“I have helped hundreds of families work through the difficult process of ending a marriage,” says Lisa Owen, an attorney at Cauthorn Nohr & Owen with more than 17 years experience in family law. “It is extremely rare that a divorce starts out fully uncontested, even when both parties initially want one.”
With the New Year comes resolutions, personal goals, and a fresh start. How are you doing on your legal checklist? Make 2016 the year you get a step ahead.
Write your Will. It is best if you are the one making decisions about your estate and how it is handled at your death. If you die without a Will, a Probate Court will apply Georgia law to your estate. Simply put, it means that the Probate Court will divide your estate among your heirs (spouse, living children, heirs of deceased children, etc.), with your spouse receiving no less than one-third of your estate.
Generally speaking, the probate process will cost your family more money and may tie up your estate for months, or even years. It is better to take the time to make your decisions now than to wait for the unexpected to occur. Learn more here.
Get your finances in order. With foresight and planning, trusts are relatively simple to create. Try these simple lessons, and apply regardless of the size of your estate: • Consider the value of trusts to retain privacy and reduce taxes. • Be sure to keep all estate documents updated. Failure to do so can be expensive. • Get more estate planning information here.
Have the right divorce team. If you are going through a divorce it is important to have all the right people on your side. Divorce is a journey you don’t have to travel alone. While you will certainly want to gather a village of support, there are three people you absolutely should have on your team: a lawyer, a financial advisor, and a recently divorced friend.
Learn more here.
These are just a few things you can do to get ahead in 2016. Do you have other questions? Call us at 770-528-0150.
A recent book, “Primates of Park Avenue,” prompted a barrage of media coverage when it introduced the concept of a “wife bonus” — an annual bonus for a stay-at-home mom based on the corporate bonus of her husband. While media attention caused the author Wednesday Martin to backpedal on exactly how widespread this practice is on the Upper East Side of New York City, it raises an interesting question: How does a wife who doesn’t work outside of the home value her contribution and income? With no paycheck and no easily identifiable stream of income, divorcing women can hit a roadblock in court. But put divorce aside. Every woman needs to have intricate financial knowledge about her family’s income, and take deliberate steps to build her own net worth, separate and apart from her husband.
Here are some ideas that will help:
Build a relationship with your financial advisor. Do you know all the details about your investments? IRAs? Accounts separate from your general checking and savings accounts? You should. Money travels many paths through a family’s financial network.
Track expenses. This means ALL expenses. Little details can make a big difference. From daycare to annual couple’s vacations, you need a true understanding of how much it costs to be you.
Review insurance. Your life insurance should be separate from your husband’s, and you will want to understand how much insurance both or you have for the future. Insurance also has a bearing on your net worth.
Have access to cash. Yes, cash is king. You should have a readily available stream of cash in case of emergency — or in case your access to joint accounts becomes limited.
Need help negotiating delicate family issues? We can help with estate planning, divorce, custody and more.
