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Court Says No Kidney and No Money in NY Divorce Case

By James Chau

Following up on a previous post about a New York doctor demanding the return of one of his kidneys as compensation in his divorce settlement, the New York State Supreme Court has just spurned his demands for the return of his organ or for monetary compensation.

Dr. Richard Batista insisted last month on the return of a kidney he had donated to his wife Dawnell Batista before accusing her of extra marital affairs and subsequently divorcing her. If Dawnell refused to return the kidney, Richard Batista mandated $1.5 million as compensation.

State Supreme Court marital referee Jeffrey Grob stated that it is illegal to place a monetary value on an organ. Dawnell Batista's attorney agreed with Grob in that human organs "are not commodities that can be divided as property in a divorce." However, to the satisfaction of Richard Batista's lawyer, Grob's ruling does allow for "sacrifices, magnamity, and devotion" to be taken into account in settling the divorce case.

Most property division in my Santa Clara Family Law office is not as complex as this case. Property division is usually a cut and dry, numbers process. Most people are aware that California is a Community Property State.

Not sure about what property you are entitled to in a divorce? My San Jose property division law offices can transplant our knowledge to you and help you with an equitable division of property, saving one from a divorce costing an arm or a leg. (or kidney?)

Full post as published by San Jose Divorce Law and Family Law Lawyer Blog on February 26, 2009 (boomark / email).