Attorney offers tips on dividing the assets during divorce

[caption id="attachment_11048" align="alignnone" width="560"] Bank assets[/caption]

Gordon Matilla-----Divorce is difficult, and one of the problems associated with breaking up a marriage has to do with who gets what and when.  An attorney has offered some guidelines in a discourse on how to make some difficult decisions during the run-up to divorce.

Understanding what marital property includes

In today's modern world, marital property involves more than just physical property. According to Forbes, marital property can consist of:
-Professional licenses.
-Stocks and bonds.
-Investments.
-Bank accounts - even those listed under a single spouse's name.
-Life insurance.
-Debts.

Spouses should especially pay attention to any 401K's or retirement plans that the other spouse has. Often, spouses think that they have no legal claim on such items but this is not the case.

Equitable distribution in divorce

When a divorce takes place, it is not only the end of a once romantic relationship, but also of the financial stability that a couple has created together. Even if one spouse stayed home to take care of the household and children, that spouse is considered to have contributed to the career success of the other. These contributions are just as important as the money and valuable assets purchased by the other spouse and are taken into account when it comes to the asset division.

The purpose of equitable distribution is to ensure that each spouse receives what is fair. This division process can result in one spouse receiving more or less than half of all marital property, depending on what the judge feels is best.

Things to consider and keep in mind

It is important for spouses to make sure that they have a full comprehension of what marital property exists. This requires having a separate team of professionals who can look over all of the financial matters and determine each asset's true value. These professionals can also assist the spouse in making sure that retirement plans are correctly transferred so that he or she is not hit with an unexpected tax bill.

Most folks know a house and cash are assets, but there are other items that fall under assets that are legally recognized in the division of ownership between the parties to a divorce.In today's modern world, marital property involves more than just physical property. Marital property can consists of:
-Professional licenses.
-Stocks and bonds.
-Investments.
-Bank accounts - even those listed under a single spouse's name.
-Life insurance.
-Debts.

Furthermore divorce settlements often entail spelling out how transferring property will be made and beneficiary status when children are involved.

In a divorce one or the other or both spouses may try to hide assets to prevent the other spouse from knowing about them or to prevent their being taken in a divorce proceeding.

All of these issues should be considered, as they can complicate matters for individuals seeking a divorce.  Often a martial counselor can prepare people in advance for the emotional issues that can develop.  And as one attorney points out, who has offered the information here,hiring a lawyer is usually done because of the legal issues involved.

And despite the concerns about divorce, it turns out that the rate of divorce is actually going down over the past several years, that some experts tell us has to do with the fact people are marrying later.  They are also more sophisticated about setting up agreements before marriage, although when it does come to divorce new assets may have been accumulated that can be part of new negotiations.  So it's important to sort these things out with those who can help, like a marital counselor to handle the feelings that can occur and an attorney to advise on legal matters.