Divorce

When you are in the middle of a divorce, the emotional challenges can interfere with the decision-making process. Don’t let your divorce cause you to make financial decisions you regret. Here are some of the big financial miscues people make in the midst of a divorce.

• You don’t have to keep the marital home if you are the parent with physical custody—Too many single parents in divorce hang onto the marital home for the sake of the children. Unfortunately, a lot of them don’t have the financial resources to maintain the marital residence
• Equitable division does not necessarily mean equal division—If your spouse engaged in adultery or other wrongful conduct, or if your ex has far greater resources than you do, you don’t have to settle for an equal distribution of property. Equitable means “fair,” but not necessarily equal.
• Don’t lose track of your monthly expenses—It’s a whole new ballgame now. Your income is different and your expenses have changed. You need to keep a log of all expenses, so that you know if you can afford the lifestyle you are living.
• Look at all financial decisions in light of the overall financial picture—Deciding what to do with the marital home should include a careful look at all financial aspects of the divorce.
• Make certain you will still get support if your ex dies or becomes disabled—You can require that your ex obtain a certain amount of life insurance or a policy of disability insurance.
• Make certain you get your fair share of retirement assets—Whether you worked outside the home and contributed to your own retirement plan or were a homemaker, you have a right to share in the accrued retirement plan benefits. If your ex had a defined benefit plan, you may need to retain an actuary to determine the present fair market value of plan benefits.
• Be careful about your liability for unsecured debt, such as credit cards—As a general rule, unsecured debt is a marital liability.

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Let us put our commitment, experience and dedication to work for you. To arrange a confidential meeting with an experienced Pennsylvania family law attorney, contact our office online or call us at 215-886-1266.

How to Get a Divorce without Going to Court

The traditional divorce can often be messy—attorneys for both sides may engage in time-consuming and expensive discovery (gathering of evidence). But it doesn’t have to be that way. There are a number of alternatives that will allow you to dissolve a marriage without bitterness or recrimination.

Negotiated Settlements

With a negotiated settlement, you identify all issues that need to be resolved—custody and visitation, support, property division—and engage in some good old-fashioned horse-trading, deciding what you must have and what you can give up, so that you come to agreement on all issues. As a general rule, the agreement is put in writing and becomes enforceable in a court of law.

Divorce Mediation

In mediation, both parties work with a neutral mediator, whose primary task is to help the parties find mutually beneficial ways to settle their differences. The mediator is not a judge, and won’t render any rulings. The mediator does not take testimony or consider evidence, either. Instead, the mediator tries to get the parties to understand the negative consequences of not identifying and implementing their own solutions.

Collaborative Divorce

In the collaborative process, the parties agree to resolve all disputes without the intervention of the court. To that end, they often retain third party experts to help resolve custody, support, property and financial issues. The parties and their attorneys seek to work cooperatively to determine mutually beneficial solutions. If the collaborative process is unsuccessful, though, the parties must typically discharge legal counsel and hire new lawyers to handle any court proceedings.

Arbitration or Private Judging

Arbitration looks somewhat similar to mediation, but divorce arbitrators have specialized knowledge in divorce and family law. In addition, an arbitrator (or arbitration panel) will always make a decision as to how the dispute should be resolved. That decision may or may not be binding.

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Let us help you protect your rights. Contact our office online or call us at 215-886-1266 to schedule a confidential consultation. We will help you stay focused on the issues that matter.

Good Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Handle Your Own Divorce

Statistics continue to show that one of the principal causes of divorce is financial problems. As a result, many people choose to save money and handle their own divorce proceedings, and there’s no shortage of websites and how to books to guide you through the process. For a number of reasons, though, being your own divorce lawyer may not best meet your needs.

Emotions–There’s a saying in the legal profession—the person who represents himself has a fool for a client. It’s not that attorneys are afraid of losing business. It’s that they understand the emotional implications of a legal dispute. When you are one of the parties to a disagreement, it’s nearly impossible to view the causes, solutions and outcomes objectively. When the dispute involves a personal relationship, it becomes even more difficult to separate emotion from the decisionmaking process. When there are children involved, you can just about forget about it.
Your Children–Of course, children are another good reason not to handle your divorce on your own. You may want what’s best for your children, and you may believe that your soon-to-be ex-spouse does, too. But do you have any sense of the impact your divorce will have on your children? Do you understand how your children will respond to different parenting or custody arrangements? An experienced attorney can help you make an objective decision that is truly in the best interests of your child.

Money–Though it may seem like you are saving money by not paying legal fees, the decision to represent yourself may actually cost you money in the long run. You may agree to pay alimony when you don’t need to. You may enter into a property settlement that unfairly benefits your ex. You may enter into a child support arrangement that does not accurately reflect your respective incomes. Your spouse may be hiding assets or income.

Finding Ways to Resolve Your Differences—Let’s face it…you are probably getting a divorce because you couldn’t find ways to agree on the things that mattered. What confidence do you have that you’ll be able to do that in a divorce proceeding? That’s one of the principal reasons you hire a lawyer—because you haven’t been able to work things out on your own.

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Let us put our commitment, experience and dedication to work for you. To arrange a confidential meeting with an experienced Pennsylvania family law attorney, contact our office online or call us at 215-886-1266.

The Grounds

As a Pennsylvania resident, you can choose to file a no-fault or an at-fault divorce, based on the grounds that you state for seeking to terminate your marriage. The principal reason to file an at-fault divorce is that you may obtain some advantage in the division of marital debts and assets, or in support/custody proceedings.

The Legally Acceptable Reasons for Filing an At-Fault Divorce

There are only six different bases that courts in Pennsylvania will accept to support an at-fault divorce petition:

• One of the parties to the marriage was unfaithful, or committed adultery
• Your spouse was still legally married to someone else at the time you were married
• Your spouse has been convicted of a crime that will result in a minimum of two years of incarceration
• Your spouse has been out of the marital home, without reasonable cause (military or other type of service, hospitalization, etc.) for more than one year
• Your spouse engaged in behavior that put your life or health in danger
• Your spouse engaged in behavior that made your life unbearable or extremely difficult

The Legal Justifications for No-Fault Divorce

There is no requirement in Pennsylvania that either party be at fault when a divorce complaint has been filed. Either spouse may seek a no-fault divorce if:

• The other spouse has been institutionalized because of a mental disorder. The period of institutionalization must be at least 18 months, and there must not be a reasonable expectation that the spouse will be released within 18 months of the finalization of the divorce.
• There is mutual consent to the divorce. In such a situation, each party must separately file an affidavit attesting to their belief that the marriage cannot be salvaged. The judge will generally wait 90 days before finalizing the divorce, but may do so without a hearing.
• The parties have lived apart for at least one year and a complaint is filed stating that the marriage bonds are “irretrievably broken.” If both parties agree, the divorce will generally be granted. If not, though, the court will typically conduct a hearing to determine whether there is a chance of reconciliation, and may order marital counseling.

Contact Us

Let us put our commitment, experience and dedication to work for you. To arrange a confidential meeting with an experienced Pennsylvania family law attorney, contact our office online or call us at 215-886-1266.