A recent New York decision marks a significant, and in many ways historic, victory for domestic violence advocates and survivors navigating divorce. The case is N.S. v T.S., out of Nassau County Supreme Court (Dec. 2025). The court made clear that abuse within a marriage, including the transmission of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), can carry serious financial consequences under New York’s Equitable Distribution law, the statute that governs how marital property is divided. That statute was amended in 2020 to expressly include domestic violence as a factor courts may consider when distributing marital assets. This case shows just how powerful that amendment can be.

The Remedy Is What Makes This Historic

The headline is not just the finding, it’s the result. The court awarded the wife 100% of the marital estate based on the domestic violence she endured. While the wife testified to additional acts of physical abuse, the court’s recognition that the husband’s transmission of STIs constituted domestic violence under the amended Equitable Distribution statute is particularly notable. The decision makes clear that intimate partner abuse, especially conduct with lasting medical consequences, is not economically neutral in divorce.