NY Matrimonial & Family Law 1 Flashcards

Under the Child Support Standards Act (CSSA), DRL § 240(1-b), what is the basic child support percentage of combined parental income applied when there is one child?

Answer: 17%

The CSSA sets the basic child support percentage at 17% of combined parental income for one child. The percentages increase with the number of children: 25% for two, 29% for three, 31% for four, and no less than 35% for five or more children.

Under DRL § 230, which of the following independently satisfies New York's residency requirement to maintain a divorce action?

Answer: The parties were married in New York and at least one spouse has been a continuous resident for one year preceding the action

DRL § 230 sets out several independent jurisdictional bases. One is that the parties were married in New York and at least one spouse has been a continuous New York resident for one year prior to commencement of the action. A two-year continuous residency by either party is a separate, alternative basis.

Under DRL § 7, which of the following renders a New York marriage voidable rather than void ab initio?

Answer: One spouse lacked the mental capacity to consent at the time of the marriage

Under DRL 7, lack of capacity to consent (want of understanding) makes a marriage voidable: valid until annulled by a court. Bigamous marriages (DRL 6) and incestuous marriages (DRL 5) are void ab initio and require no court action to be invalid.

Under DRL § 170(6), after a couple executes a valid written separation agreement, how long must the parties live separately pursuant to that agreement before either may convert the separation into a divorce?

Answer: One year

DRL § 170(6) requires that the parties have lived separate and apart pursuant to a written, acknowledged separation agreement for one year before either party may obtain a judgment of divorce on that ground.

Under DRL § 236(B)(1)(d), which of the following constitutes separate property not subject to equitable distribution in a New York divorce?

Answer: A cash gift received by one spouse from a third party during the marriage

DRL § 236(B)(1)(d) defines separate property to include gifts from third parties received by one spouse during the marriage. Marital wages, property acquired with marital funds, and increases in value attributable to spousal effort are marital property subject to equitable distribution.

Under New York Family Court Act § 842, which of the following directives may properly be included in a final order of protection issued by the Family Court?

Answer: A directive that the respondent stay away from the petitioner's home, school, and place of employment

FCA § 842 expressly authorizes the Family Court to direct a respondent to stay away from the petitioner's home, school, business, or place of employment. Orders of protection are civil in nature and do not constitute criminal convictions; termination of parental rights requires a separate proceeding under FCA Article 6.