The Town of Eastchester includes more than one municipality. The Town’s official local snapshot states that it includes the incorporated villages of Bronxville and Tuckahoe, as well as the remainder of the Town, often referred to simply as Eastchester. A person who lives in the unincorporated Town, in Bronxville, or in Tuckahoe files for divorce in the same court: the New York State Supreme Court for Westchester County, in White Plains. This page is written for people who live in the Town of Eastchester outside those two villages. People who live in the Town of Eastchester are represented by Gregory Salant, a family and matrimonial attorney and partner at Harold, Salant, Strassfield & Rotbard, LLP. The firm’s only office is at 81 Main Street, Suite 205, in White Plains, the city where Westchester County divorce cases are heard. There is no firm office in Eastchester.
This page is a general description of New York law and of where an Eastchester divorce is filed. It is not legal advice, and it does not describe a likely result.
The Town, the villages, and Town Court
Town offices and the Eastchester Town Court are at 40 Mill Road, Eastchester, NY 10709. On the Town’s official court page, sessions are held in the courtroom at the Municipal Building at that address. Town Court hears traffic matters, violations of Town ordinances, landlord-tenant proceedings, criminal matters, parking matters, and small claims. It cannot grant a divorce, an annulment, or a judgment of separation.
The villages have their own justice courts. Those courts, too, are local forums. They are not the court that dissolves a marriage. Bronxville and Tuckahoe are separate incorporated villages and are not the subject of this page, except to explain how the Town is organized.
A Town of Eastchester divorce is brought in the New York State Supreme Court for Westchester County, at the Richard J. Daronco Courthouse, 111 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, White Plains, NY 10601.
How the Supreme Court case is started
The first filing is usually a summons with notice, or a summons and verified complaint, which must be served after it is filed. Residency rules also apply. Whether they are satisfied depends on the facts and can be taken up when you meet with counsel.
Domestic Relations Law § 170(7), often called no-fault, is used in many cases. One spouse states under oath that the marital relationship has been irretrievably broken for a period of at least six months. A judgment is still withheld until finances and parenting have been settled or decided and are included in the judgment. Seven grounds are listed in the statute. The Westchester divorce and White Plains divorce pages describe the statewide framework in more detail.
Conferences, many appearances, and meetings with counsel typically take place in White Plains, at or near 81 Main Street, Suite 205.
Three public school districts in the Town
The Town’s official snapshot lists three public school districts: Eastchester Union Free School District, Tuckahoe School District, and Bronxville Schools. Eastchester Union Free School District has offices at 580 White Plains Road, Eastchester, NY 10709. Which of the three districts serves a particular home depends on the address and should be confirmed.
If there are children, the Supreme Court action generally decides custody, parenting time, and child support as well. Courts apply a best-interests standard. Evidence about a current school or about whichever of the Town’s three listed districts serves the home may be relevant. No statute automatically keeps a child in that school or district, or requires equal parenting time. Each parent’s planned residence, the school calendar, and a child’s community ties can matter in a particular case. They do not dictate an outcome. Further discussion is on the child custody and parenting time page.
Harlem Line stations listed by the Town
The Town’s official snapshot lists Crestwood, Tuckahoe, and Bronxville stations as being on Metro-North’s Harlem Line. White Plains is also a Harlem Line stop. That may be relevant to travel toward the courthouse or toward meetings with counsel. It does not change the filing court. This page does not state a route or travel time.
Property, the home, and support
The marital residence in an unincorporated-Town matter may be a major asset, a short-term housing issue, or both. Questions of who stays in the house during the case, whether it will be sold or bought out, and who pays the mortgage, taxes, and similar expenses turn on title, any separate-property contributions, the equity and the debt, and the balance of the marital estate. The law does not automatically award the house to either spouse.
Domestic Relations Law § 236(B) calls for equitable distribution: a fair allocation under statutory factors, not a mandatory even division, and not a community-property split. The court may weigh a custodial parent’s need to occupy or own the marital residence. That is one factor, not a right to keep the home.
A professional practice, deferred compensation, equity awards, or a business interest may be in the estate in some Town cases. The statute does not define “high-net-worth” by a single dollar amount. Identification, classification, and valuation are discussed on the high-net-worth divorce page.
When the issues are already settled, and when they are not
Couples who have already settled, or nearly settled, every issue that has to be decided may be able to go forward with an uncontested divorce. Supreme Court in White Plains still receives the papers and may still request additional information or an appearance. Finishing an agreed case this way is often more efficient than litigating open issues. It is not offered as a discounted service.
A contested case is one in which parenting, the house, other property, or support remains unresolved. The usual Westchester path is commencement and service, a preliminary conference, financial disclosure, possible temporary applications, settlement discussions, and a trial in White Plains if the remaining issues stay open. Some cases settle; others go to trial. No standard timetable or outcome should be assumed.
Family Court is a different system
Family Court has no authority to grant a divorce, an annulment, or a judgment of separation. Current sites include 111 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in White Plains; 131 Warburton Avenue, 3rd floor, in Yonkers; and 26 Garden Street, 3rd floor, in New Rochelle. Confirm with the court which of those buildings would hear a particular Family Court petition. Town of Eastchester residents are not assigned to one of them on this page.
Custody or support issues that travel with the divorce are generally decided in the Supreme Court case in White Plains. A family proceeding that stands apart from the divorce may still be heard in Family Court.
Scheduling a meeting
If you would like to meet with Gregory Salant about a Town of Eastchester divorce, schedule a consultation or call (914) 683-2500. Confidential or detailed case facts should not be put into an unreviewed website form. A message sent through this site is not enough, by itself, to create an attorney-client relationship.
It is useful to bring papers already received, agreements or orders already in place, and a short list of questions. Helpful records, when available, include income-tax returns, a deed or mortgage statement, pay stubs or equity-award paperwork, account records, and financials for a business or practice. You need not have a complete file before requesting a meeting.
Schedule a consultation · (914) 683-2500
Gregory Salant, Partner, Harold, Salant, Strassfield & Rotbard, LLP
81 Main Street, Suite 205, White Plains, NY 10601
(914) 683-2500 · gsalant@haroldsalant.com
Frequently asked questions
Do I file an Eastchester divorce at Town Court on Mill Road?
No. Eastchester Town Court, at 40 Mill Road, cannot grant a divorce. Filing is in Supreme Court, at 111 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in White Plains.
I live in the unincorporated Town. Do I use the Bronxville or Tuckahoe Village Court for the divorce?
No. Neither village court can grant a divorce, and those villages are separate municipalities. A resident of the unincorporated Town files in Supreme Court in White Plains, just as a resident of either village would.
The Town lists three school districts. Does that decide custody?
No. The Town’s official snapshot lists Eastchester Union Free School District, Tuckahoe School District, and Bronxville Schools. Which district applies depends on the address. Custody and parenting time are decided under a best-interests standard. The law does not require a child to remain in a particular school or district.
The Town lists Harlem Line stations. Does that change the filing court?
No. The Town’s official snapshot lists Crestwood, Tuckahoe, and Bronxville stations on the Harlem Line, and White Plains is also a Harlem Line stop. Travel options do not change the court that hears the divorce. This page does not state a route or travel time.
Serving Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Orange and Dutchess Counties, and the Bronx, Manhattan and the other New York City counties.
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