Divorce Finances
When people come into mediation, I give them the list of documents that they need to provide for the mediation process. I don’t usually speak about the things they should NOT do, but having worked with a couple where the husband found out at the doctor’s office that his wife had already removed him from…
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{3 minutes to read} Divorcing couples rarely think to address the subject of Wills and estates. In the divorce mediation process, these issues can be addressed and worked through before the parties meet with their trusts and estates attorneys. If they wish, the attorney may be present for this conversation in the mediation session. Attorney…
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{2:54 minutes to read} Many of us may have heard of couples who buy and renovate beautiful new homes, only to find out months later that this same couple is separating. We ask ourselves why they would buy a new house when things were probably not going well between them. Why spend all that money…
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{2 minutes to read} As I wrote in my previous article, I was looking back through some of my early postings and came across a 2-part series that I thought was worth a revisit. The first part, “Baby Steps,” talked about a step-by-step approach that a couple used to put in place a long-term parenting…
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{2:42 minutes to read} Bob and Jean were married for twelve years, but had been living separately, with no formal separation agreement, for the last 5 years. They came to mediation to work out the terms of their divorce. The big question that came up for them was, “What happens to the money accumulated since…
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{5:06 minutes to read} Many of the financial decisions made by couples going through divorce have tax implications. And while I am not a tax specialist and do not calculate the taxes that may be due following my divorcing clients’ decisions, I always alert them that taxes may be due so they can discuss those…
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{3:12 minutes to read} While not mandatory, add-ons are more often than not a major part of the financial support for children of parents going through divorce. Often, however, these expenses can be forgotten when talking about basic child support. The New York State Courts have established guidelines for parents of minor children to help…
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{2:48 minutes to read} When I first started practicing divorce mediation 15 years ago, the public’s perception was that mediation was for people who did not have the means to hire separate attorneys to act on their behalf. Mediation, therefore, was primarily a way for them to save money on their divorce. Over the years,…
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{3:48 minutes to read} Divorce presents a multitude of challenges when it comes to the valuation and equitable distribution of an existing business, not the least of which is a business dealing in fine arts. For the purpose of this article, we shall define fine arts as paintings, sculptures, drawings, watercolors and graphics. Depending on…
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{3 minutes to read} In the first article of this series regarding sharing the contents of your home when you are getting divorced, we discussed ways to divide The Basics—furnishings that have no real resale value. In this second article, I discuss artwork and collectibles that may have resale value and will be considered in the distribution of…
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