How High and How Long Can Alimony in New York Go? Attorney Lisa Zeiderman
Matthew Brickman sits down to speak with Lisa Zeiderman, managing partner of her own firm in New York, focuses on high-net-worth divorce cases involving complex financial assets and custody litigation, while Matthew specializes in child custody and mediation.
Lisa discusses the role of attorneys for children in New York, who advocate for the child’s expressed wishes, and the lengthy, complex process of custody cases involving forensic evaluations and court backlog.
Financial aspects such as forensic accounting, vocational experts, and alimony considerations—including the impact of domestic violence—are explored. Both express skepticism about collaborative divorce, favoring mediation as a voluntary, well-timed process after discovery.
The discussion clarifies New York’s dual court system for family matters, child support rules extending to age 21 or beyond in special cases.
Lisa also provides insights into the practical challenges and legal nuances of family law in New York, emphasizing the importance of thorough preparation and realistic expectations.
Lisa Zeiderman | Managing Partner, Miller Zeiderman, LLP
Matrimonial and Family Law Attorney
Serving New York City, Westchester, Long Island and Beyond.
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🎧 Have questions or stories to share? Email us at MBrickman@iChatMediation.com.
If you have a matter, disagreement, or dispute you need professional help with then visit iMediate.com – Email mbrickman@ichatmediation or Call (877) 822-1479
Matthew Brickman is a Florida Supreme Court certified family and appellate mediator who has worked in the 15th and 19th Judicial Circuit Courts since 2009 and 2006 respectively. But what makes him qualified to speak on the subject of conflict resolution is his own personal experience with divorce.
Their advice will help you deal with:
• Divorce (contested/uncontested with/without children, property, assets, debts)
• Parental Rights
• Paternity Cases and Rights
• Parenting
• Child Custody (Timesharing)
• Alimony and Spousal Support
• Child Support and Arrears
• Document Assistance
• Visitation
• Prenuptial & Postnuptial Agreements
• Post-judgement Modifications
• Family Disputes
• Business & Contract Disputes
• Employment: Employer/Employee Disputes
• Real Estate: Landlord – Tenant Disputes
• In-person Mediation
• Online Virtual Mediation
If you have a matter, disagreement, or dispute you need professional help with then visit iMediate.com – Email mbrickman@ichatmediation or Call (877) 822-1479
Download Matthew’s book on iTunes for FREE:
You’re Not the Only One – The Agony of Divorce: The Joy of Peaceful Resolution
Matthew Brickman
President iMediate Inc.
Mediator 20836CFA
iMediateInc.com
Hi, I’m Matthew Brickman, Florida Supreme court mediator. Welcome to the Mediate This! Podcast where we discuss everything mediation and conflict resolution.
Matthew Brickman sits down to speak with Lisa Zeiderman, managing partner of her own firm in New York, focuses on high-net-worth divorce cases involving complex financial assets and custody litigation, while Matthew specializes in child custody and mediation.
Professional Backgrounds
Matthew Brickman and Lisa Zeiderman discuss their career paths
leading to family law. Both transitioned from creative
fields—fashion and cosmetology—to legal professions inspired by
personal divorce experiences. This background informs their
empathetic and practical approach to family law cases.
• Matthew shares his journey from cosmetology to family law
inspired by his own divorce experience.
• Lisa explains her shift from fashion industry to matrimonial
law after her divorce.
• Lisa notes her negotiation skills from fashion help in legal
practice.
Family Law Focus Areas
Lisa specializes in high-net-worth family law cases involving
complex financial issues like business valuations and
cryptocurrency, as well as custody disputes. Matthew focuses
more on child-related custody matters, drawing from his personal
experience with prolonged post-divorce child issues.
• Lisa focuses on high-net-worth cases with complex financial
assets.
• Matthew emphasizes his experience with custody and child-
related issues.
• Lisa handles custody trials and is sometimes appointed as
attorney for children.
Attorney for Children Role
Lisa explains the role of attorneys for children in New York, who
represent the child’s expressed wishes rather than substituting
their own judgment. This contrasts with guardians ad litem who
act in the child’s best interest. The attorney advocates for the
child’s preferences, especially as the child gets older.
• Lisa clarifies attorneys for children represent the child's
desires, not just best interests.
• Guardians ad litem substitute their judgment to advise the
court on best interests.
• Older children’s preferences carry more weight in custody
decisions.
Custody Case Process and Duration
Custody cases in New York often take over a year due to court
backlog, discovery, forensic evaluations, and multiple
conferences. If parents agree, cases can resolve in weeks.
Forensic evaluators conduct extensive interviews and testing to
inform custody decisions.
• Lisa states custody cases usually last over a year due to
court backlog and evaluations.
• Forensic evaluators interview parties, children, and collateral
sources.
• Agreed custody cases can be resolved quickly, often within
weeks.
Financial Aspects in Divorce
Lisa discusses the financial discovery process involving forensic
accountants to value businesses and trace premarital property.
Vocational experts may be used to impute income. Alimony
duration is generally tied to marriage length with statutory caps,
rarely lifetime, and domestic violence is a new factor considered.
• Forensic accountants assist in valuing complex assets and
tracing premarital property.
• Vocational experts help determine earning capacity of
spouses.
• Alimony duration is linked to marriage length with rare lifetime
awards.
• Domestic violence is now a factor in alimony determinations.
Collaborative Divorce and Mediation
Lisa and Matthew express skepticism about collaborative divorce,
citing high costs and potential for wasted resources if the process
fails. They advocate for mediation as a voluntary, effective
process after discovery is complete, emphasizing timing and
preparation for successful settlements.
• Lisa criticizes collaborative divorce for being expensive and
often ineffective.
• Matthew notes mediation is collaborative and should occur
after discovery.
• Both agree mediation should be voluntary and well-timed for
best results.
Court Systems and Litigation
New York has both Family Court and Supreme Court handling
family matters. Family Court handles custody and support for
unmarried parents, while Supreme Court handles divorce and
ancillary issues. Pro se litigants are common in Family Court but
less so in Supreme Court.
• Family Court handles custody and support for unmarried
parents.
• Supreme Court handles divorce and related issues.
• Pro se litigants are more common in Family Court.
Child Support and Alimony Rules
Child support in New York extends to age 21, with possible
extensions to 22-26 for college or cognitive disabilities. Alimony is
modifiable but difficult to change once agreed, with duration linked
to marriage length and lifestyle. Lifetime alimony is rare.
• Child support generally continues until age 21, extendable for
college or disabilities.
• Alimony duration is based on marriage length with statutory
caps.
• Lifetime alimony is very rare in New York.
Domestic Violence and Dependency Cases
Domestic violence is a significant factor in custody and alimony
cases, with discovery including police and medical records. Child
protective services and court-ordered investigations may be
involved. Allegations of abuse are common but require thorough
investigation.
• Domestic violence impacts custody and alimony decisions.
• Child protective services conduct investigations when abuse
is alleged.
• Allegations of abuse are frequent but must be substantiated
through discovery.
Trends in Divorce and Paternity
Lisa notes an increase in divorces, while Matthew observes a rise
in paternity cases among younger, unmarried parents. Both see
more prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, often requiring legal
cleanup due to missing elements or poor drafting.
• Divorces are increasing according to Lisa.
• Paternity cases are rising among younger, unmarried parents
per Matthew.
• Prenuptial and postnuptial agreements are more common but
often need legal review.
If you have a comment or question regarding anything that we discuss, email us at info@ichatmediation.com that’s info@ichatmediation.com and stay tuned to hear your shout out and have your question answered here on the show.
For more information about my services or to schedule your mediation with me, either in person or using my iChatMediation Virtual Platform built by Cisco Communications. Visit me online at www.iMediateInc.com. Call me at 561-262-9121, Toll-Free at 877-822-1479 or email me at MBrickman@iChatMediation.com.
ABOUT
MATTHEW BRICKMAN
Matthew Brickman is a Florida Supreme Court certified family and appellate mediator who has worked in the 15th and 19th Judicial Circuit Courts since 2009 and 2006 respectively.
He was also a county civil and dependency mediator who mediated hundreds of small claims, civil and child-related cases. Matthew was a certified Guardian Ad Litem with the 15th Judicial Circuit. He recently completed the Harvard Law School Negotiation Master Class which is strictly limited to 50 participants and the Harvard Business School’s Negotiation Mastery program as one of the 434 high-level professionals in a student body from across the globe, all with multiple degrees and certifications from the most prestigious institutions.
