June 2008 - Posts
Divorce in New York is another one of those, hmm would you say confusing, tricky? Not sure, but it can get very in detail, if your are looking to divorce in New York, I like to remind people that if you are wanting a divorce, taking off and going to a different area or state, can sometimes make things MORE difficult, so lets look at the in depth look at New York divorce.
* To get a divorce in New York, you must have been married in New York and have lived there for up to a year.
* The grounds for divorce must have happened in New York if your are thinking of filing within a year and you must have lived in here for at least a year.
* Or you and your spouse must have lived up to two years in New York before filing for divorce.
Also when living here the guidelines for getting a divorce can also be very in depth and you must have proof that they did happen.
1. To receive a divorce you must prove that there was extreme cruelty or divorce in the marriage and that you do not feel safe with this person.
2. If you have been abandoned for up to a year, and have proof that your spouse has left and abandoned you for that long, this is also grounds for divorce.
3. Adultery in the marriage is grounds for divorce, but here is where it gets tricky, you must have proof that there was an affair, and they you did not provoke your spouse to do so, that you were a good spouse and there was no reason for the affair, along with that you at no time had an affair.
4. For a divorce to happen without any of this there must be a legal separation wrote up by the courts.
Now the divorce process begins when one spouse files for the divorce, called an action for divorce, and with proof and information on all the guidelines, and then the other spouse is served. As with most states the divorce process can go simple that both spouses will separate easy without a fight and that everything is agreed upon, if things are not agreed upon such as, child support, child custody, debt division and property division then a divorce trial date will be set.
Georgia is one of the states that falls into as the marital property states, which means everything acquired DURING the marriage is to be split in a 50/50 way, or as fair as possible. If the spouses are at agreement and can easily distribute debt and property, then the divorce courts allow that, but if there is a fight on who gets what, the court steps in and splits the property, but now they do take certain factors into play on who gets what. Not all property is considered to be marital property. Such as inheritance, gifts, income from an investment before you were married, UNLESS you have commingled these things in with the marital property. As I say in most of my blogs on debt division, its important to always keep any information you have on anything you get. No one is ever prepared for a divorce or think they may get a divorce, but its always good to be prepared.
So lets take a look at how the divorce courts use certain information and factors on splitting the debt and property in a divorce.
1. The divorce courts will take a look at the age and health of each spouse, along with the length of the marriage, was the marriage and lengthy one of a marriage under 5 years.
2. The divorce courts will take a look at each spouses financial status, and also what they will be paying after the divorce, and the assets they have.
3. The divorce courts will take a look at each spouses income. and their jobs, along with will one be going back to school?
4. The divorce courts also take a look at each spouses needs, and each spouses debts.
There are so many factors that come into play on debt division in a divorce, its always the easiest if spouses can come to some sort of agreement themselves, but does not always happen that way, again, keeping all the records of your information is very important.
Today we are taking a look at Georgia alimony after a divorce. Now a temporary alimony can be awarded during the divorce process, to help a spouse get back on their feet during the process. Alimony in no shape or form is to be a punishment to another spouse after a divorce. Alimony can have to do with a lot of factors when a divorce takes places. If a spouse was use to be a full time housewife, has not worked in say 15 years, taking care of the kids, and has no schooling to get a descent job after a divorce to support themselves, that is one of the alimony after a divorce cases. It is to help spouses after a divorce return to their feet, get schooling if needed to return to the work force, and just get back into the swing of things as you would call it. A lot of people forget that if a person has been out of work for a lengthy amount of time, it can be hard after a divorce to start taking care of everything. So lets take a look at some of the factors that Georgia courts take a good look at when determining wither alimony after a divorce should be paid.
1. OK when the divorce courts are taking a look at alimony after a divorce, age of the spouse, and the length of the marriage have a lot to do with alimony after a divorce.
2. The divorce courts also look at the spouses financial resources, what money do they have coming in, what debt will the be paying...etc...
3. Now if one spouse has not been working, how long will it take a spouse after a divorce to get the right education and or find the right job after the divorce, to self support themselves, is highly looked at.
4. The divorce courts also look at what each spouse brought into the marriage, who paid the bills, who took care of the home is also looked at.
5. The divorce courts will also look at the earning capabilities of each spouse.
Georgia alimony can be modified at any time if there is a major chance to one of the spouses lives, such as a remarriage, a change in jobs, living environment, and death.
Georgia is a state that can get a little bit tricky also when it comes to divorce, as Alaska can, both seem to have certain rules in the divorce, that does make it a little harder for the divorce itself. Maybe that is to help some marriages to be saved, with therapy and counseling, who knows, or to stop people for thinking divorce is just an easy way out of not liking a certain situation, but what ever it is, Georgia holds a little bit harder rules for divorce. Divorce in Georgia is referred to as a petition for divorce, and you must live in Georgia and be a resident for at least 6 months to get a divorce, that is the easy part. In Georgia you can not get a divorce and say it was a wrong doing, in Georgia to get a divorce, BOTH spouses must be in agreement of the divorce, WHEN the papers are filed and served, see that's when the divorce process will legally begin, when the papers are served, but if the spouse is not in agreement you CAN NOT get a divorce, and so you must PROVE one of the following to receive a divorce.
1. To get a divorce, you must have proof that your spouse is mentally incapable.
2. To get a divorce, you must have proof that a spouse committed adultery.
3. To get a divorce you must prove that your spouse left you, deserted you for at least a year and that you were not taken care of in ANY way.
4. To get a divorce, you must have proof that a spouse has a drug or alcohol addiction.
5. To get a divorce, you must have proof that was extreme cruel treatment and or abuse in the marriage.
6. To get a divorce you must have proof that your spouse has an incurable mental illness.
7. To get a divorce, you must have proof that your wife is pregnant by another man.
8. To get a divorce, you must have proof that there was sexual abuse against their children.
So in Georgia, you must have strong proof, if both spouses are not in agreement over the divorce, so that is where things get a bit tricky, so when the papers are served, and everyone is in agreement or proof must come about, then the divorce can proceed. Again if it is a simple everyone in agreement divorce, and in agreement over everything, such as debt. property, child support, child custody, then the divorce can proceed without a trial. If there divorce is more in depth, then a trial date will be set.
Last week we got into divorce and alimony in the state of Colorado, so today, I will continue with the debt division in a divorce in Colorado. Just like any state, it has its own way of dealing with divorce, and how debt and property is split during the divorce. Colorado divorce courts try to split property as equally as they can, they try to do a 50/50, but there are also some things not considered to be a marital property, such as gifts and inheritance, income from an investment BEFORE a marriage, anything that was acquired after a legal separation, any property that was gained to a certain person in an agreement, but now there is something important to remember in a divorce, in any state, is that separate property should not be commingled with marital property, such as money into a joint account and so forth. In a divorce they can always split that up as marital property. So one of the other important things to remember, is always keep your paper work on everything you have.
So divorce courts look at certain things in a divorce to figure who gets what in the divorce. So lets take a look at what and how debt and property is chosen in a divorce.
1. The divorce courts look at such things is who contributed and how to the marriage, who was the homemaker and who contributed in paying the bills and so forth, now even a home makers job is looked at, so do not think it isn't, that can be just as hard of a job as paying the bills.
2. How much the property is valued at and the payment of debt. They will try to see who can afford, if it needs to be sold, or if spouses will split things equally, or if the divorce courts have to make the decision on who can afford the debt.
3. The divorce courts look at if there could be an extreme increase in the property that any spouse is taking in the divorce. A lot of times if the divorce courts think one spouse is making out a little better, they will have property sold and a split of money in the divorce, to start over fresh.
4. Which spouse will be paying the bills in the divorce.
There are so many things that are looked at for debt and property in a divorce. The divorce courts want to make things as fair as possible, and help people return to life and get a good start on things.
Colorado has 2 ways of handling alimony after a divorce, just like any state, it has its own way of dealing with alimony after a divorce. Now a temporary alimony can be awarded during the divorce, but that does not fit in with the 2 ways it handles it, most states will sometimes do a temporary alimony during the divorce to help spouses get back on their feet, and honestly that is what alimony is after a divorce. If a spouse has come accustom to a certain way of living and possibly been out of work or never finished school for a certain job, then supporting themselves can be hard. The length of alimony varies after a divorce, it has to do with certain things the divorce court look at, which we well discuss in a moment, like age and length of the marriage if it is a shorter or longer amount of time alimony is paid after a divorce. Ok so here is the 2 ways that alimony after a divorce in Colorado is handled.
1. Alimony after a divorce can be paid all in ONE lump sum..or..
2. Alimony after a divorce can be put into payments.
These totally depend on how the spouses and the divorce court want to handle it, and also how long the length of paying a alimony would be.
Now here is the factors for alimony after a divorce, and the length of the alimony.
1. Alimony after a divorce, plays a huge part in how old the spouses are.
2. How long the marriage was...was it a longer marriage over 5 years or a marriage under 5 years, and was one spouse a home maker and out of a job or possibly did not finish school, all these play part in alimony after a divorce.
3. The history of the marriage before divorce, that is all looked at, did the spouses get a long, were there major problems?
4. Also the earnings of each spouse or the potential earnings of each spouse before and after the divorce.
Alimony can be changed or modified at any point if there is any change to the spouses lives, such as remarriage, job, death, etc....
Every state is different, we have talked about this on how it handles divorce, if you live in Colorado here is your key, you must be a resident of the state for at least 90 days before filing for divorce. The divorce process then will begin when a spouse files what is called a dissolution of marriage, that is what it is referred to in Colorado. So in Colorado, really divorce can be pretty simple, it is a no fault state, which means, the fault of the marriage can not be blamed on either spouse, the divorce courts will just ask if the marriage is broken and beyond repair. Once the papers are filed, then the divorce papers will be served on the other spouse and they will be given a reasonable amount of time to respond to the papers. The divorce process can go pretty simple in Colorado, just like other states, if everyone is in agreement in the divorce and the papers, then the divorce can be finalized, if not a divorce trial date will be set.
Now in Colorado there are reasons you CAN NOT and unless they are agreed upon.
1. You can not receive a divorce if your wife is pregnant, UNLESS you have with through extensive concealing for both spouses, and child support and custody issues have been set.
2. You can not dispute a divorce, which means, if you want a divorce in Colorado, get one, and there can be no fighting and faults in the divorce, besides your basic debt division and child support issues, there can not be a blame for divorce, or it will not be granted. Divorce in Colorado they want to be quick and clean.
3. In Colorado you can not fight over materials, all marital property had to be agreed upon to get a divorce.
Divorce in any state can get a little tricky, I hope these blogs containing information help people through out the world. Remember if you need information about an area you are in, I can dig it up!
We have been discussing New York divorce this week, and everything that goes with it, for those who have been reading and keeping up with the information, or if there is anyone who needs information about a particular state, just let me know, I do not mind digging up the information. One I am learning information myself and enjoy helping others, its a feel good thing for me, along with trying to put blogs into words people can understand, what is going on. I do not always have a dictionary beside me to look up terms, even though I am learning them.
So back to where we were alimony, each state is different on how they determine if alimony is to be paid. Like most states, New York will do temporary alimony during a divorce, to help a spouse get back on their feet, but getting alimony after a divorce, there is certain things the divorce courts look at to see if a spouse will. Alimony can be paid for a short or a lengthy amount of time and that all depends on certain factors, and many factors can be put into the mix. Alimony is referred to as a maintenance in New York, and it not to punish one spouse, alimony after a divorce is to help one spouse return to life after living another. So lets take a look at factors for alimony.
1. The divorce courts, will look at how long the marriage was, over 5 is determined to be a longer length of marriage as under 5 years is a shorter marriage, but if a spouse has come use to a certain life style, even a short marriage can have alimony after a divorce.
2. How did each spouse act towards each other, remember even the divorce courts will be looking at this, this is all examined, in the fact as I mentioned before, alimony is not a punishment.
3. The divorce courts also look at the over all health and age of the spouses, if a spouse needs certain medical care.
4. The divorce courts look at the occupations of each spouse, how much they are making, and if one spouse has been out of the work force, to be a stay at home wife.
5. The divorce courts then look at the spouses vocational and employment skills.
6. The divorce courts also look at what each spouse gets in the divorce, debt, assets, etc.
7. The divorce courts look at if either spouse has any special needs that will be hard for them to take care of themselves after a divorce, this can also come back into play with the over all health.
8. The divorce courts also look at the future outlook and income for each spouse.
9. Also if one spouse will have to return to school, or any training to return to the workforce, what will it take for them to be able to care for themselves job wise, this one also comes back into play with if a spouse was a stay at home.
The divorce courts take and look at each thing, and all of this comes into play and several of them may mix together for alimony after a divorce.
Dividing Property in New York is not as tough as the divorce process *a little smile* just had to toss that in there for a smile for anyone, now a days, I think we need smiles, especially when going through a divorce, but on a serious note divorce and property division is very serious, so if you are going through a divorce you want information, and the dividing property can be pretty easy to understand, where the initial getting a divorce in New York is a toughie, so lets get you some property division information. In New York the things you gain DURING the marriage, that is your important word, is considered to be marital property in a divorce, so we are going to go through this and also give you what is not considered to be not marital property if you have handled it correctly, now remember, especially if you have not been married long, and you feel a person has married you to get an inheritance, etc, that it is so very important you keep all your paper work, even if its been a long marriage, some things commingled can be fixed in the divorce, not always but its important that you have all information on anything and everything you have for the divorce.
Here is a look at the property that should be split evenly in a divorce your marital property, and divorce courts try to split it as evenly as possibly a 50/50 unless the couples are working together, to split things, but the divorce courts will look at certain things on who gets what in he divorce and these are the things that the divorce court take into play while dividing property.
1. The income of both the spouses in the divorce, basically who can afford what.
2. How long the marriage was before the separation or divorce has taken place.
3. The overall health of each spouse comes into play, does one have more medical bills? Also the mental health, this is huge in a divorce on who gets what.
4. Which parent will have custodial and non custodial of the children in a divorce.
5. If there is any loss of inheritance in the divorce or pension.
6. Is there any alimony to be paid after the divorce.
7. If the property is liquid or non liquid in nature in this divorce.
8. The future financial outlook of both spouses in the divorce are looked at.
9. If there will be any tax consequences in the divorce, for either spouse.
10. Did any of the spouses do any damage to the property before the divorce.
These are all things divorce courts look at, so now is a look at what is considered to not be marital property in a divorce.
Ok, anything that you had before you were married, now the key words to this are not to commingle it with joint accounts or marital property. Can be things from a separate business *that brings in an income*, inheritance, investments, etc...., now you can also gain inheritance after you were married, as long as you keep everything in your name and not commingle it with marital property or accounts
New York seems to be one of the most confusing or hmm tricky when it comes to getting a divorce, so here is some information to read over if you live in the New York area, for divorce.
Here is where we get a bit tricky, to file for divorce in New York, you must have been married there and to also file, you must have lived in New York a year before filing for divorce.
OR, to divorce you and your spouse must have lived in New York for up to a year, before you filed.
OR, the grounds for the divorce, happened here and you have lived in New York for up to least a year.
OR, before filing for divorce, if you were not married there or the grounds did not happen here, then you must live in New York for up to two years.
These really can be tricky of guidelines for divorce....Now here is a look at the grounds for divorce in New York.
You must have proof there there was extreme abuse or cruelty in the marriage, and it has extremely affected your life, even to the point that therapy will be needed. And that you are also not safe living with this person, there resulting in divorce.
If your spouse abandoned you for up to a year, this is also very high rounds for divorce, and the divorce can happen and start at any time, as long as you have proof that you were left.
There was adultery in the marriage, in these cases for divorce to happen, you must prove that there was an affair. in the past 5 years, and that you were a very good spouse, and that there was no encouragement at all for an affair to happen
Last but not least, there was a written agreement by the court for legal separation prior.
Yes the grounds and process for divorce seems to be a little bit more tough then other states, but really divorce is something that should be taken seriously, and if there are children involved, I have said this before there should be some kind of counseling for everyone. The divorce process begins in New York when an action for divorce is taken out and then the other spouse is served with the divorce papers. Then the spouse is given a reasonable amount of time to respond. Then there is research on the grounds and how you have lived in New York. The divorce process can go rather easy if everyone is in agreement, if not a divorce trial will be set.
There seems to be a lot of questions for the California area, so I thought I would do an updated informational blog on California divorce. I also like to put a reminder that if any time you need information on any state, please ask.
When getting a divorce in California you must live within the state and this is for counties also, and it runs about the same county to county in California for up to six months, that is state and county both now, before you can file for divorce. I like to remind people who just pick up and leave and then try to file for divorce, it is important to know each state usually has a time line of how long you must live there before you can file. In California divorce is going to be referred to as a dissolution of marriage. The simple thing about California, is that you have lived in the state and the county, up to 6 months, then you can get a divorce by simply stating there is irreconcilable differences in the marriage, there is no reason you want to continue with the marriage and then it results in a divorce.
A lot of states there are several different reasons for a divorce, such as abuse, adultery, drunkenness, drug abuse, but in California those are not used in divorce cases, you would have to bring up for a separate case if you wanted to charge for something. For California divorce these are placed under irreconcilable differences,and that these things have caused a breakdown of the marriage itself. so the other simplicity for divorce in California comes if the spouses in the divorce are in agreement of everything in the divorce, and that includes everything in the divorce, there can not be any disagreement or then a trial date will be set for the divorce. So if everyone is in an agreement over the property division, the debt division, child custody, child support then there is what is called a stipulation in the divorce, that says both spouses agree on the divorce, and that the marriage has ended.
The divorce process in California does begin when one spouse files what is called a petition for dissolution of marriage. Then the other spouse will be served with the divorce papers, and given a reasonable amount of time to respond to them. It is important to remember though for all those going through the divorce especially if there are children involved, that counseling is good for everyone to get through a divorce process.
Since we seem to be on Nevada this week, thought I would recap over the debt division there. Over the last couple days we have discussed the divorce process and the alimony process with divorce in Nevada, so here is a recap on the debt division process.
Nevada is referred to as a community property state when it comes to deb division. This says that everything gained during your time of being married, is considered to be both of the spouses, so then it is going to have to be split in a 50/50 way. The divorce courts will do their best to split the property as fair as they can in the divorce. It does help if spouses are not fighting and can go through what they want, but if they can not then the divorce court steps in. Now there will be certain things that should be considered to be a separate property in a divorce, so here is a list of what will be and be.
1. Assets that you had before you were married, now the important thing is not to commingle your assets, if it may be money into another joint account, then it can be split in the divorce.
2. Separate investments that bring in money, you had before the marriage,AGAIN, this is referred to as a separate property in a divorce as long as you have not commingled money into a joint account, then it will be split 50/50 in the divorce. If the money from the separate investment is not commingled and kept in a account with your name, then its yours in the divorce.
3. Inheritance from your family, this can also be inherited during the marriage, again do not commingle any money into a joint account........remember it is important to keep all your papers, information, everything that you have on your separate property, if things do get commingled, you can show the divorce courts, especially if it was a short marriage and looked like one spouse married for the assets. Again finding a good divorce lawyer comes into play.
Alimony is referred to as a spousal support in Nevada. When getting a divorce, temporary alimony may be paid during the divorce, to also help a spouse get back on their feet . But there are certain factors on if alimony will be paid after the divorce. So here is a list of how the divorce courts determine alimony after a divorce is finalized. The spouses earnings are also looked at in the process of alimony.
- Ages and health is looked at in the couples getting the divorce. The age and the health of each spouse has determining in alimony.
- How long has the marriage been before the divorce. Was it 5 years or under or longer. Length of the marriage is a huge factor in alimony, usually anything over 5 years is considered longer. The longer the marriage the more likely there will be alimony
- Has any of the spouses been out of the work force, need any extra schooling, to be able to get a good job to take care of themselves after the divorce. Also age and health will come into play here.
- Then the over all education is looked at in the spouse, will it be easy for them to return back into the work force, find a jog? Get more schooling? This is looked at in a divorce to if the spouse has to seek education to return to the work force, alimony can be paid during schooling.
- The spouses assets and liabilities are looked at. What each spouse will have to take care of and pay for after the divorce, is looked at in if alimony will be paid.
- The medical and health needs of each spouse. What are the needs of each spouse in the divorce.
Remember alimony after a divorce is not based on who's fault of the marriage, it is based on if a spouse really needs it to after a divorce to take care of ones self and get back on their feet.. As you just read there are many factors in how they go about choosing if alimony will be paid and also for how long, alimony can be paid for a short period of time or it can be paid for a lengthy period of time, that all depends on all the factors put together.
Hitting back on some divorce information for certain states. Divorcing in Nevada, and the rules and grounds for divorce in that area.
When living in the state of Nevada, you will have to live there for at least up to six weeks before filing for divorce, most people are lucky if they have decided to move to Nevada and then get a divorce, really, in most states you have to live in a state up to 6 months or longer before filing for divorce. A lot of people move and then decide to get a divorce not realizing that every state is different on how it handles divorce. Now here is the catch in Nevada if you have just lived there 6 weeks you will have to have a witness. They will testify that you have lived in Nevada for up to 6 weeks before filing for the divorce. Now the person that is filing for the divorce is the only one who will have to have a witness in this case, the spouse that is receiving the divorce papers does not. There are 3 grounds for divorce in the state of Nevada, here I will list.
1. There is what is called irreconcilable differences, and what this means is that both couples want the divorce, and the marriage is beyond saving.
2. In Nevada, if your spouse has been considered insane for up to 2 years that is grounds for divorce.
3. If you and your spouse have not lived together for a least a year, this is grounds for divorce.
If there has been extreme abuse, drugs, etc in the marriage, they can be put into the divorce papers, but in Nevada, if you are wanting to pursue being abused, you have to go through a separate lawsuit it is not in the stipulation for divorce in Nevada. The reasons for divorce in Nevada are kept very simple, this also stops couples from, fighting that this one did this and so forth. In Nevada the divorce process will start when one spouse files for divorce in any of the following counties where the divorce initially occurred, also where the non filing spouse lives, or where the filing spouse lives, or where you both last lived together, can get a bit confusing, basically can file in any of the areas as long as you were there 6 weeks. In There is also no waiting period for a divorce in Nevada. Especially if everyone is in agreement about everything in the divorce, up to child support, child custody, debt division etc... Most divorce are granted in about 2 weeks in Nevada or sooner. Although if there is a disagreement about anything in the divorce a trial date will be set.
We have discussed that every state is different in how it handles divorce and also dividing property in divorce. California is referred to as community property in a divorce, and that means you gained it during the marriage, and when you divorce everything is split right down the middle. So what is not considered to be community property in a divorce? Here I am going to give you a list of what is not community property, but what can make it community property in a divorce, if not handled the right way.
1. If you had any assets before you were married, these are to be separate property in the divorce. But here is the key, you must keep it separate from community property in the marriage, like if it is money, do not commingle it.
2. Now if you also have an income that is separate, before the marriage, say an investment, and you did not put any of the money gained from this investment with any community money, did not commingle it as referred to…community money is money usually made from your jobs and put together in a bank account together. If you have not mixed any of this money with your marital money and kept it in a separate bank account. If not they can count it as community property, so you want to keep things separate.
3. Now if you are to inherit property during your marriage from family, most of the time this is looked at as separate property. And most the time be considered your property you can take very easily in your divorce. Again as long as you have not combined any marital property with the property you inherit. Again this can result in a community property. Sometimes it is good to keep things separate. If you never divorce they can still be enjoyed by both of you, but if things do end in divorce, you have a few safe things.
Remember when you are getting a divorce, it is so very important that tell your divorce lawyer all the history of property, inheritance and investments; even if things have been combined together and you can prove that your spouse was wanting to take you in the marriage through divorce, you can get your property back….It can be a very tough fight, but you can possibly get it back...again finding the right divorce lawyer is important, and keep all your records!
More Posts
Next page »