How to Protect Yourself Financially During a Divorce
In most Orange County divorce cases, there are a lot of different complex things involved, which are intricately linked to the separation and future of the spouses. In such cases, one of the aspects involved is financial. Finances play a vital part in the everyday life of any person, and when it comes to divorce, this issue is one of the most hotly contested ones. Spouses often tend to complain of financial issues during and after divorce, and the best way to avoid such situations is to take the necessary steps to protect yourself during the divorce process.
Here are a few tips on how you can protect yourself financially during divorce proceedings:
· Make Sure You Get Your Joint Credit Cards Cancelled
Cancelling your joint credit cards is one of the most important steps to try and protect yourself financially during divorce. When you have made up your mind to get your credit cards cancelled, make sure you keep your spouse uninformed about the developments. Any information of this act before hand can leave enough time for them to charge hundreds to thousands of dollars for themselves. Inform them of the cancellation after it has been done, and tell them that you intended on doing so because the joint nature of the card meant you were equally entitled to pay for them.
· Make Sure You Take Care Of The Joint Bank Accounts
One of the most common acts done by spouses in divorce proceedings is to clean up the joint bank accounts and hit the other spouse hard with this act financially. To avoid this issue, the best way is to move to another bank and open a new individual amount and take the cash that is rightfully yours from the joint account into the new individual account. After you have done so, it is important that you notify the other spouse of this through a letter. In most cases, the courts will have no problems in such an act as long as it can be proved that the fortune transferred was rightfully yours.
· Have a Talk about Extra Property and Expenses
One of the oldest ways to make sure your finances are protected is by cutting back on expenses. You need to, at some point or another, sit down with your spouse and talk about the unnecessary expenses and how they should be eliminated. An example of unnecessary expenses can be extra telephone lines and cable TV. It is also important to talk to your spouse about the extra property that is deemed unwanted by both, and whether it should be disposed off. All such properties like cameras and extra vehicles will be deemed community property and it will be an uphill task to sell them.
To learn more about the divorce process in California and how mediation can help, please visit our page, “What is Divorce Mediation.”
Gerald A. Maggio is a trained Orange County divorce mediator who has amicably resolved cases many cases out of court, as well as an experienced divorce and family law attorney. Mr. Maggio founded California Divorce Mediators in 2012 with the belief that although “not every marriage can be saved, every family can” and a mission to save families from the financial and emotional distress associated with traditional divorce litigation. California Divorce Mediators is located in Irvine, California, and serves the Orange County area and other counties in California offering divorce mediation, child custody mediation and mediation of other family law matters.
