Opinion
2012-09-26
Stephanie KING, appellant, v. Charles KING, respondent.
Paul D. Stone, P.C., Tarrytown, N.Y., for appellant. Braunstein & Zuckerman, White Plains, N.Y. (Lawrence Jay Braunstein of counsel), for respondent.
Paul D. Stone, P.C., Tarrytown, N.Y., for appellant. Braunstein & Zuckerman, White Plains, N.Y. (Lawrence Jay Braunstein of counsel), for respondent.
In an action for a divorce and ancillary relief, the plaintiff appeals from an order of the Supreme Court, Westchester County (Connolly, J.), entered May 10, 2011, which, upon a stipulation of settlement dated December 13, 2010, granted her motion for an award of an attorney's fee in the sum of $66,623.56 only to the extent of awarding her the sum of $25,000.
ORDERED that the order is modified, on the facts and in the exercise of discretion, by increasing the award of an attorney's fee from the sum of $25,000 to the sum of $45,000; as so modified, the order is affirmed, with costs to the plaintiff.
The Supreme Court improvidently exercised its discretion in awarding the plaintiff an attorney's fee in the sum of only $25,000. Considering the parties' relative circumstances, including the disparity in the parties' respective incomes, and considering all of the relevant factors, an award of an attorney's fee in the sum of $45,000 is appropriate ( seeDomestic Relations Law § 237[a]; DeCabrera v. Cabrera–Rosete, 70 N.Y.2d 879, 881, 524 N.Y.S.2d 176, 518 N.E.2d 1168;*714Moreira v. Moreira, 84 A.D.3d 899, 900, 921 N.Y.S.2d 901).