Articles Posted in Divorce

When people talk about the expense of divorce, they are referring not only to support payments and legal fees. Sure, those are contributing factors but there are many other, often overlooked, issues that can add to the expense of your divorce.

In an article for U.S. News & World Report titled “How You’re Making Your Divorce More Expensive,” Geoff Williams reveals other ways couples unwittingly add to the costs of their divorce. In the article, Mr. Williams explains how such things as forgetting about the tax impact, underestimating the expense of keeping the house, spending emotionally, overcompensating for the children, and even trying to “stick it to” your ex can add to your bottom line.

There is little question that for many people social media has become a popular way of communicating milestones and accomplishments with close friends and family as well as with distant relatives and others they have lost touch with over the years. People don’t hesitate to post happy events like new jobs, births, weddings and engagements, but less joyous events like divorce are another story. Usually such news is announced with a subtle change in status, but that may soon shift considering a recent ruling by a New York judge allowing Facebook to be used to notify an absentee spouse about a pending divorce. (For details, read “Judge rules that you can now divorce your spouse on Facebook.”)

Under ordinary circumstances, a person seeking a divorce files a petition with the court to terminate his or her marriage. The court then serves the other spouse with notification of the intentions, giving that person the opportunity to contest the divorce. There are instances, however, when the whereabouts of an estranged spouse are unknown and the person filing for divorce must make a diligent effort to locate him or her before the divorce proceeds. An earlier blog published on this site, “Divorcing an Absent Spouse Requires Detective Work,” outlined the basic steps to take when divorcing an absent spouse. In light of the court ruling mentioned above, posting to Facebook can now be added to that list.

A recent story on msn.com disclosed that actress Pamela Anderson was contesting an application for annulment by her estranged spouse, Rick Salomon, and instead was seeking to proceed with the divorce she filed for last month. While it seems both are in agreement that they want their marriage to end, this story raises the question: What is the difference between divorce and annulment?

Many people equate annulment with a religious process which ends a marriage in the eyes of their church. Although this is true, there is also such a thing as a legal annulment that has little to do with religion. Both processes effectively end a marriage; however, simply stated, divorce terminates the relationship while annulment reverses it. In other words, to annul a marriage is to declare that it never existed.

There are very specific circumstances under which an annulment would be granted, some of which are state-specific. The article, “What are the Grounds for an Annulment of Marriage in New Jersey” sets out the grounds for annulment in this State.

One of the biggest obstacles couples face after divorce is adjusting to their new financial status. The joint income that previously sustained one household now has to cover two. Making sure your finances are in order is a big step toward getting on with your life post divorce, but it requires a careful assessment of all your assets as well as your future financial needs.To make sure you aren’t overlooking any important aspect of your financial health, read the familyaffaires.com article “Adjusting to Life Financially after Divorce” by Catherine Allen.⁽¹⁾

1. http://www.familyaffaires.com/adjusting-life-financially-divorce/

January is often referred to as “Divorce Month” by some relationship professionals, while others think a more accurate description would be the month in which people start researching their options. In either case, there seems to be an increase in divorce activity, whether it’s initial inquiries or actual filings, at the start of a new year. In fact, the first Monday of the month sees an increase in divorce filings, which continues throughout the month.⁽¹⁾

The reasons behind this phenomenon range from the emotional to the practical. The holiday season plays a big role in the decision making process for many couples. People postpone taking action because they don’t want to:

• be alone for the holidays;
• break up the family during what should be a happy time; or
• appear cold and heartless for leaving their spouse during the holiday.

For others January is synonymous with a new start; it is a time for doing away with the old and starting something new.

Tax and financial issues pose more practical reasons why people wait until January to begin taking action towards their divorce. Because if they are legally married for even a short-time in the year, some couples can reap the benefits of filing joint tax returns. Also, some companies distribute employee bonuses in January and these bonuses can be claimed as assets by a spouse, possibly increasing the amount of a distribution his or her partner is entitled to. ⁽²⁾

Divorce is not an overnight process as most people realize. The time from which a person begins to entertain the possibility of divorce, until he or she begins to do serious research and ultimately files for divorce can take months. In fact, research shows that while divorce activity seems to spike in January, it peaks in March.(1) Once the petition for divorce is filed, getting a court date and negotiating a settlement takes more time. Continue reading ›

For most of us, the term “GPS” has become shorthand for the navigational system we rely on to get from one location to another or to help find alternative routes in the face of traffic congestion or road detours. This same technology, which uses satellite signals to determine location, can also be used to track the whereabouts of a vehicle or person carrying the device, with or without that person’s knowledge.

Whether or not such GPS use constitutes a violation of privacy rights or protections from unlawful searches and seizures as guaranteed by the Fourth Amendment has been the subject of much debate over the past few years. Now lawmakers in Trenton are expected to grapple with at least one aspect of this question once again when they reconvene next month.⁽¹⁾

It has been reported that Assembly Republican Leader John Bramnick of Westfield is preparing a bill that would make it illegal in New Jersey to use a GPS device to track a person’s whereabouts without his or her consent, a restriction that would apply even to spouses looking to catch their partners in adulterous situations or other incriminating activities.⁽¹⁾

Continue reading ›