Divorce and Money<\/a> for NOLO, a publisher of plain-English legal information.<\/p>\nThey may differ, for instance, in what defines grounds for divorce and what defines separation. And they will govern how long you must be separated before finalizing a divorce, as well as how assets and debts may be split.<\/p>\n
NOLO has a state-by-state breakdown here. But you also might consider paying for an hour of time with a well-regarded local family law attorney or experienced divorce mediator to learn more, Guillen said.<\/p>\n
Shearin suggested the same, noting that \u201cthere may be nuances that could make your situation very different from what you\u2019re reading online. And you may not be objective about what you\u2019re reading.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you already have a prenuptial agreement, it can inform a lot about how assets, debts and alimony may be handled in a divorce. But it won\u2019t necessarily override all state marital laws \u2013 for instance, if the pre-nup terms were not mutually negotiated and are considered to be highly unfair to one spouse.<\/p>\n
2. Understand how separation affects your financial rights<\/p>\n
Typically, all assets acquired during a marriage are jointly owned by both spouses (eg, income, investments, stock options, homes, etc.) Each spouse\u2019s property acquisition rights, however, end on the couple\u2019s \u201cdate of separation,\u201d which in most states means when there is a complete and final break in the marriage, Guillen said.<\/p>\n
So if you\u2019re both still deciding whether you can make the marriage work but want time apart, you might instead do a trial separation because it won\u2019t stop the clock on the marriage. \u201cNone of your financial rights will be impacted,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Even though it\u2019s not a permanent separation, where one or both spouses have already decided the marriage is over, she nevertheless recommends a couple draft and sign an agreement that clearly indicates it\u2019s just a \u201ctrial\u201d separation. It should include the term of when the separation will begin and end as well as what goals you have for that period (eg, evaluate our marriage, go to therapy, etc.). Also include a statement about how money will be handled during the trial period \u2013 such as how joint bills will be paid.<\/p>\n
3. Gather your financial documents<\/p>\n
Even for couples who stay married, both spouses should be aware of their assets and liabilities on a regular basis. But it will be essential to have a full view of the marital estate if you do decide to divorce, because each spouse will need to financially disclose all assets, income and debts to their respective divorce attorney, or other divorce professional they hire.<\/p>\n
Shearin, who serves as the director of education for the Institute for Divorce Financial Analysts, recommends compiling for yourself in one place \u2014 preferably in a digital cloud file \u2014 bank, retirement and brokerage account statements; mortgage documents; home appraisals; credit card statements; at least three years of tax returns; loan documents (eg, car and student loans); pay stubs; employment contracts; and insurance policies (eg, life, home, auto and health).<\/p>\n
Doing this before the divorce process starts \u201cprevents surprises and makes you better prepared,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
And it can save money, she added, because if you email documents separately or incompletely or fail to send some, \u201cthe divorce professional who charges by the hour will charge you to follow up and download each one. If you have everything ready to go, it\u2019s more efficient and less expensive.\u201d<\/p>\n
4. Draft a post-divorce budget<\/p>\n
Divorcing can be expensive for both parties \u2014 and not just because of legal bills.<\/p>\n
Before you move ahead, consider realistically what it will cost you and your spouse to live apart. \u201cMost families spend what they make. And now they have to support two households,\u201d Shearin said.<\/p>\n
If you need help, a financial adviser can help you estimate income, housing costs, insurance changes, child-related expenses and the lifestyle adjustments that may be needed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt helps you understand your financial needs before negotiations begin,\u201d she said. \u201cUntil you understand all the pieces, you won\u2019t be able to move forward in a way that\u2019s proactive.\u201d<\/p>\n
5. Don\u2019t make big money moves<\/p>\n
You typically will be advised not to move large amounts of money out of joint accounts, take on new debts or buy or sell property.<\/p>\n
Legally and financially, \u201cchanges to finances before filing can backfire,\u201d Shearin said.<\/p>\n
For instance, in California, Guillen said, if you make changes, especially without informing your spouse, you could be found to have breached your fiduciary duty. That duty requires you, among other things, to be transparent about finances, make financial decisions with your spouse\u2019s best interest in mind and not to misappropriate assets.<\/p>\n
And don\u2019t sign anything pertaining to your joint assets and debts without getting legal advice, Shearin added.<\/p>\n
6. Create a new email account<\/p>\n
If you think you will get divorced, create a new email account for yourself and don\u2019t share your password. This is where you will keep privileged attorney communications, divorce-related document storage and scheduling throughout the process, Shearin said. \u201cIt keeps all divorce-related communication separate, organized, and searchable \u2014 and reduces emotional triggers from seeing divorce emails in your everyday inbox.\u201d<\/p>\n
By Jeanne Sahadi, CNN<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This holiday season may be filled with the usual delights and stresses of buying gifts, hosting and seeing…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":373982,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[712,45,49,48],"class_list":{"0":"post-373981","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-apple-news","9":"tag-business","10":"tag-ca","11":"tag-canada"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/373981","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=373981"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/373981\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/373982"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=373981"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=373981"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=373981"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}