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Deciding which assets to seek in divorce

On Behalf of | Aug 30, 2019 | Uncategorized |

When you married your spouse, you never imagined that the day might come when the two of you would fall out of love. You intended to remain together “until death do you part,” but now you can barely stand to stay in the same room with this person who has become a virtual stranger to you.

It’s clear that divorce is in the cards, but you have so many questions about your unpartnered future as a divorced person. Where will you live? Who will get which assets and shared marital resources?

Think before acting

The choices and decisions that you make now can influence your life for many years into the future. That’s why it is important not to let your emotions rule the day when you prepare to divorce.

You don’t want to make a mistake at this critical juncture. It is prudent to seek legal guidance prior to announcing that you want a divorce — both to your spouse and others. You also want to ensure that your spouse learns of your intentions from you and not someone else with whom you have shared confidences.

Understand how Florida views your property

There is no community property in Florida, only separate and marital property. That essentially means that each party retains their separately-owned property that they had going into the marriage or obtained later. Resources and assets that were acquired after the wedding are considered to be marital property, and, as such, will be divided between the two of you.

You and your spouse are free to arrange your own property settlement and just have the Florida family law court sign off on the agreement. But often, divorcing spouses’ relationships have deterioated to the point where they are no longer able to agree on even minor points.

Your divorce could be headed for the courtroom

Divorcing spouses who cannot agree on the disposition of their marital assets typically wind up in court where the family law judge will determine the fate of the property in question.

The more the couples own together, the trickier it can be to devise an equitable property settlement. To reach accord with your soon-to-be ex, you must be willing to compromise. It is a rare settlement, indeed, where each spouse walks away from the marriage with all the property that they sought.

Remain civil

Taunting your ex and trying to get under their skin is counterproductive and rarely nets you what you need or want out of the marital property settlement. Instead, work hard to remain civil in your interactions with your former partner.

This is expecially true if the two of you have children together but can also be a useful strategy when divvying up the spoils from your marriage.

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