Money and Divorce
Achieving the results you desire is a three-pronged process
1. Setting your goals
Asset Protection
What do you want to protect?
In most divorces, a key goal is the equitable distribution of assets. But by focusing immediately on who gets what, people often miss important opportunities to protect and maximize what is there. In litigation, the game is simple – get as much as you can. Yet playing by the court’s rules can make the results seem anything but fair. In Mediation and Collaborative Divorce, our goal is to create outcomes in which both sides walk away with their dignity, emotions and–yes–finances intact.
In addition to missing potentially valuable opportunities to find win-win solutions, fighting over money leaves everyone poorer by definition. Money you spend fighting is money from which neither you nor your children will benefit. Rather than risking your future security trying to win today’s battles, I will help you stay focused on preserving what you have. Together we will work to try to increase the size of the pie, instead of just fighting about how to divide it.
2. Charting your course
Sound Choices
Managing cash flow can be a challenge for any family. In a divorce, resources are often stretched further to support separate households. The needs of children or elderly parents, or changes in careers, only complicate matters further. Yet choices must be made, and no one is in a better position to make them than you.
But the calculus can be more complicated than it initially appears. For example, while you may inherently understand the importance of crafting a sustainable economic plan for yourself or your kids, what about the importance of your former partner’s financial health? How might that affect your own comfort, sense of security and important relationships? How would your children perceive a dramatic inequality in lifestyles between their parents? What impact might that have on your ability to effectively co-parent?
So much of finding the right answers depends on asking the right questions. I will help you face the complex problems and have the difficult conversations so you are able to make the critical decisions with confidence.
My experience enables me to provide important information on the law so you can be sure you are making informed decisions. Very often in Collaborative Divorce and sometimes in Mediation, we also consult expert financial professionals who bring valuable experience, perspective and creativity to the process. All with the goal of helping you take care of what’s most important.
3. Formalizing your plans
Financial Arrangements
Everyone’s situation is unique. Yet in nearly every case formal financial arrangements are needed to ensure that everyone’s needs are met. Some needs are immediate, while others–especially where children are involved–must address your family’s long-term well being.
Just as with any significant life event, divorce merits taking stock of your financial situation and making a plan for the future. But to be effective, even the best plan needs reliable implementation. I will help you create a clear and enforceable financial agreement. Doing so can prevent confusion and conflict down the road.
Finally, we discuss the “what-ifs”. Nobody knows exactly what the future holds. But that doesn’t mean we can’t do our best to plan for it. Considering and discussing what may come and how we would want to handle it can minimize today’s anxiety and help prevent tomorrow’s crises.
Get in Touch
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