Divorce in Buffalo & Western New York

Divorce can be one of the most trying times in a person’s life. Alongside the emotional toll come very real worries: Will I be able to keep the home? How much time will I have with my children? What happens to the retirement savings I worked so hard to build? At Bakshi & Leta, Sunil Bakshi and Joseph Leta listen first, then build a structured plan to move you forward efficiently while protecting what matters most.

No two divorces are alike, and the right approach depends on your circumstances, your priorities, and the temperament of your spouse. Some clients want to resolve matters quietly and amicably; others need a firm advocate because the other side will not deal fairly. We have guided clients through both kinds of cases in Buffalo and throughout Western New York, and we stay current on the latest rules and case law so that your strategy reflects the way the courts actually decide these issues today.

How we approach your divorce

The first thing we do is listen. Before recommending any strategy, we want to understand your goals, your fears, and what a good outcome looks like for you and your family. Only then do we build a structured plan designed to move you forward efficiently, one that maps out the issues to be resolved, the order in which to tackle them, and the realistic range of outcomes for each. A clear plan replaces uncertainty with direction, and that alone brings many clients real relief.

From there, our job is to advocate for your fair share of the marital estate while protecting your relationship with your children. We keep you informed at every turn, explain each decision in plain language, and never let you feel like a bystander in your own case. Because we have handled divorces of every size and complexity, we can anticipate where problems are likely to arise and head them off before they become expensive disputes.

Grounds for divorce in New York

New York allows both no-fault and fault-based divorce. The vast majority of cases today proceed on the no-fault ground, which simply requires that the marriage has broken down irretrievably for a period of at least six months. Because no-fault removes the need to prove wrongdoing, it usually reduces conflict and keeps the focus on the practical issues that have to be resolved. Fault grounds, such as cruel and inhuman treatment, abandonment, or imprisonment, still exist, but pursuing them is rarely necessary and can add cost and acrimony to an already difficult process.

Before a divorce can be finalized, the financial and parenting issues must be settled either by agreement or by the court. Those issues generally fall into a handful of categories: the division of marital property and debt, spousal maintenance, and, where children are involved, custody, parenting time, and child support.

Equitable distribution of marital property

New York is an equitable-distribution state. That phrase is widely misunderstood, so it is worth being precise: equitable means fair, not necessarily equal. The court starts by separating marital property from separate property. Marital property is generally everything acquired during the marriage, regardless of whose name is on the title: the house, bank accounts, vehicles, business interests, and the portion of retirement accounts and pensions earned during the marriage. Separate property includes assets owned before the marriage and property received by gift or inheritance, which usually stays with the spouse who owns it.

Once the marital estate is identified, the court divides it after weighing a number of statutory factors. These commonly include:

• The length of the marriage and the age and health of each spouse
• The income and property each spouse brought into the marriage
• Each spouse’s contribution to acquiring marital property, including contributions as a homemaker or parent
• The future financial circumstances of each spouse
• The need of a custodial parent to keep the family home
• The tax consequences of any proposed division

Retirement assets deserve special attention. A pension or 401(k) built up over years of marriage is often one of the largest pieces of the estate, and dividing it correctly usually requires a separate court order. We work to make sure your retirement is valued properly and that you keep your fair share rather than giving away years of hard-earned savings.

Spousal maintenance (alimony)

Spousal maintenance, what many people still call alimony, is financial support paid by one spouse to the other. New York uses statutory guidelines to calculate both the amount and the suggested duration of maintenance, based largely on the incomes of the two spouses and the length of the marriage. The guidelines are a starting point; the court can adjust an award when applying the formula would be unjust or inappropriate given the family’s circumstances. We help clients understand what the guidelines are likely to produce in their case and advocate for a result that is realistic and sustainable on both sides.

Maintenance is one of the areas where experience matters most, because the numbers the guidelines generate are not always the numbers a family can actually live with. A spouse who has been out of the workforce raising children may need support to retrain and regain independence; a paying spouse needs an obligation that leaves room to rebuild his or her own life. We work to find the figure that is fair in light of both households, whether you expect to pay maintenance or to receive it.

Child custody and parenting time

For parents, nothing matters more than their children, and we treat custody with the seriousness it deserves. New York recognizes two kinds of custody: legal custody, which is the right to make major decisions about a child’s health, education, and upbringing, and physical (residential) custody, which is where the child primarily lives. Either kind can be shared jointly or granted primarily to one parent.

Every custody decision is governed by a single standard: the best interests of the child. We work to protect your children with a thoughtful, workable visitation schedule focused on their stability and well-being, one that preserves their relationship with both parents wherever that is healthy and appropriate. When parents can cooperate, a negotiated parenting plan almost always serves the family better than a decision imposed after a bitter fight, and we encourage that path whenever it is realistic.

Child support

Child support in New York is calculated under the Child Support Standards Act, which applies a percentage to the parents’ combined income depending on the number of children. The basic obligation is one piece of the picture; the court also addresses health insurance, unreimbursed medical expenses, and child-care costs. Support can be modified later if circumstances change substantially. We make sure the numbers are calculated correctly from the start so that the order is fair and holds up over time.

The divorce process and timeline

A New York divorce begins when one spouse files and serves a summons. From there, the spouses exchange financial information, attempt to negotiate the open issues, and, if they reach agreement, sign a settlement that the court incorporates into the final judgment. An uncontested divorce, in which everything is agreed, can move relatively quickly. A contested divorce, in which one or more issues are in dispute, takes longer because those matters must be negotiated or decided by the court.

Our goal throughout is to keep your case moving efficiently while protecting your interests. We explain each step in plain language, prepare you for what comes next, and look for every opportunity to resolve matters by agreement so you can avoid unnecessary cost and conflict, without ever sacrificing your fair share of the marital estate or your time with your children.

Protecting what matters most to you

Behind every divorce are a handful of things that keep clients up at night, and our work is organized around protecting them. For most people, those concerns come down to a few essentials:

• Keeping the family home, or securing a fair share of its value
• Preserving meaningful, stable time with their children
• Protecting retirement savings and pensions earned over a career
• Emerging from the process on sound financial footing
• Reaching a resolution efficiently, without needless cost or conflict

We keep these priorities at the center of every decision, and we measure success by whether the final result actually protects them. That focus, combined with our familiarity with how Western New York courts handle these issues, lets us pursue outcomes that are both fair and durable.

Considering divorce mediation instead?

Not every divorce has to be adversarial. Many couples are able to resolve their differences cooperatively and avoid a contentious court battle altogether. If you and your spouse are open to working things out amicably, mediation may save you considerable time, money, and stress while still producing a fair, lasting agreement. You can read more about that option on our divorce mediation page, and we are happy to help you decide which path fits your situation best.

Serving Buffalo and all of Western New York