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Governor David A. Paterson signed a package of bills into law, finalizing no-fault divorce law in New York.
The signature officially makes New York one of the last states which allows couples to seek a divorce by mutual consent.
This bill allows couples to mutually consent to the dissolution of their marriage without having to prove that one party is at fault of any of the formerly acceptable grounds for divorce. Prior to the signing of the bill, couples had to prove that one committed adultery, subjected the other to cruelty, imprisonment, or is guilty of spousal abandonment.
The bill also allows one spouse to divorce the other unilaterally.
Supporters of the bill maintain that the signing of this bill into law will put an end to the institutionalized perjury where people falsely accuse their spouse just to get a divorce.
On the other hand, opponents of the bill maintain that it will only succeed in raising the divorce rate in the city.
In a statement made by Governor Paterson, he said “Finally, New York has brought its divorce laws into the 21st century. These bills fix a broken process that produced extended and contentious litigation, poisoned feelings between the parties and harmed the interests of those persons — too often women — who did not have sufficient financial wherewithal to protect their legal rights. I commend the sponsors on providing a real and effective legislative solution to a problem that has for too long bedeviled ordinary New Yorkers.” |
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