Title FCT, Family Court

§ 435. Procedure; adjournment; confidentiality of requests. (a) Hearings are conducted by the court without a jury. The court may adjourn the hearing to enable it to make inquiry into the surroundings, conditions and capacities of the child, into the financial abilities and resp…

§ 436. Competence of spouse. Wives and husbands are competent witnesses against each other in a hearing under section four hundred thirty-three and may testify to non-access in such a hearing.

§ 437. Presumption of sufficient means. A respondent is prima facie presumed in a hearing under section four hundred thirty-three and section four hundred fifty-four to have sufficient means to support his or her spouse and children under the age of twenty-one years.

§ 437-a. Referral to work programs. In any proceeding to establish, decrease or enforce an order of support, if the support obligor is unemployed, the court may require the support obligor to seek employment, or to participate in job training, employment counseling or other prog…

§ 438. Counsel fees. (a) In any proceeding under this article, including proceedings for support of a spouse and children, or for support of children only, or at any hearing to modify or enforce an order entered in that proceeding or a proceeding to modify a decree of divorce, s…

§ 439. Support magistrates. * (a) The chief administrator of the courts shall provide, in accordance with subdivision (f) of this section, for the appointment of a sufficient number of support magistrates to hear and determine support proceedings. Except as hereinafter provided,…

§ 439-a. Expedited process. (a) When used in this section, expedited process means a process in effect in the family court which reduces the processing time of support order establishment and enforcement efforts from the date of successful service of process on the respondent to…

§ 440. Order of support. 1. (a) Any support order made by the court in\nany proceeding under the provisions of article five-B of this act,\npursuant to a reference from the supreme court under section two hundred\nfifty-one of the domestic relations law or under the provisions o…

§ 441. Order dismissing petition. If the allegations of a petition under this article are not established by competent proof, the court shall dismiss the petition. If a neglect petition was filed in the support proceeding, the court retains jurisdiction over the neglect petition…

§ 442. Order of support by a spouse. If the court finds after a hearing that a husband or wife is chargeable under section four hundred twelve with the support of his or her spouse and is possessed of sufficient means or able to earn such means, the court shall make an order req…

§ 443. Order of support by parent. If the court finds after a hearing\nthat a parent is chargeable under section four hundred thirteen of this\nact with the support of his or her child and is possessed of sufficient\nmeans or able to earn such means, the court shall make an orde…

§ 445. Order of support by relative; duration. (a) If the court finds after a hearing that a relative, including a step-parent, should be held responsible under section four hundred fifteen for support, the court in its discretion may make an order requiring such person to contr…

§ 446. Order of protection. The court may make an order of protection in assistance or as a condition of any other order made under this part. The order of protection may set forth reasonable conditions of behavior to be observed for a specified time by the petitioner or respond…

§ 446-a. Firearms; surrender and license suspension, revocation and ineligibility. Upon the issuance of an order of protection or temporary order of protection, or upon a violation of such order, the court shall make a determination regarding the suspension and revocation of a l…

§ 447. Order of visitation. (a) In the absence of an order of custody or of visitation entered by the supreme court, the court may make an order of custody or of visitation, in accordance with subdivision one of section two hundred forty of the domestic relations law, requiring …

§ 448. Enforcement by income deduction. Orders of support shall be enforceable pursuant to section fifty-two hundred forty-one or fifty-two hundred forty-two of the civil practice law and rules, or in any other manner provided by law. The family court is hereby authorized to ent…

§ 449. Effective date of order of support. 1. Any order of spousal support made under this article shall be effective as of the date of the filing of the petition therefor, and any retroactive amount of support due shall be paid in one sum or periodic sums, as the court shall di…

§ 451. Continuing jurisdiction. 1. Except as provided in article five-B of this act, the court has continuing jurisdiction over any support proceeding brought under this article until its judgment is completely satisfied and may modify, set aside or vacate any order issued in th…

§ 453. Petition; violation of court order. Proceedings under this part shall be originated by the filing of a petition containing an allegation that the respondent has failed to obey a lawful order of this court. (a) Persons who may originate and prosecute proceedings. The origi…

§ 454. Powers of the court on violation of a support order. 1. If a respondent is brought before the court for failure to obey any lawful order of support and if, after hearing, the court is satisfied by competent proof that the respondent has failed to obey any such order, the …

§ 455. Commitment. 1. The court may at any time suspend an order of commitment upon such reasonable conditions, if any, as the court deems appropriate to carry out the purposes of this article without placing the respondent on probation or may place him on probation under such c…

§ 456. Probation. (a) No person may be placed on probation under this article unless the court makes an order to that effect, either at the time of the making of an order of support or under section four hundred fifty-four. The period of probation may continue so long as an orde…

§ 457. Order of sequestration on failure to obey support order. If an order of support is made under this article and the respondent has failed to obey it and either leaves or threatens to leave the state, the court on application may issue an order of sequestration of his prope…

§ 458-a. Enforcement of arrears; Suspension of driving privileges. (a) If the respondent has accumulated support arrears equivalent to or greater than the amount of support due pursuant to court order for a period of four months, the court may order the department of motor vehic…

§ 458-b. Child support proceedings and enforcement of arrears; suspension of state professional, occupational and business licenses. (a) If the respondent has accumulated support arrears equivalent to or greater than the amount of support due pursuant to court order for a period…

§ 458-c. Child support proceedings and enforcement of arrears;\nsuspension of recreational licenses. (a) If the respondent has\naccumulated support arrears equivalent to or greater than the amount of\nsupport due pursuant to court order for a period of four months, the\ncourt ma…

§ 459. Additional arrears. If a respondent has failed to obey a lawful order under this article the party seeking enforcement may amend the petition to include any additional arrears which have accrued from the commencement of such enforcement proceeding up to the date of the he…

§ 460. Entry and docketing of a money judgment. 1. Where the family court enters an order: (a) requiring any party to provide for the support of another party, or child, or both; or (b) providing for the support or maintenance of a spouse or former spouse, or child, or both, on …

§ 461. Duty to support child after separation agreement, separation, or termination of marriage. (a) A separation agreement, a decree of separation, and a final decree or judgment terminating a marriage relationship does not eliminate or diminish either parent's duty to support …

§ 462. Effect of support order in matrimonial action on duration of family court support order for child. Any order of the family court requiring support of a child terminates when the supreme court makes an order in an action for divorce, separation or annulment providing for t…

§ 463. Effect of separation agreement on duty to support a spouse. A separation agreement does not preclude the filing of a petition and the making of an order under section four hundred forty-five of this article for support of a spouse who is likely to become in need of public…

§ 464. Effect of pendency of action for divorce, separation or annulment on petition for support of a spouse. (a) In a matrimonial action in the supreme court, the supreme court on its own motion or on motion of either spouse may refer to the family court an application for temp…

§ 465. Effect of denial of support in action for separation. After final adjudication of an action for separation in which the supreme court denies support to a spouse, the family court may entertain a petition and make an order for support of such spouse (a) under section four …

§ 466. Effect of granting of support in action for divorce, separation or annulment. (a) The supreme court may provide in an order or decree granting temporary or permanent support or maintenance in an action for divorce, separation or annulment that only the family court may en…

§ 467. Referral by supreme court of applications to fix custody in action for divorce, separation or annulment. (a) In an action for divorce, separation or annulment, the supreme court may refer to the family court the determination of applications to fix temporary or permanent …

§ 469. Rules of court; venue. (a) Rules of court under section four hundred twenty-four of this article may be made applicable with such modifications, if any, as may be appropriate to the determination of applications referred to the family court by the supreme court under part…

§ 471. Undertaking for support and cash deposits. The court may in its discretion require either a written undertaking with sufficient surety approved by the court or may require that cash be posted to secure compliance by the respondent with the order for support for such perio…

§ 472. Undertaking to be filed. If the property securing the undertaking consists of real estate, the undertaking shall be filed with the county clerk of the county in which the real estate is located and the same shall constitute a lien upon the real estate specified in the und…

§ 473. Substitution of surety. The court may at any time thereafter, before or after there has been a default, if all arrears have been paid in case there shall have been a default on such undertaking, accept a new undertaking in lieu of the original undertaking, and the court s…

§ 474. Default. A default in the terms of the order shall constitute a breach of the undertaking. When there has been a default the court shall cause an affidavit to be drawn, verified and filed by any person familiar with the facts. The surety shall thereupon be personally serv…

§ 475. Procedure as to defaults. If the surety contests the default the court shall hear and determine the issue. In the event that the court finds that a default has been suffered, it shall make an order specifying the amount in default and forfeiting the undertaking or cash de…

§ 476. Forfeitures applied to support of petitioner. (a) All sums collected from the surety by judgment as well as forfeited cash deposits shall be applied by the clerk of court to the support of the petitioners for whose benefit the order for support was made. Subsequent defaul…

§ 477. Surrender of respondent by surety. A surety may at any time surrender a respondent to the court. The respondent shall thereupon be dealt with as provided in the order for support. If the arrears on the order for support with interest thereon are paid in full, the court ma…

§ 478. Termination of surety's liability. Whenever the liability on an undertaking has ceased, the court shall make an order to that effect. Upon receipt of a certified copy of the order, the county clerk shall discharge of record the lien of the undertaking.

§ 479. When new security required. After an undertaking has been given or cash has been deposited and it shall appear upon proof by affidavit either (a) that a judgment entered upon default can not be collected; or (b) that the liability of the surety has ceased; or (c) that the…

§ 511. Jurisdiction. Except as otherwise provided, the family court has exclusive original jurisdiction in proceedings to establish paternity and, in any such proceedings in which it makes a finding of paternity, to order support and to make orders of custody or of visitation, a…

§ 512. Definitions. When used in this article, (a) The phrase "child born out of wedlock" refers to a child who is begotten and born out of lawful matrimony. (b) The word "child" refers to a child born out of wedlock. (c) The word "mother" refers to the mother of a child born ou…

§ 513. Obligation of parents. Subject to the provisions of paragraph (f) of subdivision six of section three hundred ninety-eight of the social services law, each parent of a child born out of wedlock is chargeable with the support of such child including the child's funeral exp…

§ 514. Liability of father to mother. The father is liable for the reasonable expenses of the mother's confinement and recovery and such reasonable expenses in connection with her pregnancy as determined by the court; provided, however, where the mother's confinement, recovery a…

§ 515. Governmental obligation to child. In case of the neglect or inability of the parents to provide for the support and education of the child, it shall be supported by the county, city or town chargeable therewith under the provisions of the social welfare law.