The Village of Larchmont is its own incorporated village, and it sits entirely inside the Town of Mamaroneck. A divorce for a Larchmont resident is still filed in one place: the New York State Supreme Court for Westchester County, in White Plains. Gregory Salant, a family and matrimonial attorney and partner at Harold, Salant, Strassfield & Rotbard, LLP, represents Village of Larchmont residents in divorce matters. The firm’s only office is at 81 Main Street, Suite 205, White Plains. There is no firm office in Larchmont.
The material below is a general overview of New York matrimonial law and of where a Larchmont divorce is brought. It is not legal advice, and it does not describe a likely outcome.
A village inside the Town of Mamaroneck
The Village’s official history page states that Larchmont “is incorporated within the Town of Mamaroneck.” Village Hall and the Village Justice Court are at 120 Larchmont Avenue, Larchmont, NY 10538. Being inside the Town of Mamaroneck does not make Larchmont the same municipality as the Village of Mamaroneck or as the Town’s unincorporated area. Those are different municipalities and are not the subject of this page. This page is written for people who live in the Village of Larchmont.
Village Court is not the divorce court
On the Village’s official court page, the Larchmont Justice Court adjudicates criminal matters, traffic summonses, parking violations, and Village code violations issued within the Village, and it also handles small-claims and other civil and criminal cases originating there. Court sessions are held in the courtroom at Village Hall, on the second floor. None of that jurisdiction includes the power to grant a divorce, an annulment, or a judgment of separation.
The Town of Mamaroneck also has a Town Court, at 740 West Boston Post Road, Mamaroneck, NY 10543. That court, too, is a local justice court. It is not the court that dissolves a marriage.
A divorce, an annulment, or a judgment of separation can be entered only by the New York State Supreme Court for Westchester County. That court sits at the Richard J. Daronco Courthouse, 111 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, White Plains, NY 10601.
How the Supreme Court case begins
A Larchmont case typically starts with a summons with notice, or a summons and verified complaint, which must be filed and then served. Residency rules apply as well. Whether they are satisfied is a fact question that can be taken up in a consultation.
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. Even on that ground, the court does not enter a judgment until the financial and parenting issues have been resolved or determined and are set out in the judgment. The statute contains seven grounds. Statewide procedure is discussed on the Westchester divorce and White Plains divorce pages.
Meetings with counsel and many court appearances take place in White Plains, at or near 81 Main Street, Suite 205.
Larchmont Station and the trip to White Plains
Larchmont Station is a Metro-North stop on the New Haven Line, a fact confirmed both on the Village’s official history page and on the MTA’s station page. White Plains is a Harlem Line station. A trip that begins on the New Haven Line is not a same-line trip to the courthouse. The station is a fact about the Village. It does not change the filing court, no particular route is required, and no travel time is stated here.
Mamaroneck Union Free School District and parenting decisions
Mamaroneck Union Free School District, with offices at 1000 West Boston Post Road, Mamaroneck, NY 10543, states that its students come from the Village of Larchmont, the Village of Mamaroneck, and the Town of Mamaroneck. The district for a particular home should still be confirmed by address.
If there are children, custody, parenting time, and child support are ordinarily decided in the same Supreme Court action. Judges apply a best-interests standard. The school a child currently attends, or the district that serves the home, may be relevant. Nothing in the statute automatically keeps the child in that school or district, or requires an equal parenting-time schedule. Where each parent will live after the case, how a calendar can be made to work, and the child’s ties to the Village can all be part of the discussion. They do not dictate a result. More on these issues is on the child custody and parenting time page.
The house and other property
The marital home in a Larchmont matter is often both a major asset and a short-term housing question. Who remains in the house while the action is pending, whether it will be sold or one spouse will buy out the other, and who will pay the mortgage, taxes, and similar expenses all turn on how title is held, any separate-property contributions, the equity and the debt, and what else is in the marital estate. The law does not automatically award the house to either spouse.
New York divides marital property by equitable distribution under Domestic Relations Law § 236(B). The result is supposed to be fair in light of the statutory factors, not a mandatory half-and-half split, and not a community-property division. The court may take into account a custodial parent’s need to occupy or own the marital residence. By itself, that factor is not a right to retain the home.
A professional practice, closely held business, deferred compensation, or equity awards appear in some Village cases. There is no single dollar threshold in the statute that makes a case “high-net-worth.” Identification, classification, and valuation are taken up on the high-net-worth divorce page.
An agreed case, or issues still open
An uncontested divorce may be available when the spouses have already resolved, or nearly resolved, everything that has to be decided. The papers still must be filed in Supreme Court in White Plains, and the court may still request further information or an appearance. When the agreement is complete, this is often the more efficient way to conclude the case. It is not a discounted form of representation.
A case is contested when parenting, the home, other property, or support remains open. In Westchester that commonly involves starting and serving the case, attending a preliminary conference, exchanging financial disclosure, seeking temporary relief if needed, negotiating, and going to trial in White Plains if the remaining issues stay open. Some matters settle; others are decided after trial. No typical timeline or outcome should be assumed.
Family Court cannot dissolve the marriage
Family Court cannot dissolve a marriage, enter an annulment, or issue a judgment of separation. Westchester County Family Court currently operates three locations: 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 building would hear a particular petition. Larchmont residents are not assigned to one of those three 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 is independent of the divorce may be heard in Family Court.
Asking for a meeting
If you would like to discuss a Village of Larchmont divorce with Gregory Salant, schedule a consultation or call (914) 683-2500. Confidential or detailed case information should not be placed in an unreviewed website form. A message sent through this site is not enough, by itself, to create an attorney-client relationship.
Papers already served, agreements or orders already entered, and a brief list of questions are a useful starting point. If you have income-tax returns, a deed or a mortgage statement, payroll or equity-award paperwork, account records, or financials for a business or practice, bring those as well. An incomplete file need not delay a request for 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 a Larchmont divorce at Village Hall on Larchmont Avenue?
No. The Justice Court at 120 Larchmont Avenue cannot grant a divorce, and neither can the Town of Mamaroneck Court at 740 West Boston Post Road. Filing is in Supreme Court, at 111 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in White Plains.
Is Larchmont its own town?
No. Larchmont is an incorporated village entirely within the Town of Mamaroneck. It is not the Village of Mamaroneck, and it is not the Town’s unincorporated area. A Larchmont resident still files a Westchester divorce in Supreme Court in White Plains.
Larchmont Station is on the New Haven Line. Does that make the courthouse a same-line trip?
No. White Plains is served by the Harlem Line, a different line. The station is a fact about the Village; it does not change the filing court, and no travel time is stated on this page.
Mamaroneck Union Free School District serves Larchmont. Does that decide custody?
No. The district, based at 1000 West Boston Post Road, states that its students come from the Village of Larchmont, among other communities, but the district for a particular home should still be confirmed. Parenting decisions are made under a best-interests standard, not a rule that a child must remain in a particular school or district.
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