New York Family Court Information, Location and Rules for Public Access

In the U.S., there is a strong legal system that maintains a clearly defined hierarchy. There are federal courts in each state, and there are state courts as well. The state courts are also broken down according to jurisdiction over particular types of cases they can hear and pass judgments on. At the highest level is the state Supreme Court which is the ‘last resort’ court. There is also the intermediary Appeals Court which hears appeals from the lower trial courts.

When you are about to approach the courthouse for some legal opinion or intervention, you will need to know which court has the jurisdiction to hear your case. For example, if your case involves some family or domestic matters, then you will need to go to the New York Family Court.

Getting to Know the New York Family Court

The Family Court deals with cases that involve families and children. This court has the jurisdiction to hear cases involving matters of support, visitation and custody. It also enjoys concurrent jurisdiction with the Criminal Court in matters of family offenses such as domestic violence, delinquency, proceedings for child protection where there is neglect or abuse, supervision, the approval of foster care and its review, parental right termination, guardianship and adoption. Many mistakenly believe that the Family Court also deals with cases of divorce. This is not the case, as these issues go to the Supreme Court.

Getting In Touch with the New York Family Court

Are you facing an urgent domestic legal complication, and need to petition the court? To do so, you need to first be aware of the proper procedure to contact the New York Family Court. Family courts are present in several counties in New York, and the one you need to contact depends on your own location of residence.

You can get detailed information on these courts by visiting the state website at http://www.nycourts.gov/courts/nyc/family/infobycounty.shtml.

In case of any confusion regarding the mechanism of the New York Family Court framework, you can also get in touch with the authorities over phone. The number to be used for this is 1(212) 374-3700.

Family courts are present in five separate locations within the State of New York. The places that are served by these Family Courts are as follows:

i)    Bronx
ii)    Brooklyn (Kings Family Court)
iii)    Manhattan (both the Family Court, as well as a term for Enforcing Child Support)
iv)    Staten Island (Richmond Family Court)
v)    Queens Family Court

Legal Implications Related to Filing a Case in the Family Courts of New York

If you are looking to file a lawsuit with any of the New York Family Courts, you need to first introduce your case to the court as a written petition. The petition is a valid formal legal document, through which you seek the assistance of the court to settle domestic disputes.
After the petition has been filed, the case will pass through different stages. These stages of a domestic lawsuit can be traced in the following manner:

a)    Acknowledging the Paternity of Child: A child’s mother as well as his/her biological father have to convince the Family Courts that the person is truly the father/mother.
b)    Adjournment In Contemplation of Dismissal: Such adjournments in a domestic trouble lawsuit can last for up to a period of six months
c)    Adjourning the case: This refers to the suspension of the family lawsuit under consideration, until further legal notices are issued.

All applications for the initiation of a domestic lawsuit in the Family Courts have to be made using specified and valid forms. These forms can be Common Forms or specific Family Court forms. All of these forms can be acquired from the state's legal website.