Posted on March 02, 2018 in High Asset Divorce

Determining the value of antiques and collectibles during a divorce can be trickier than with other marital properties. You cannot afford to overlook them as they may be some of the most valuable properties of your marriage. It will be too late to receive compensation if you learn that a marital property you gave away with little consideration is worth thousands of dollars. Your former spouse may have known of the item’s true value, taking advantage of your ignorance to receive an unequal share of your marital properties. That is why it is important to use a professional appraiser to give you an accurate value of your marital properties.

Identifying Properties

Marital property in a divorce includes any items that were purchased during your marriage or were maintained with marital money. Your spouse may have been the one to purchase and use the items, but your shared financial resources give you a right to ownership or equal compensation. There are a variety of antiques and collectibles you may possess, including:

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 Posted on February 27, 2018 in Divorce

Of all the costs associated with getting a divorce, a loss of identity may be one of the toughest. There was some comfort in knowing your role in your home, despite the misery your marriage caused you. Without your identity as a spouse, you may be uncertain as to how you define yourself. If you have children, the obvious answer is that you are a parent. However, that identity will lessen over time when your children become more independent. It is healthier when you have a part of your identity that does not depend on others. Being newly single gives you a chance to better define yourself. Here are four types of identities you may discover:

1. Professional: Whatever skills and experience you have in order to do your work is part of who you are. You should tie this identity to yourself more than a specific job. Employment can vary, but your work skills stay with you.
2. Hobbyist: The activities that you enjoy in your free time are also part of your identity. Your passions can dictate your personality and the type of people you like being around. Finding a group that shares your hobby will help further cement your identity.

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 Posted on February 23, 2018 in Divorce

If you are asking yourself whether you need an attorney for your divorce, the answer is “absolutely yes.” Representing yourself in a divorce would require learning complex divorce laws and applying them to your marriage. Divorcees may choose pro se representation in their divorce because:

• They want to avoid the cost of hiring a divorce attorney; and
• They believe the abundance of internet resources can teach them what they need to know.

Having a lawyer when your spouse does not will give you an advantage during your divorce. However, divorcing someone who is representing him or herself can make the process longer and more frustrating:

1. Playing Catch Up: People representing themselves in divorces are on their own to learn how the legal process works. Though they may try, they cannot ask judges or their spouses' attorneys for help. The filing of basic forms may be a struggle that takes longer than it would have with an attorney doing the work.

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 Posted on February 20, 2018 in Child Custody

Families across the country have begun observing Lent, which may include periods of fasting and abstaining from vices. Parents who are serious about their faith choose to observe the Lenten traditions, while younger children are likely following the example of their parents. What if the children's parents are divorced and one chooses to not observe Lent? The parent who does observe Lent may be upset with the other parent for allowing their children to lapse in their Lenten commitments. This is just one example of how different religious beliefs can cause conflict between divorced parents. They may be less willing to tolerate each others’ differing beliefs than when they were married. Divorced parents should try to respect their religious differences for the sake of their children.

Legal Rights

In Illinois, the parent who receives a majority of the decision-making responsibilities is likely to be the one who chooses which religion the children will primarily follow. However, the other parent may still have the right to include the children in his or her own religious activities. A divorce court will not favor one parent’s religion unless it believes the religious practices are harming the children. Examples include:

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 Posted on February 16, 2018 in Divorce

A person’s job may or may not cause a divorce, but research suggests that there is a correlation. Using data from a 2015 survey, an analyst calculated the occupations that had the highest divorce rates. The leading job was casino gaming managers at 52.9 percent, closely followed by bartenders at 52.7 percent. To put the numbers in perspective, the median divorce rate was about 36 percent. Other occupations near the top of the list included flight attendants, switchboard operators, telemarketers, entertainers, nurses, and various heavy machinery workers. Actuaries had the lowest divorce rate at 17 percent, with scientific and religious occupations also having lower rates. When examining the occupations with the highest divorce rates, there are shared factors that may contribute to divorce:

1. Low Income: Money trouble is one of the most common conflicts that may lead to divorce. Couples who have low or unstable incomes are more likely to be stressed and question each others’ spending habits. There is less margin for error when someone uses money wastefully or an emergency creates an unanticipated expense.

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 Posted on February 14, 2018 in Divorce

Romantic holidays such as Valentine’s Day can be particularly rough for people who have recently divorced or are in the process of divorcing their spouses. More so than long-suffering singles, the holiday reminds you of the relationship you have just lost. Unfortunately, your loneliness may convince you to make poor decisions in an effort to create some romantic spark. There are healthy ways to avoid depression during your first Valentine’s Day after divorce.

What to Do

1. Celebrate with Your Kids: This Valentine’s Day, you can shift your focus from romantic relationships to your loving relationship with your children. Purchase them cards and candy. Plan a special, home-cooked meal with them.
2. Find Other Single Friends: You are not the only person feeling depressed on Valentine’s Day. Hang out with other single friends as you focus on activities that have nothing to do with romance.

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 Posted on February 11, 2018 in Alimony / Maintenance

This is the last in a three-part series on the elimination of the alimony federal tax deduction and why you may want to complete your divorce before the change in the law goes into effect. We have already covered how losing the deduction will be costly for both spousal maintenance payers and recipients. When the payer no longer has the tax deduction as an incentive, the recipient may also receive less in spousal support payments. Fortunately, existing spousal maintenance agreements and those approved by the end of 2018 will be allowed to continue to use the deduction. This grace period was a relief to people who feared that the law would immediately eliminate the deduction. However, the new law is making 2018 a hectic year for divorce.

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 Posted on February 06, 2018 in Alimony / Maintenance

This is the second in a three-part series on how eliminating the alimony federal tax deduction will affect divorces and why you may want to complete your divorce before the change is enacted. For spousal maintenance agreements approved in 2019 and later, the maintenance payer will no longer be allowed to deduct the payments from his or her federal taxable income. The recipient will also no longer count the payments as taxable income. The previous post explained the financial consequences of the change. Spousal maintenance recipients will save money from their taxes by reducing their total taxable income. However, the new tax law may result in lesser amounts of spousal maintenance being awarded.

Negotiating Factor

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 Posted on February 02, 2018 in Alimony / Maintenance

Spouses have until the end of this year to complete a divorce settlement with a spousal maintenance arrangement that will still qualify for the alimony deduction on federal taxes. As part of the recent federal tax reform law, the IRS will no longer offer the deduction for spousal maintenance agreements that are created in 2019 and later. This legal decision has tax implications for both the person who is paying alimony and the person who is receiving it. As a result, it may become more difficult for parties to agree on levels of spousal maintenance. This is the first in a three-part series on how eliminating the alimony tax deduction will affect divorces and why you may want to complete your divorce before the change starts.

Cost vs. Savings

On a basic level, the elimination of the alimony tax deduction is meant to be revenue neutral for the federal government. The IRS will collect more tax revenue from spousal maintenance payers, but spousal support recipients will pay less tax because the payments will no longer be taxable income. When putting the new law into practice, it becomes clear that spousal support payers may lose more in taxes than recipients will save. Presenting a specific example can help explain why this is the case. Because men are a majority of spousal maintenance payers, the example will follow those gender roles.

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 Posted on January 31, 2018 in Divorce

As discussed in a previous post, the federal tax reform law passed at the end of 2017 will directly affect divorce negotiations by eliminating the alimony deduction. For all people who create a divorce settlement after Dec. 31, 2018:

• The party paying spousal support can no longer claim the payments as a deduction; and
• The spousal support recipient does not need to report the payments as taxable income.

Taxes are an important consideration when reaching a financial settlement during a divorce. Parties who would pay spousal maintenance may be more reluctant to reach an agreement without compensation elsewhere in the settlement. There are other changes to federal tax law that will affect how divorcees negotiate their settlements and file their taxes.

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