Financial Distribution amongst Separating Couples during Divorce
Divorce not only means getting separated from the spouse, there are several other elements related to it. Separating the family finances is a major element, which may cause a lot of stress. Often the working member of the family is responsible for the finance management and maintains the financial record of the family. This might put the other spouse into trouble as he or she has no information related to the financial activities of the family. Information about family finances will provide a more realistic view of the financial situation to take a proper decision during legal separation. If you are a resident of Dublin and want to get proper guidance and follow the right approach in this matter, consult an experienced divorce solicitor in Dublin.
Sometimes a spouse owns bank accounts or properties without informing their partner. It is important to identify such hidden assets which will help in fair financial distribution during divorce settlement. In order to have a clear idea about the financial condition of your spouse check their tax returns, account statements, cancelled checks and savings accounts. Also check the courthouse which will provide you information about the money borrowed or information about loan application. Don’t think that your divorce specialist will be able to automatically identify such hidden assets. It is the responsibility of the separating couple to insist on thorough an asset search of their partner. In order to get the right financial share don’t get carried away with emotions. If there is a joint account be aware of it, as your spouse might remove all the money from the account. The main objective of financial separation during divorce is to create two financially separated households from a single one.
Distribution of Marital Property
Negotiating property division is another important aspect of financial distribution. After identifying the marital property, the court generally follows one of the two ways to distribute the marital property. These are – equitable distribution and community or separate property distribution. In equitable property distribution, the spouse with higher income receives a larger share based on the assumption that he or she has contributed more, financially, in running the family.
Separate properties are properties acquired prior to marriage as well as those received as personal injury awards, workers compensation or inherited property. Separate property is not taken as a part of marital property. On the other hand, community property is referred to as the property acquired after marriage and it should be divided equally between two parties. Find out the property owner and make necessary changes after divorce otherwise it might get you into trouble in future. For example, if the family car is in your name and your spouse gets it as a part of divorce settlement and gets into an accident then you have to bear all the expenses related to it. You might be sued along with your spouse.
Taking Care of the Debt
Not only the bank account and property assets it is also important to share the debt amount. It is the responsibility of both the spouses to pay the debts that are acquired during the period of marriage. Managing debt issues will help in securing the child’s future. Act promptly to close all joint credit cards. Make a list of all the outstanding balance and maintain a proper credit report to collect information about all open accounts.
There are four basic options in proper sharing of debt during marriage which are as follows
1. Pay off the debt by selling the joint properties
2. Pay the bulk of debt amount to get a fair share of the property
3. Spouse might agree to pay the bulk amount to get a fair share
4. In order to share everything equally divide the debt as well as the property
Financial separation that comes with divorce can become less difficult with proper analysis of the several financial aspects along with tracking past, present and future financial situations.
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