What's happening
This bill requires both parties in an annulment or divorce to remove religious barriers to remarriage within ninety days, or face fines.
Why it matters
Protects individuals—especially women in some religious traditions—from being denied the ability to remarry. by making it a legal requirement for both parties to remove religious or conscientious barriers (such as a “get” in Jewish law) within 90 days of divorce or annulment proceedings.
Imposes significant financial penalties ($2,500 per week) for non-compliance. , creating a powerful incentive for cooperation and discouraging the use of religious barriers as leverage in divorce negotiations.
Allows for mutual agreement to waive the requirement. , giving both parties some flexibility if they jointly decide the removal of religious barriers is unnecessary, while still ensuring protections for those who need them.
May impact negotiations and power dynamics in divorce cases. , potentially reducing the ability of one party to exert religious or personal control over the other’s future marital options.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Remove Religious Divorce Barriers
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to judiciary
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
10171
IN ASSEMBLY
March 22, 2018
Introduced by M. of A. L. ROSENTHAL -- read once and referred to the Committee on Judiciary
AN ACT to amend the domestic relations law, in relation to requiring all parties to an annulment or divorce to remove religious barriers to remarriage
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 9 of section 253 of the domestic relations law is renumbered subdivision 10 and a new subdivision 9 is added to read as follows:
9. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivisions two, three, four and five of this section, in any action or proceeding to annul a marriage or to file for a divorce, both parties shall remove any religious or conscientious barrier to remarriage as described in subdivision six of this section within ninety days of filing for such annulment or divorce. A person who fails to comply with the requirements of this subdivision shall be subject to a fine of twenty-five hundred dollars per week until such barriers to remarriage are removed, unless the other party has waived in writing the requirements of this subdivision.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it shall have become a law and shall apply to actions and proceedings commenced on or after such effective date.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15075-02-8
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.