You tried your best to save your relationship, but some things are not meant to be. Despite your best efforts, things got to the point where you were forced to swallow the hard pill of divorce. While the entire process is emotionally challenging and requires that you practice self-care to move on, divorce proceedings don’t allow you much time for that. What’s one to do in such a scenario?
One way you can get some stress off your shoulders is to hire a capable attorney for divorce. Navigating the situation’s legalities alone can be complicated and overwhelming, especially when you are nursing a broken heart. An attorney can help you resolve the critical legal issues you might face when getting a divorce. Let’s take a look at some things you might have to settle during this challenging journey:
1. Property Division
Now that you two have gone your separate ways, you’ll have to split your assets – or debt, if you’ve incurred any. You must identify and disclose all your assets and debts, proceeding by dividing them among yourselves equitably. Your assets include your house, stocks, bonds, retirement savings, and other personal property. Your debts consist of medical bills, lines of credit, credit card balances, and mortgages, among other things. An attorney can help you understand any debt and assets to be split, ensuring you receive the fitting end of the bargain.
2. Spousal Maintenance
Your financial standing can be severely affected by a divorce. Divorce can land you in trouble if there is a disparity between your income and your spouse’s. However, you may be entitled to spousal maintenance that will enable you to stay afloat for some time, and your attorney can help you get it.
While spousal maintenance is less commonly awarded today, you can attain it if you justify your budget and present that you cannot meet your reasonable monthly expenses. Additionally, you should be able to show that your spouse can contribute towards the amount. You have a higher chance of getting spousal maintenance if a family law attorney backs you.
3. Child Custody
If you and your former partner have children together, you must be aware that your divorce affects them too. Children take the news of divorce harshly, and both parents must come together to lessen the impact it can have. Children deserve to stay in touch with both parents, and you must devise a co-parenting schedule with your spouse. While the legal custody, or the right to have a say in the child’s religious, medical, and educational decisions, will likely fall on both parents, joint physical custody is challenging to execute. An attorney can help you plan how you can fairly co-parent your children.
4. Child Support
The expenses of the children should be fairly divided among the parents. Two factors determine how much each parent pays in child support: the parents’ relative incomes and the co-parenting schedule. While child support is relatively straightforward, an attorney’s services can still be valuable in ensuring your spouse pays their share of child support.
Endnote
Going through a divorce is difficult. Not only is there intense emotional turmoil in your life, but legal issues also need to be settled. You’ll have to figure out your new financial situation while ensuring that the divorce does not cause a rift with your children or detrimentally affect them too much. An attorney can assist you with your legal burden. Prioritize yourself and your healing in this difficult time, and let an attorney handle the rest!
