Alimony Lawyer Brooklyn

Spousal maintenance, commonly called alimony, is one of the financial issues a New York court must address before a Brooklyn divorce can be finalized, whether the case proceeds on the no-fault ground or a fault ground. Because a judgment of divorce under the no-fault ground cannot be entered until maintenance and the other economic issues are resolved, maintenance is often at the center of settlement discussions and, where the parties cannot agree, court proceedings in Kings County. Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. represents Brooklyn clients seeking maintenance and clients responding to a maintenance claim, at both the temporary and post-divorce stages of a case.

Mr. Sris, Owner and Founder of Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C., is individually admitted to practice law in New York, Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, and New Jersey, and the firm’s Of Counsel attorneys work on Brooklyn maintenance matters alongside him. New York’s maintenance framework applies a statutory guideline formula that considers each spouse’s income, and the firm helps clients understand how that formula applies to their own financial circumstances, including where income falls relative to the statutory cap and self-support reserve. The firm does not offer free consultations; a consultation can be scheduled by calling the firm. The firm’s intake line is staffed 24/7 at (888) 437-7747.

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What Alimony Means in Brooklyn

New York’s maintenance framework is set out in two related provisions of N.Y. Dom. Rel. Law § 236(B). Temporary, or pendente lite, maintenance during a pending divorce is governed by DRL § 236(B)(5-a), while post-divorce maintenance is governed by DRL § 236(B)(6). Both provisions apply a guideline formula built around the higher-earning spouse’s income, called the payor, and the lower-earning spouse’s income, called the payee. Where the payor is the non-custodial parent and child support will also be paid, the guideline amount is the lower of two calculations: subtracting 25% of the payee’s income from 20% of the payor’s income, or subtracting the payee’s income from 40% of combined income. Where child support will not be paid, or the payor is the custodial parent, the calculation instead uses 20% and 30% in place of 25% and 20%.

Both provisions apply this formula only up to a statutory income cap, stated in the text as a base of $184,000 of the payor’s annual income. The statute directs that beginning March 1, 2020, and every two years thereafter, the cap increases by a formula tied to the average annual change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers over the prior two years, and it is the Office of Court Administration, not the statute itself, that determines and publishes the current adjusted cap. For income above the cap, additional maintenance is discretionary and guided by a list of statutory factors rather than the formula.

Both provisions also protect a self-support reserve for the payor, below which the guideline calculation cannot reduce the payor’s income and below which there is a rebuttable presumption against any award. Post-divorce maintenance under DRL § 236(B)(6) additionally includes an advisory duration schedule tied to the length of the marriage, and the court retains authority to deviate from the guideline amount or duration based on enumerated factors, provided it states its reasoning on the record.

How Mr. Sris and the Firm’s Of Counsel Attorneys Handle These Cases

When a Brooklyn client raises a maintenance issue, Mr. Sris and the firm’s Of Counsel attorneys begin by gathering the financial information the guideline formula requires under DRL § 236(B)(5-a) and § 236(B)(6): both spouses’ income as defined by the Child Support Standards Act, the length of the marriage, and where the parties’ combined circumstances fall relative to the statutory income cap and self-support reserve. That financial picture determines which version of the formula applies and whether the case is likely to involve income above the cap, which shifts the analysis to the statute’s discretionary factors.

The firm then evaluates whether the facts support a deviation from the guideline amount or, for post-divorce maintenance, from the advisory duration schedule, based on the statutory factors the court is required to consider, such as the parties’ health, earning capacity, the effect of terminating child support, and the marital standard of living. Mr. Sris and the firm’s Of Counsel attorneys prepare the sworn financial disclosure Kings County Supreme Court requires and present the client’s position on amount and duration accordingly.

Where maintenance can be resolved by agreement, the firm negotiates toward a settlement that reflects the statutory framework and the client’s priorities. Where it cannot, the firm prepares for a contested hearing in Kings County Supreme Court, coordinating financial documentation, witness preparation, and legal argument under the guideline statutes. Throughout the matter, the firm explains how the formula and its cap and reserve mechanisms apply to the client’s own numbers, without predicting a specific award, since the ultimate amount and duration rest with the court applying the statutory factors to the full record.

Mr. Sris and the Firm’s Of Counsel Attorneys

Mr. Sris founded Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. in 1997 and has served as Owner and Founder since. As a former prosecutor, he brings a fact-focused approach to contested financial issues, including maintenance disputes where the parties disagree about income or the applicable formula. He is individually admitted to practice law in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and New York, an admission that covers the Brooklyn maintenance matters the firm handles in Kings County Supreme Court. His background in accounting and information systems from George Mason University supports the firm’s approach to the income calculations and financial disclosure that the maintenance guideline formulas require.

The firm’s Of Counsel attorneys contract directly with Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. and assist Mr. Sris on Brooklyn maintenance matters, from temporary maintenance motions early in a case through post-divorce maintenance determinations at judgment. The firm’s principal office is in Fairfax, Virginia, and Brooklyn clients are served by appointment. The firm does not offer free consultations; call (888) 437-7747 to schedule a consultation, and the intake line is staffed 24/7.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between temporary and post-divorce maintenance?

Temporary maintenance under DRL § 236(B)(5-a) applies while a divorce is pending and terminates no later than entry of the divorce judgment. Post-divorce maintenance under DRL § 236(B)(6) applies after judgment and uses a similar guideline formula plus an advisory duration schedule tied to the length of the marriage.

How is the maintenance amount calculated?

Both statutes apply a guideline formula comparing the payor’s and payee’s income, using either a 25%/20% offset or a 20%/30% offset depending on whether child support will also be paid, subject to a statutory income cap and a self-support reserve that protects a minimum amount of the payor’s income.

Is there a maximum income the maintenance formula applies to?

Yes. Both statutes cap the guideline formula at a stated base of $184,000 of the payor’s annual income, which increases every two years according to a Consumer Price Index-based formula. The Office of Court Administration, not the statute itself, publishes the current adjusted cap; income above the cap is addressed through discretionary factors rather than the formula.

Can a court order maintenance for the rest of a spouse’s life?

DRL § 236(B)(6) sets out an advisory duration schedule based on marriage length, but the statute expressly preserves the court’s ability to award non-durational maintenance in an appropriate case, so a fixed-term result is not guaranteed by the schedule alone.

Does fault affect whether I can receive maintenance in a Brooklyn divorce?

The statutory maintenance formulas under DRL § 236(B)(5-a) and § 236(B)(6) are built around income and the length of the marriage rather than which ground the divorce is granted on. The firm reviews each client’s full financial picture to explain how the guideline formula applies regardless of which of the seven grounds under DRL § 170 is pleaded.

This page provides general information and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Case results depend on a variety of factors unique to each case. Results may vary.

Attorney Advertising. Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C., principal office: 4008 Williamsburg Court, Fairfax, VA 22032. By appointment. Call (888) 437-7747 to schedule.

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