How does one prove that the settlement was not good enough, given the circumstances? How does one prove that had this or that taken place, that Husband would have paid less, and more to the point, how does one prove that Husband was the victim rather than the beneficiary of the settlement? It’s all in the minutia of the divorce dollars.

in Sevey v Friedlander ; 2011 NY Slip Op 02978 ;Decided on April 14, 2011 ;Appellate Division, Third Department we see that even the purchase of a car by husband is factored into the mix. Question: was he misled, was there malpractice, or did he know exactly what he was getting and giving, and now is simply carrying on war under a different caption?
 

"Defendants established that the settlement was, in many regards, financially favorable to plaintiff. For example, his temporary child support for his three children of $2,000 per month was reduced in the stipulation to $650 per month and he agreed to pay that amount for four years at which time his wife was required to pay child support to plaintiff for their son who resided with him. The duration of spousal maintenance for the long-term marriage was also capped at four years and, in fact, he paid for a shorter duration because his spouse remarried. Although he had received a $20,000 bonus on top of his $95,000 salary, his stipulated income included none of the bonus money. His spouse’s stipulated income from her small business was set at $28,000, which was an amount falling between her claimed earnings of $14,596 and the $46,703 contended by plaintiff’s expert. Moreover, at the time the divorce case was pending, plaintiff purchased a luxury car with monthly payments of nearly $800 for five years, an action that did not assist his position in the negotiations. Defendants submitted sufficient proof to shift the burden as to the element of whether plaintiff sustained actual damages.

Plaintiff contends that he would have received a more favorable result if he had gone to trial. On this record, his contention is entirely speculative (see Boone v Bender, 74 AD3d 1111, 1113 [2010]). "