Attorney Profile
He is on the Advisory Board of New Perspectives, A Division of Us Against Abuse, Inc. He has appeared on many television talk and news shows, as well as radio programs addressing matrimonial and family law issues since in or about 1992. He formerly hosted the talk radio shows “The Unfamily Hour,” “The Family Law Hour” and more recently hosted the weekly talk radio show “The Mace in your Face Show.”
Mr. Greenfield has appeared in both Family and Supreme Courts in Nassau, Suffolk, Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Staten Island and Westchester, conducting both hearings and trials. He has made oral arguments, motions and appeals in the areas of family and matrimonial law in both the Appellate Division First and Second Departments. He has regularly been a guest speaker addressing Matrimonial and Family Law issues. He was a panelist at a conference held at Touro Law Center in March of 2001, titled “New York’s Family Court – Rebuilding the Foundation.”
The following are some of the successful results Mr. Greenfield has achieved on behalf of his clients (this is not intended to reflect on future possible outcomes):
- Mr. Greenfield has successfully obtained court decisions on issues of equitable distribution of the marital residence, issues involving separation agreements, and out right dismissal of requests for child support modification and changes of custody, all without the need for a trial.
- He has successfully obtained attorney fee awards on behalf of both male and female clients.
- He has successfully obtained court decisions for the support payer to have the right to tax deduct the children as dependents over the objection of the custodial parent.
- He has successfully obtained higher support awards for his clients where the other parent (mother or father) was hiding income or working at a lower paying job to decrease support.
- He has successfully obtained court decisions declaring a nonworking or underemployed spouse to be self-supporting, thereby denying that spouse support and/or counsel fee awards. This result is obtained when the credentials of the spouse seeking support and/or counsel fees proved that he or she voluntarily refused to work and/or had made no attempts to be employed at the level commensurate with his or her abilities.
- He successfully obtained a change of custody of a child to the father, after eliciting the mother’s admission of contempt of court (visitation interference and badmouthing the father to the child) just six days before the child’s 18th birthday.
- He has successfully obtained dismissal or withdrawal of Orders of Protection against his clients without the need for a trial.
- He has successfully had stay away provisions of Orders of Protection lifted, returning his clients to his or her home, against the wishes of the other spouse.
- He has substituted into long drawn out divorces without any progress toward resolution prior to his involvement, successfully settling or readying the case for trial within an average of six months.
- He has successfully opened up settlement agreements to recalculate support based on the failure of the agreement to comply with the law, and even had an entire stipulation of settlement vacated after a trial.
- He has successfully obtained permission for his clients to relocate his or her residence with the child, and as well, has successfully blocked relocation of the child for his clients. One of his clients was awarded attorney’s fees against the Nassau County Sheriff’s Department and Police Department for their abuse of process in ignoring subpoenas in Family Court.
- He has "yet" to have a client go to jail or be sentenced to jail on a charge of contempt. (Hope I did not just jinx myself.)
- He had a client who was criminally charged with his second violation of an order of protection within one year, successfully ended with a second ACOD, and no violation of first ACOD (Adjournment in Contemplation Of Dismissal).
Mr. Greenfield changed the law: At one time, once the statute of limitations expired so that you could no longer be sued in court for money owed (i.e., child support), the government could implement administrative remedies to collect the money (i.e., support collection unit garnishment or income tax refund intercept). Not anymore. Mr. Greenfield was successful on appeal in the Appellate Division, First Department which determined that the statute of limitations also bars administrative remedies. S. v. S., 279 A.D.2d 180, 719 N.Y.S.2d 2 (1st Dept., 2000), app. den. 96 N.Y.2d 719, 733 N.Y.S.2d 371 (2001).
See what one former Supreme Court Justice had to say about Mr. Greenfield (along with his adversary) in a very nasty divorce action:
“The above outlined written Stipulation was the result of hours of arduous negotiations between the parties and counsel, the wife being represented by new counsel, *******, Esq. and the husband being represented by ******** Mace Greenfield, Esq., Of Counsel. Their concentrated effort and practical guidance led to the successful pendente lite agreement. Indeed, on the consent of parties and counsel, and to avoid continued misuse of the mutual Orders of Protection, said orders were vacated by the Court on June 19, 2001, and this matter has been progressing constructively thereafter.” M. v. M., 2001 WL 1423133, 2001 N.Y. Slip Op. 40216(U), N.Y.Sup., Aug 13, 2001.