Gotham Gazette - http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/law/20060307/13/1781

Divorce, New York-Style
by Emily Jane Goodman
07 Mar 2006

A Matrimonial Commission appointed by Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye, to study the legal problems of divorce New York style, has issued a report with findings and recommendations. If the recommendations are adopted, the commission predicts a change in the culture and proceedings of the "matrimonial parts" of state Supreme Court, and also the city's Family Courts.

The commission, chaired by Associate Appellate Division Justice Sondra Miller, and comprised primarily of lawyers and judges, recommends a series of changes which are designed, in part, to move divorce to a higher level of judicial priorities.

The bar, the bench and the public have welcomed most of the recommendations, which include:

• more emphasis on mediation
• streamlined court procedures
• the hiring of social workers
• parent education
• sensitivity training
• and changes in terminology -- for example, "visitation" would become "parenting time."

There is one recommendation, though, that is highly controversial. The commission says it is time for the New York state legislature to enact "no fault divorce."