain why they have not complied. A spouse found in violation can be held in contempt, and a judge can impose sanctions including money damages or incarceration.
A separation agreement is a written contract between spouses controlling the rights and responsibilities of each while living apart. Its benefits include the ability to remain on a spouse’s health insurance plan, and reaching agreement on the distribution of marital property before a divorce action is commenced.
Who handles this
Start here
Tell us what is happening.
The consultation is free. Calls are answered around the clock, and the office is at 50 Jackson Avenue, 2nd Floor in Syosset.
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