The New York Family Court Act, signed into law on April 24, 1962, created a specialized court system to handle disputes involving families and children outside of the criminal courts and the general civil courts.1New York State Senate. New York State Family Court Act It gives Family Court judges authority over child support, custody, visitation, paternity, adoption, guardianship, abuse and neglect, juvenile delinquency, and civil orders of protection for domestic violence. It also sets out how to start a case, how papers must be served, and what rights parties and children have once a case is underway.
Cases Family Court Handles
Section 115 of the Act divides Family Court’s authority into two buckets. Some case types belong to Family Court alone as a first filing (exclusive original jurisdiction), and others can be heard in either Family Court or Supreme Court (concurrent jurisdiction).2New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act FCT 115 – Jurisdiction of Family Court
Family Court has exclusive original jurisdiction over:
- Abuse and neglect proceedings under Article 10
- Child support cases under Article 4
- Paternity cases under Article 5
- Termination of parental rights under Article 6, Part 1
- Persons in Need of Supervision (PINS) under Article 7
- Juvenile delinquency under Article 3
Adoption, guardianship, custody, visitation, family offenses, and interstate family support share jurisdiction with the Supreme Court. In practice, that distinction matters most when custody or support is tangled up with an active divorce: a Supreme Court justice already presiding over the divorce can either keep the custody or support piece or refer it to Family Court.
What Family Court Cannot Do
New York’s Family Court cannot grant a divorce. Only the Supreme Court can dissolve a marriage, divide marital property, or award spousal maintenance as part of a divorce decree.2New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act FCT 115 – Jurisdiction of Family Court If you need both a divorce and a custody or support order, you’ll either handle everything in Supreme Court or file the divorce there and bring the Family Court petition separately.
Unmarried parents, or married parents who aren’t ready to file for divorce, can still use Family Court for custody, visitation, and child support on a standalone basis.
Child Support Under Article 4
Article 4 governs the financial obligations parents owe for the care of their children, and the Child Support Standards Act embedded in it provides the calculation.3New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act Article 4 – Support Proceedings The court takes combined parental income, applies a set percentage based on the number of children, and divides the obligation proportionally between the parents.
The statutory percentages are:
- One child: 17% of combined parental income
- Two children: 25%
- Three children: 29%
- Four children: 31%
- Five or more children: at least 35%
Those percentages apply to income up to a statutory cap that adjusts periodically. Above the cap, the judge has discretion to apply the same percentages or weigh other factors like the child’s needs and the parents’ finances. Support orders can also require contributions toward health insurance and childcare.
Both sides have to complete a Financial Disclosure Affirmation and bring recent pay stubs, tax returns, and W-2s.4New York State Unified Court System. New York Family Court Form 4-17 – Financial Disclosure Affirmation A short-form version is available for simpler cases and asks for two recent pay stubs, tax returns, W-2s or 1099s, and proof of any public assistance.5New York State Unified Court System. Financial Disclosure Affidavit (Short Form)
Paternity, Custody, and Guardianship
Article 5 sets the procedure for establishing who is the legal father of a child, either through court-ordered genetic testing or a voluntary acknowledgment signed by both parents.6New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act Article 5 – Paternity Proceedings Once paternity is confirmed, support and visitation can be addressed in the same proceeding.
Article 6 covers more than its reputation suggests. It governs custody and visitation, guardianship, adoption, and the permanent termination of parental rights.7New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act Article 6 – Permanent Termination of Parental Rights, Adoption, Guardianship and Custody Custody decisions turn on the best interests of the child. A judge can grant legal custody (decision-making), physical custody (where the child lives), or both, to one or both parents. Guardianship allows a non-parent to obtain legal authority over a child when the parents are unable to care for them.
Abuse and Neglect Under Article 10
Article 10 is the Act’s child protection vehicle. A case usually begins when a local child protective agency files a petition alleging abuse or neglect by a parent or caretaker.8New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act Article 10 – Child Protective Proceedings The Act distinguishes the two categories. An abused child is one whose parent or caretaker has inflicted serious physical injury through non-accidental means, created a substantial risk of such injury, or committed certain sexual offenses against the child. A neglected child is one whose physical, mental, or emotional condition has been harmed or is at imminent risk because a caretaker failed to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, education, medical care, or supervision.9New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act FCT 1012
If the court finds that abuse or neglect occurred, it can order services for the family, place the child with a relative, or in severe cases, remove the child from the home. Termination of parental rights under Article 6 can follow when a parent is found to have permanently neglected a child or when the abuse is severe or repeated.
Juvenile Delinquency and PINS
Article 3 covers juvenile delinquency cases, which involve minors accused of acts that would be crimes if committed by an adult.10New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act Article 3 – Juvenile Delinquency These proceedings move from an initial appearance to a fact-finding hearing (the equivalent of a trial) and, if the allegations are proved, a dispositional hearing where the judge chooses an outcome ranging from conditional discharge to placement in a facility. The emphasis is rehabilitative rather than punitive.
Article 7 handles a separate track called Persons in Need of Supervision, or PINS.11New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act Article 7 – Proceedings Concerning Whether a Person Is in Need of Supervision A PINS case involves a child under 18 who repeatedly skips school, runs away, behaves dangerously, or refuses to follow reasonable rules at home.12New York Courts. Person in Need of Supervision (PINS) PINS cases are not criminal. They connect families with services, counseling, or supervision before behavior escalates.
Family Offenses and Orders of Protection
Article 8 is the civil remedy for domestic violence and harassment between family or household members.13New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act Article 8 – Family Offenses Proceedings Qualifying offenses include assault, harassment, stalking, menacing, strangulation, reckless endangerment, criminal mischief, coercion, and the non-consensual sharing of intimate images, among others.14New York State Unified Court System. Family Offense Petition
You start by filing a Family Offense Petition. A judge can issue a temporary order of protection the same day, before the other party appears. After a hearing, the judge can issue a final order that restricts contact, excludes the offender from the home, or imposes other conditions.15New York Courts. Basic Steps in a Family Offense Petition Case Because jurisdiction is shared with criminal court, you can seek protection in Family Court while a criminal prosecution runs separately.
How to Start a Case and Serve Papers
Most Family Court cases begin with a written petition that names the parties and any children, states what you’re asking for, and lays out the facts behind the request.16New York Courts. Starting a Case in Family Court Depending on the type of case, the clerk may also want birth certificates, photo identification, or proof of income. Ask the clerk’s office what applies to your petition before you file. Forms are available at the clerk’s office or through the Unified Court System’s website.17New York Courts. Forms
After filing, the court issues a summons that must be delivered to the other party along with the petition. The summons and petition have to reach the other party at least eight days before the scheduled court date.18New York City Human Resources Administration. Serving a Child Support Summons You cannot serve the papers yourself. Someone over 18 who is not a party to the case must hand-deliver them, then complete and sign a notarized Affidavit of Service that you file with the court. Without that affidavit, the judge will not proceed. If personal delivery fails, the statute allows alternatives such as leaving copies with a person of suitable age at the other party’s home or workplace and mailing an additional copy.19FindLaw. New York Family Court Act FCT 427 – Service of Summons
When Parents Live in Different States
If the parents and child are spread across state lines, the first question is which state can decide the case. Under the federal Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act, every state must honor custody orders from the child’s “home state,” meaning the state where the child lived with a parent for at least six consecutive months immediately before the case was filed.20Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1738A – Full Faith and Credit Given to Child Custody Determinations For infants under six months old, the home state is wherever the child has lived since birth. Temporary absences count toward the six months.
If no state qualifies as the home state, the court with the most significant connection to the child and the most available evidence about the child’s care can take jurisdiction. An emergency exception lets a court in any state issue temporary orders when a child is physically present and at risk of abuse or mistreatment.20Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 1738A – Full Faith and Credit Given to Child Custody Determinations New York has adopted the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act, which mirrors these standards and provides the procedure for enforcing out-of-state custody orders in New York.
Rights During a Family Court Case
Right to a Lawyer
Section 261 of the Act recognizes that people in certain Family Court cases face the possible loss of a child’s society or the possibility of criminal charges, and so have the right to assigned counsel when they cannot afford an attorney.21New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act FCT 261 – Legislative Findings and Purpose The right applies most forcefully where parental rights or personal liberty are on the line, including child protective proceedings, termination of parental rights, and juvenile delinquency cases.
Attorney for the Child
In cases under Articles 3, 7, and 10, as well as foster care placement and termination of parental rights, the court must appoint an attorney for the child.22New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act FCT 249 In other proceedings, the judge may appoint one at their discretion. In juvenile delinquency and PINS cases the attorney functions as a defense lawyer. In other proceedings, when the child is old enough to express a knowing and considered judgment, the attorney is directed by the child’s own wishes even when the attorney personally thinks a different outcome would be better.23New York State Unified Court System. Become an Attorney for the Child
Privacy of Records
Family Court records are not open to the general public. Section 166 closes them to indiscriminate inspection, though a judge may permit access case by case.24New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act FCT 166 – Privacy of Records Court regulations identify who can review filings, decisions, and transcripts: the parties and their attorneys, parents or legal guardians when a child is involved, the child’s attorney, child protective agencies, and authorized agencies holding custody of a child.25Legal Information Institute. New York Comp. Codes R. and Regs. Tit. 22 205.5 – Privacy of Family Court Records Prosecutors in related criminal cases can obtain access under specific conditions, but any disclosed records must stay confidential and cannot be shared beyond that proceeding.
Special Protections for Military and Native American Families
Two federal statutes change how a Family Court case proceeds when they apply.
Active-duty military parents can pause proceedings under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. The court must grant a stay of at least 90 days when the servicemember files an application showing that current military duties materially affect their ability to appear, with a letter from a commanding officer confirming that leave is not authorized. The statute expressly covers child custody. If the court denies a request for an additional stay beyond the initial 90 days, it must appoint an attorney for the servicemember.26Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3932 – Stay of Proceedings When Servicemember Has Notice
The Indian Child Welfare Act imposes a higher evidentiary bar on any state court case that could remove a Native American child from a parent or Indian custodian. Before ordering foster care placement, the court must find by clear and convincing evidence, including testimony from a qualified expert witness, that keeping the child with the parent would likely cause serious emotional or physical harm. Termination of parental rights requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt.27Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 25 USC 1912 – Pending Court Proceedings Courts and caseworkers who know or have reason to know a child may be a member of a tribe must notify the tribe and follow ICWA’s placement preferences throughout the case.