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In New York State parties may agree to live pursuant to the terms of a NY separation agreement prior to their divorce. This means stopping the clock on jointly accumulated assets and beginning the separation period. The agreement must set forth rights and duties with respect to important issues such as custody, visitation, child support, distribution of property and all other matters that arise at the end of a marital relationship. The final agreement is then filed with the clerk of the county where either spouse resides. In New York, parties may choose to live pursuant to such an agreement for a period of one year. At the end of that one year period the parties may procure a “no fault” divorce, also known as a conversion divorce.

There are basically three issues to be resolved in any NY separation agreement or divorce:

• Parenting and access (traditionally called custody and visitation);
• Support, which includes child support, if you have children, and spousal support, if appropriate;
• Division of assets and debts that have been accumulated during the marriage.

A Court grants a judgment of separation when either of the parties brings an action for separation in the Supreme Court. A Court may grant separation based upon the following grounds, which are similar to the grounds for seeking a divorce:

• Cruel and inhuman treatment
• Imprisonment for more than three years
• Adultery
• Abandonment for less than one year 
• Non-support

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