Many people who call my Tarrytown office tell me the same thing in a first consultation: "I know the marriage is over, but I can't afford a divorce right now." Sometimes that is true. Often it is only partly true. And either way, you may not have to choose between an expensive divorce and doing nothing.

What New York Family Court can do while you are still married

• Custody and parenting time for your children.
• Child support, calculated under the same Child Support Standards Act formula used in a divorce (Family Court Act § 413).
• Spousal support from your husband or wife. Since 2015, Family Court uses the same guideline formula that Supreme Court uses for temporary maintenance during a divorce (Family Court Act § 412). This is not limited to the parent with the children; a lower-earning spouse may qualify either way. NOTE: A Family Court spousal support order has no set end date. It continues until the spouses agree otherwise, a divorce judgment is entered, or one spouse dies (Family Court Act § 412[10]). If you are the one paying, filing for divorce is how you move to the duration guidelines that apply to post-divorce maintenance.

What Family Court cannot do

• Grant a divorce.
• Divide marital property, retirement accounts, or debts.
• Decide who keeps the marital home as part of dividing property.
• Award post-divorce maintenance.

Is Family Court cheaper than a divorce?

Sometimes, yes. But the savings are not where most people expect.

Filing fees are not the real difference.

There is no filing fee in Family Court. An uncontested divorce in Supreme Court carries roughly $335 in court fees, and those fees can be waived entirely if you qualify for poor person status under CPLR § 1101. Filing fees alone are rarely the reason someone cannot afford a divorce.

The real savings are in the size of the case.

A custody or support case in Family Court involves fewer issues than a divorce: no property to divide, no maintenance to decide, and usually less financial discovery. That generally means a lower retainer and lower overall legal fees than a contested divorce.

Family Court orders carry into the divorce.

If you later divorce, existing Family Court custody and child support orders are typically continued in or incorporated into the Judgment of Divorce, and they can be changed only if the legal standard for modification is met. A custody order can be modified on a change in circumstances such that modification is required to protect the best interests of the child. A child support order can be modified on a substantial change in circumstances, once three years have passed since it was entered or last modified, or if either parent's income has changed by 15% or more (Family Court Act § 451[3]; Domestic Relations Law § 236[B][9][b][2]), unless the parties opted out of those last two grounds in a written agreement. That is a real advantage: issues resolved in Family Court can make the divorce smaller, simpler, and sometimes uncontested. What does not carry over is everything Family Court cannot decide. Property and debts still have to be divided, and a Family Court spousal support order does not become post-divorce maintenance; maintenance is decided in the divorce. So expect two sets of court appearances, even if the second case is narrower.

"I can't afford a lawyer" may not mean you can't get one.

In a divorce, there is a rebuttable presumption that the spouse with more money pays the other spouse's counsel fees, and the court is directed to award those fees early in the case so both sides are fairly represented (Domestic Relations Law § 237). Be realistic about what this takes. You still need a lawyer to start the case and make the request, so there is usually some upfront cost. The request is typically made together with the request for temporary support rather than as a separate motion, and the fees for making it can be included in the award. The judge decides how much to award, if anything, and collecting from a spouse who does not want to pay can take more effort. If you have nothing to put toward a lawyer up front, this is probably not your first step. But if your spouse earns significantly more than you, a divorce may be more affordable than you think.

Is Family Court faster than a divorce?

For child support outside New York City, often yes. In the city, it has historically taken longer, though that is changing. A support magistrate can issue a temporary support order early, and support can be ordered back to the filing date, so you can get help before the case ends. A 2026 Her Justice analysis of statewide court data found that, outside New York City, child support cases ending in a support order took an average of about 3.6 months from filing across the years studied, compared with 10.5 months in the city. By borough, the averages were 12.6 months in Brooklyn, 10.6 in Queens, 9.6 in the Bronx, 9.4 on Staten Island, and 9.0 in Manhattan. The city has been improving: between 2022 and 2025, the average time to a support order fell from 18.1 to 4.3 months in Brooklyn, from 16.4 to 6.7 months in Queens, and from 12.9 to 6.4 months in the Bronx, after the city's Family Courts began piloting a triage and settlement process. Those 2025 figures are preliminary, because many 2025 cases were still open when the data was collected. (The study grouped all counties outside the city together, so there is no Westchester-specific figure.) Family Courts statewide have struggled with backlogs since the pandemic, and in 2024 the Legislature added a Family Court judgeship in each of Westchester and Rockland to help address delays. Custody is different: a contested custody case can take far longer, in either court.

When to start with Family Court

• You need child support or spousal support now and have little or no property to divide.
• You need a clear custody and parenting schedule for your children.
• You are not sure you want a divorce, or you are not ready to file.
• Staying married has real value for now, such as keeping health insurance through your spouse's employer plan, which usually ends at divorce.

When to file for divorce instead

• There are significant assets or debts. Under New York law, the marital estate generally stops growing on the date a divorce action is commenced. A Family Court petition does not stop that clock. Starting a divorce also puts automatic orders in place, binding on the spouse who files immediately and on the other spouse once served. With limited exceptions, they bar transferring or hiding property, withdrawing retirement funds, running up unreasonable debt, and changing insurance coverage (Domestic Relations Law § 236[B][2][b]). A Family Court petition does not. If your spouse is building savings, a business, or a retirement account, or spending marital money, waiting can cost you.
• You and your spouse already agree. A simple uncontested divorce may cost less than months of Family Court appearances followed by a divorce anyway.
• Your spouse is the higher earner. You may be able to have your counsel fees paid as part of the divorce.
• You will need a divorce soon regardless. Family Court orders will carry forward, but property, debts, and maintenance will still need to be resolved in the divorce, so starting in Family Court may only add a step.

How I help Hudson Valley families when a divorce feels out of reach

• A strategy consultation. I look at your income, your spouse's income, your children, and what you own and owe, and map out which court to start in, in what order, and what it is likely to cost.
• Family Court representation. Custody and support orders entered in Family Court generally carry into a later divorce, so getting them right the first time matters. A Family Court case also generally requires a lower retainer than a divorce.
• Counsel fee applications. When your spouse earns significantly more, I evaluate whether a request for counsel fees under Domestic Relations Law § 237 makes sense in your case.
• Planning the sequence. Family Court first, a straight uncontested divorce, or a full divorce action: I help you choose the path that costs the least overall, not just today.

The bottom line

Frequently asked questions 

This post is for general information only and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different; consult an attorney about your specific situation.