Long Island Family Court handles child support, custody, visitation, paternity, orders of protection, and child welfare cases through three courthouses: a new Nassau County facility in Mineola, and Suffolk County locations in Central Islip and Riverhead. If your paperwork lists the old Westbury address, it is out of date. Divorce itself is not heard here; that goes to Supreme Court.
Where to File in Nassau and Suffolk
Nassau County’s Family Court moved in mid-2025. The courthouse at 1200 Old Country Road in Westbury closed permanently on May 30, 2025, and all Family Court and matrimonial matters are now heard at 101 County Seat Drive, Mineola, NY 11501, which opened June 2, 2025.1New York Courts. 10th Judicial District Nassau Older forms, letters, and web pages still show the Westbury address. Ignore them.
Suffolk County runs two courthouses because of its size. The main facility is at 400 Carleton Avenue in Central Islip, serving the western and central parts of the county.2New York Courts. Suffolk County Family Court Services Residents of the eastern towns use the Arthur M. Cromarty Court Complex at 220 Center Drive in Riverhead. Which one you file in depends on the township where you or the children live.
What Kinds of Cases the Court Hears
The Family Court Act defines the court’s jurisdiction, which is exclusive in some areas and shared with the criminal courts for family offenses.3New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act 115 – Jurisdiction of Family Court The main case categories:
- Child support under Article 4. Support magistrates, not judges, handle most of these hearings to move them along. Spousal support belongs here too when there is no divorce pending in Supreme Court.4New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act 439-a – Expedited Process for Support Cases
- Paternity under Article 5. A paternity finding is a prerequisite before an unmarried parent can pursue child support or custody.
- Custody and visitation under Article 6. Decisions turn on the child’s best interests, not either parent’s preference.
- Family offenses and orders of protection under Article 8, covering domestic violence, harassment, stalking, and similar conduct between family or household members. The court can order no contact, stay-away provisions, or exclusion from a shared home.5New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act 812 – Procedures for Family Offense Proceedings
- Abuse and neglect proceedings under Article 10.
- Juvenile delinquency (Article 3) and PINS cases (Article 7) involving minors.
Adoption, guardianship, and termination of parental rights are also heard in Family Court. Divorce is not. If you need a divorce judgment, you file in Supreme Court, even though the custody and financial issues overlap.
If you file a family offense petition and are in immediate danger, the court can issue a temporary order of protection the same day, which stays in place until a full hearing on the petition.
Preparing and Filing a Petition
Every case starts with a petition. Before you fill anything out, pull together the full legal names, dates of birth, and current addresses for yourself, the other party, and any children involved.
Official petition forms are available on the New York Courts website or at the clerk’s office in any of the three courthouses.6New York Courts. Family Forms Each form asks for the relationship between the parties and the specific relief you want. Incomplete forms get rejected, and everything in the petition is sworn under oath, so accuracy matters.
Family offense petitions need concrete detail: specific dates, locations, and descriptions of what happened. “On March 15, the respondent followed me to my workplace and refused to leave” is more useful to a judge than a general statement that someone has been harassing you.
Submit completed paperwork at the clerk’s window of the appropriate courthouse. You can also mail documents to the Mineola, Central Islip, or Riverhead locations. The state’s Electronic Document Delivery System is not currently available for Nassau or Suffolk Family Court filings, so plan to file in person or by mail.7New York State Unified Court System. Electronic Document Delivery System
Serving the Other Party
Once you file, the court assigns a docket number and issues a summons with a court date. You are responsible for getting the papers into the respondent’s hands through a process called service.
A copy of the petition must be served on the respondent at the time of service or, if that is not possible, at the first court appearance.8New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act 154-a – Service of Petition You cannot serve the papers yourself. The server has to be at least 18 and not a party to the case. A friend, an uninvolved family member, or a professional process server can do it. Professional servers typically charge $60 to $100.
After delivery, the server completes an affidavit of service describing when, where, and how the papers were handed over. File that affidavit with the court. Without proof of service the case cannot move forward.
The First Court Appearance
The first appearance usually happens within a few weeks of filing, though the timing depends on the case type and the court’s calendar. At that appearance the judge or support magistrate confirms service was completed, identifies what is in dispute, and sets a schedule.
If you qualify for an assigned attorney but have not yet been matched with one, the court may briefly adjourn to arrange representation. In support cases, the magistrate often tries to settle the amount at the first appearance; if the parties cannot agree, the case goes to a hearing where both sides put on evidence.
Custody and visitation cases take longer. The court may order a forensic evaluation, appoint an attorney for the child, or send the parties to mediation before holding a full hearing. These matters often stretch over months because the judge needs a detailed picture of each parent’s home and relationship with the child.
How Child Support Gets Calculated
New York applies a formula under the Child Support Standards Act rather than leaving the number to a judge’s discretion. The court combines both parents’ incomes, subtracts allowed deductions such as taxes and Medicare, and then applies a fixed percentage based on the number of children:9New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act 413 – Parents Duty to Support Child
- One child: 17% of combined parental income
- Two children: 25%
- Three children: 29%
- Four children: 31%
- Five or more: 35%
These percentages apply to combined income up to a statutory cap, which for 2026 is $193,000. Above that cap, the judge decides whether to keep applying the percentages or weigh other factors. The noncustodial parent’s share is calculated proportionally based on how much of the combined income that parent earns. Childcare and health insurance costs are typically split on top of the basic obligation.
Financial Documents to Bring
Support cases require a Financial Disclosure Affidavit and backup paperwork:10New York State Unified Court System. Financial Disclosure Affidavit Short Form
- Your two most recent pay stubs
- Your most recent federal and state tax returns
- W-2s or 1099 statements
- Documentation of other income, debts, and loans
- Proof of health insurance coverage and cost, including coverage available through your employer even if you have not enrolled
- Proof of public assistance if applicable
- Receipts for childcare expenses
- Copies of any existing support orders
Showing up without this material delays the case. Magistrates rely on documented income, and missing tax returns or pay stubs usually mean an adjournment while you produce them.
Getting a Lawyer Assigned
New York guarantees assigned counsel for people who cannot afford a lawyer in several Family Court case types. The judge is required to tell you about this right at your first appearance.11New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act 262 – Assignment of Counsel You can get a free lawyer in:
- Family offense proceedings, for either side
- Custody cases where a parent is contesting loss of custody
- Abuse and neglect proceedings
- Paternity proceedings, for the respondent
- Contempt proceedings where jail is possible
- Adoption proceedings where a parent opposes the adoption
Children in abuse, neglect, delinquency, and certain custody cases get their own lawyer, called the attorney for the child, who represents the child’s wishes and interests separately from either parent.12New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act 249 – Appointment of Attorney for Child
For case types outside that list, including most routine child support petitions, the judge has discretion but petitioners frequently appear without counsel.
Changing an Existing Order
If circumstances have shifted since your current order was entered, you can petition to modify it. For child support, New York recognizes three grounds:13New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act 451 – Modification of Orders
- A substantial change in circumstances, such as job loss, serious illness, or a major shift in a child’s needs
- Three or more years having passed since the order was entered or last modified
- A change of 15% or more in either parent’s gross income since the order was set, with reductions qualifying only if involuntary and the parent has genuinely tried to find comparable work
The three-year and 15% grounds apply automatically unless the parties opted out in a written agreement. Custody modifications use a different standard: a change in circumstances significant enough that the current arrangement no longer serves the child’s best interests.
When Someone Ignores the Order
A Family Court order is enforceable. If someone fails to pay support, violates custody terms, or breaks an order of protection, the other party can file a violation petition.
For a willful violation of any lawful Family Court order, the court can impose up to six months in jail for contempt, modify the existing order, add conditions, or order the violating party to pay the other side’s attorney fees.5New York State Senate. New York Family Court Act 812 – Procedures for Family Offense Proceedings
Violating an order of protection carries extra weight because it can also become a criminal charge. Criminal contempt in the first degree is a felony and applies when someone violates a protection order by threatening the protected person, repeatedly following them, making harassing communications, or subjecting them to physical contact.14New York State Senate. New York Penal Law 215.51 – Criminal Contempt in the First Degree A prior conviction within the preceding five years elevates the penalties further. A respondent can face Family Court consequences and criminal charges at the same time.
Appealing a Decision
If you believe the judge misapplied the law, you can appeal to the Appellate Division. The appellate court reviews the existing record. It does not retry the case or take new testimony.
The Notice of Appeal is due 30 days after you are served with the order and written notice of its entry. If the order is served by mail, you get 35 days.15New York Courts. Starting an Appeal The deadlines are firm; a late filing gets dismissed. Common grounds include misapplication of the law, procedural errors that changed the outcome, or a decision so unsupported by the evidence that it amounts to an abuse of discretion.
If you had assigned counsel in Family Court and remain financially eligible, you can request assigned appellate counsel.
Free Legal Help on Long Island
The Legal Aid Society of Nassau County provides free representation in Family Court matters for Nassau residents who meet income limits.16Legal Aid Society of Nassau County. Family Court Bureau For cases Legal Aid does not cover, the Nassau County Bar Association’s Lawyer Referral Service is at (516) 747-4832.
Suffolk County residents can contact the Suffolk County Legal Aid Society or the Nassau Suffolk Law Services Committee for family offense, custody, and support representation. The clerk’s office at the Mineola or Central Islip courthouse can also point you to resources. Reaching out early, even for a single consultation, prevents the kind of procedural missteps that are hard to undo later.