Gov. David Paterson has signed into law a bill allowing for “no-fault” divorce in New York State. New York was the last state in the union to allow for such a divorce. Under the new law, as long as one couple claims that the marriage has been “irretrievably broken” for at least 6 months, the couple can be granted a divorce.
Welcome to the 21st century, New York. Although New York is the last state to allow for a “no-fault” divorce, many other states, including North Carolina, require a one year separation period. I have had numerous clients ask me if there is anyway to get around this, and unfortunately, there is not. I would very much like to see North Carolina adopt a more progressive rule that would allow couples to get a divorce without being separated at all, as is the case in Florida. However, I don’t see that happening anytime soon.
I would also like to see mandatory mediation for all cases filed in court – before the parties are allowed to appear in front of a judge – but we can’t always get what we want, can we?